Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A great choice for visiting Tahiti and/or the Cook Islands, December 9, 2003
I have enjoyed Moon Handbooks guides in the past, and this updated 5th edition of Tahiti is no exception. There are obviously other choices out there on the marketplace such as Lonely Planet, but I've always felt that David Stanley's Moon Handbooks are a step above the competition because the guide is written by someone who has actually lived there long enough to really know the in's and out's of each place. I've used guidebooks to find some highly recommended restaurants and had a terrible experience there, and I've found hole-in-the-wall places that aren't covered by the guidebook and had a wonderful experience. I think this is a result of a guidebook writer having only visited each place once and basing a recommendation on one experience, rather than really settle down and get to know each place. The latter is the sense I received when I bought and read Moon Handbooks Tahiti.Much like the Fiji Moon Handbooks guide, considerable attention is given to the history, culture and people of the area. While this history may appeal to only certain people, let's put it this way... other areas are not spared in exchange for this information, so consider it a bonus over other guidebooks. The real structure of the book, such as the places to stay, places to eat, and activities on each of the islands is as good if not better than I've seen in better-known guidebooks. Furthermore, the maps are unsurpassed starting at entire islands right on down to city centers. I often take more than one guidebook on a trip to a destination anyway, but if my budget or my backpack only allowed one, this would be the one for Tahiti. Hope my review helps you plan for your trip. Bon voyage!
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21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best guidebook for any kind of trip to Eastern Polynesia, July 14, 2004
During my two big trips through the South Pacific, I always had one of David Stanley's guidebooks in my backpack. Stanley has been writing guidebooks to these islands for almost 25 years. Like his other Pacific guides, this fifth edition of Tahiti Handbook (which includes the whole of French Polynesia, the Cook Islands and Easter Island) is completely packed with information for the traveller. Tips for travellers
While planning, Tahiti Handbook will help you find out which islands will be more interesting, easier or cheaper to visit. Stanley gives a good idea of what to expect in the islands, while you can still have a great adventure and discover things on your own.
In the Pacific, this guide will save you money and trouble. Following Stanley's advice to sleep at Tahiti's airport when arriving at night, to wait for the early morning bus instead of taking a taxi to your hotel, will already save you the cost of the book. Accommodations of all categories are described, often including critical commentary. The same applies for restaurants and organized activities. Stanley identifies with any kind of traveller. He answers almost any possible question to arise on other travel matters. Incognito
I haven't used this edition of Tahiti Handbook in the field yet, so I can't say much about the accuracy of the travel information inside. However, during my trips through the islands, Stanley's information usually proved reasonably up-to-date. You can never expect everything to be correct, Stanley admits that. For every new edition of his guides, he makes a research trip to check the places listed in his book. On these trips Stanley arrives unannounced and tries to identify himself as little as possible. This way he is better able to experience a place like any other traveller. For this fifth edition of Tahiti Handbook, the Marquesas and Easter Island were visited in addition to more regular places. It would be nice to know what islands were exactly visited. If you feel some information is incorrect or missing from Stanley's guide, you can write him and he will seriously look at your comments. Lively and critically
The chapters on history, people and places and the references in Tahiti Handbook are an excellent starting point to learn more about Eastern Polynesia. In my opinion, some more attention could have been given to the language section: an extension of the Tahitian and French section and adding Cook Islands Maori, Spanish and Rapanui.
The biggest problem with this book, as with Stanley's other guides to the Pacific, is that you'll want to go to almost every island he so lively introduces. With every new edition, Stanley not only updates travel information, he also perfects his writings. Stanley won't bore you. It's obvious he loves the islands. Still, he does so without writing over-positive about it. Stanley will tell you about the French nuclear testing at Moruroa and Papeete traffic jams. As he puts it on page 3: `Through this book we've tried to show you the best of the region without ignoring the worst. Paradise it may not be, but it's still a remarkable part of our planet.' Three in one
Since the previous edition of Tahiti Handbook, the Cook Islands and Easter Island are also included, without making the guide too thick or expensive. The only I only place I miss in Tahiti Handbook is Pitcairn. Since it lies between French Polynesia and Easter Island, you would expect it to be included. It does receive more visitors than islands like Puka Puka or Maiao these days. For information about Pitcairn, you need to get Stanley's South Pacific Handbook. Maps and photographs
You can find 56 maps in Tahiti Handbook, including ones of more remote islands. Of the main islands; there are detailed maps of towns to show accommodations, restaurants, offices and more. The atolls of the Tuamotu Archipelago are a bit underrepresented. But since these are mostly thin necklaces of land, this is not really important. In general the maps in Tahiti Handbook are fine. Only the coloured map and the index map at the beginning of the book could be better: the lagoons of the coral atolls have all been coloured in like land.
There are not many photographs in Tahiti Handbook: two coloured ones at the beginning of the book and a handful of black and white ones throughout the book. Without doubt this helps to keep the price of the book down. Also, you don't really need photographs here: Stanley's writing will bring Polynesia to life for you. Take it!
Despite some small critical notes, I still give Tahiti Handbook five stars. There is nothing to match this guidebook. Take it when you go to French Polynesia, the Cook Islands and/or Easter Island no matter what your budget or style of travelling is.
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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Terrific Tahiti & a recipe for the Cooks, December 28, 2003
David Stanley's Moon Handbook, Tahiti: Including the Cook Islands, is one of the most depressing books I have read. As a travel writer myself I picked up the book to help prepare for an upcoming trip and this guide is so good, the world certainly doesn't need another one from me. However, having lived in Vanuatu and traveled many times to Fiji, I'm familiar with David's other guides and I anticipated excellence. It is a comprehensive guide on what to see, where to eat, how to get around and where to stay (for all budgets), which is what you expect from a good guidebook - but it's David's personal stamp that makes it so rewarding. It's informative, honest, and sometimes opinionated with a deep understanding of Polynesian history, culture and lifestyle. There are excellent practical tips on things like health & safety, where to get internet access and even toilets where you should take your own paper - but it's more the personal tips on how to make the transition from `tourist' to `traveler' that I appreciated...
"A wise traveler soon graduates from hearing and seeing to listening and observing. Speaking is good for the ego and listening is good for the soul." This book is a shortcut on the road to becoming a wise traveler. This doesn't mean it is all about getting off the beaten track. Tracks become beaten because there are worthwhile things to experience and they should be taken. David provides the `must see' highlights as well as information for those willing to explore further. Being a wise traveler is more about attitude than itinerary. As David says, "If things work differently than they do back home, give thanks - that's why you've come. Take an interest in local customs, values, languages, challenges and successes." Another undercurrent is David's realism and commitment to the environment. He pulls no punches, whether they are aimed at the countries who used this region for nuclear testing (particularly the French) or at those who pillage the Pacific for piscatorial pleasure - "spearfishing (is) like shooting a cow with a handgun." Allow a few extra dollars in your travel budget for this book and it will be an investment. The reward you will gain from your travels to this wonderful part of the world will be enhanced immeasurably.
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