Lonely Planet Botswana & Namibia (Multi Country Guide)

Discover Botswana & Namibia

Make peace with your creator and jump out of a plane over the dune fields at Swakopmund.
Brace yourself against the wind and fog on the Skeleton Coast.
Reconnect with your food by diving finger first into a steaming-hot plate of stew and pap.
Get a face-first view of the Namib Desert as you slide down a dune on a greased-up masonite board.
Scope some serious bling at Jwaneng, which produces 10 million carats of diamonds annually.

In This Guide:

Two dedicated authors, 146 days of in-country research, 84 maps, 41 Windhoek Lagers.
Victoria Falls special chapter, color wildlife section.
Incorporating 412 traveler tips and suggestions.

Lonely Planet guides are a must-pack” --Toronto Star, February 2006

Who We Are
At Lonely Planet, we see our job as inspiring and enabling travellers to connect with the world for their own benefit and for the benefit of the world at large.

What We Do
* We offer travellers the world's richest travel advice, informed by the collective wisdom of over 350 Lonely Planet authors living in 37 countries and fluent in 70 languages.
* We are relentless in finding the special, the unique and the different for travellers wherever they are.
* When we update our guidebooks, we check every listing, in person, every time.
* We always offer the trusted filter for those who are curious, open minded and independent.
* We challenge our growing community of travellers; leading debate and discussion about travel and the world.
* We tell it like it is without fear or favor in service of the travellers; not clouded by any other motive.

What We Believe
We believe that travel leads to a deeper cultural understanding and compassion and therefore a better world.

A Lonely Planet Country Guide.

Most helpful customer reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
Not the best Namibia guide
By June Bug
I've used Lonely Planet guides for trips a number of times, and always found them to be the best for independent travelling. After finding out that I was going to be in Namibia for an extended period of time, I immediately bought the Lonely Planet guide to Namibia/Botswana. The book is OK - fine, but is not as extensive or accurate as Lonely Planet guides I've used before. I didn't get the sense that the authors are that familiar with Namibia, at least in comparison to the authors of other Lonely Planet books. I have since bought every other guide to Namibia that is out there, and now after being in Namibia and traveling extensively for awhile, I have to admit that the Lonely Planet is the last book I choose off the shelf when planning an excursion or just general curiosity about the country (Bradt guide is the first). I haven't been to Botswana yet, so cannot comment on how good this book is for this neighboring country. So, this guidebook is OK, but not great.

*****UPDATE***** I just saw that the Lonely Planet had a new 2010 edition of of Botswana and Namibia. I picked up, excited that the Lonely Planet was going to rectify its Namibia problems. However, as I flipped through the new edition, I noticed right away that it had reviews of several restaurants in Namibia that have been closed since before I arrived in Namibia in 2007. These would be easy to check out. While other parts were updated somewhat, overall, still not up the the normal Lonely Planet standards.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful.
Disappointing guide for budget travelers
By mhnstr
Whenever I plan to travel to a new country, I always purchase a guide book to help with the trip planning. I count on the guidebooks to highlight interesting places to visit that might be off the beaten path and to give guidance on how to get there without spending a fortune. So, when I planned a trip to Botswana and Namibia in September 2009, I purchased the Lonely Plant Botswana and Namibia with high expectations. However, I have never been so disappointed in a guide book before.

Part of the problem is that the prices in the book are fractions of what you will really spend. To be honest, I always expect the prices in guide books to be wrong by a bit. However, the difference between the prices in the LP and what they are in reality is staggering. This is not the fault of the authors since the prices in Namibia and Botswana seem to increase every few months. However, one would expect that Lonely Planet might then publish a new version to try to keep up. The difference is so bad and some of the hotel descriptions are so inaccurate, that we met one owner of a guest house who told us that she has repeatedly asked the LP to remove her guest house from their books because people arrive with the wrong expectations. Prior to this, I have never been at a hotel or guest house where they have wanted to end the free publicity the LP provides through the hotel listings in the book.

The other problem is that the LP does not provide low cost options at all. I can easily find super expensive drive in safaris on my own through the internet. What I count on the LP to provide is lower cost alternatives and the LP Botswana and Namibia does not do this at all. Reading the book is an exercise in frustration because the book lists the $400 to $1000 US per night per person lodges, but not any way to do it for less money. Once I was on the ground in Botswana, I found all sorts of alternatives, but by then I had already made my bookings through research on the internet.

Information in the book is also just plain wrong. For example, the book states that there are no taxis or shuttle busses from the airport in Gaborone and that you must haggle to get on a hotel shuttle. However, when we arrived, we found people at the airport entrance offering a shuttle bus into town. To make matters worse, cities like Maun and Gaborone are currently in the process of building new, international airports and these projects will make the book even further out of date.

The book has a brief section on Victoria Falls, but lacks guidance on how to make the transfer from Kasane to Victoria Falls which would have been helpful (shuttle busses make the trip daily).

The guidance for Namibia is not much better. However, we found Namibia to be far easier to plan on our own than Botswana. That probably wont be true for long since we were told by one guide that there was a large price increase in Namibia just after we made our bookings.

The rapid and unrelenting increases in price for visiting Namibia and Botswana makes budget travel to these countries really difficult. Plan on spending a lot per day (mobile safaris start around $200 US per person per day and go up from there).

We eventually turned to the Bradt guides for Namibia Namibia, 3rd: The Bradt Travel Guide and Botswana Botswana: Okavango Delta, Chobe, Northern Kalahari, 2nd: The Bradt Travel Guide and I would recommend taking a look at these. The Bradt guides are far from being perfect guide books. They are not well laid out and the prices in these books are incorrect as well, but not nearly as bad as the LP. I would recommend the Bradt books in addition to or instead of the LP.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful.
Good resource
By T. Chapman
I always fear buying a guide book as most are out of date before they get printed. Fortunately this was released only a few months before my trip, so it was in much better shape. All the prices are out to lunch, but the listings themselves are pretty accurate. Maps are OK. Didn't check the Botswana part as I was just travelling in Namibia. Came across a few B&B's listed that don't do Breakfast... Still it was a good resource to carry along and I used Lonely Planet's online Thorn Tree for getting up to date info

See all 5 customer reviews...

Middle East (Multi Country Travel Guide)

Nobody knows the Middle East like Lonely Planet. From Egyptian oases, hidden gorges in 'the other Iraq' and hamams in Istanbul, to the old city of Jerusalem and the labyrinth of Aleppo's souq, we've got the whole region covered.

Lonely Planet guides are written by experts who get to the heart of every destination they visit. This fully updated edition is packed with accurate, practical and honest advice, designed to give you the information you need to make the most of your trip.

In This Guide:

Expert authors share their best experiences in Middle East Stories chapter
In-Depth itineraries that take you from country to country
Unique Green Index highlights the best eco-tourism options

As usual the guidebook standard is set by Lonely Planet-- Outside

Most helpful customer reviews

40 of 45 people found the following review helpful.
Middle East on a Shoestring
By Davis Good,am
When one takes the initial steps of such an exotic trip as the middle east, a guide is needed to educate yourself on everything. Even the experienced traveler will find their trips to Europe did little to prepare them for the Middle East. This is why this guide does so much for the independant, and is so invaluable. Lonely planet has a history of helping people travel on a meagre budget, however gives a warm and caring introduction as to why indulging yourself occasionaly in the more expensive treasures can make your vaction. The authors expell the myths of all around violence in the region and firmly warns you where not to go. The religion and customs sections are so informative that I found myself prepared for the basics of Islamic life and ready to learn more. This book inspired me to take the unbeaten path and to still take in the wonderful tourist draws. Ive browsed through the two other major guides on the middle east, they dont compare to the thorough down to earth writing that Lonely Planet produces. Occasionaly, there could be more entries on Long Distance Travel (getting there and away) and there could have been more mention of the smaller budget tours that are offered in the region, however I still contend that this is the best pick for Middle East travel guides for all traveler of all Budgets.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful.
Good for my purposes
By El Cid
Traveling to Egypt and Jordan and wanted a single guide to take with. This one will fit the bill, but missing some detail on the smaller sites we are going to see. I'm sure the individual country books have had more info.

I like the additional tips scattered throughout that point out curiosities as well as practical information.

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
First time Lonely Planet was so inaccurate
By damionwagner
Wow this book is out dated! I went to the Dead Sea in Israel in May 2010. The owner of the bungalows I thought to stay at laughed at the quoted rate that was about 10% of what he wanted. This happened in Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, Israel and of course Palestine. I use Lonely Planet all the time and this is the first time I have been disappointed.
The general knowledge seemed up to LPs normal quality.

See all 8 customer reviews...

Lonely Planet Oman UAE & the Arabian Peninsula (Multi Country

Nobody knows the Arabian Peninsula like Lonely Planet. Whether it’s exploring the alleyways of Old Muscat, bargaining in Abu Dhabi’s atmospheric souqs, diving in the Red Sea or finding the best spot for a desert safari, we bring you the most extensive coverage of the region.

Lonely Planet guides are written by experts who get to the heart of every destination they visit. This fully updated edition is packed with accurate, practical and honest advice, designed to give you the information you need to make the most of your trip.

In This Guide:

In-depth advice on safe travel in the region
Expat chapter packed with insider tips from our resident author
Only guidebook to cover every country in the Arabian Peninsula

Writes the author: "History", said T E Lawrence when pulled up by his biographer on a point of fact in the Seven Pillars of Wisdom, "is all lies anyway, so why worry". Why worry indeed, but I did worry: I wanted to be sure that ostriches didn't use their tails as sunshades (as one 18th-century travel writer would have us believe), and that Nile crocodiles were indifferent to the religious persuasion of their dinners. So began thirty years of independent travel that has taken me to 84 different countries on four different continents. Which is my favourite? Well I have fond memories of being lost in a rain forest in Costa Rica and nearly losing a leg in Panama; of beetles hatching in police custody in Sudan and the art of micro-copying in Pakistan; there was a wayward camel in Xinjiang and editing of books on Indonesian travel modes at the University of Hong Kong. I have slightly less fond memories of riding with herdsmen in Mongolia ? or at least of the wooden saddle: after that, the long trans-Siberian crossing through a grey Gorbachov winter, being pinched all night by Cossack women in pink nylon vests, was a 'standing room only' experience. But, in the great tradition of travel literature, I digress. If I had to choose a favourite country it would have to be England. A raw day in winter, with copper light on the beech trees of Surrey to be exact. As everyone knows, it's only when you've been to one or two other places that home and birthplace wins the top spot. A close second, however, would have to be my second home of the past 7 years, the Sultanate of Oman. Apart from its raw natural beauty and legendary hospitality, this is where, after six months travelling the silk route compiling a book on contemporary artists, I met my beloved husband. It is also where, while sitting eating egg sandwiches on a windswept escarpment in the Hajar mountains, I thought "What a lonely planet". It was only logical, then, to write up the experience for the publisher of the same name in Middle East (4th edition) and Arabian Peninsula (1st edition). All in all, I've had a long association with the Middle East: entomological field trips with parents in Saudi; a dissertation on Doughty and Lawrence (BA, Stirling University); a thesis on the perception of the Arabic Orient (MPhil, Oxford University); milking goats in Syria; watering poppies in Jordan; covering Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait for Arabian Peninsula. The connection continues with an off-road driving guide of Oman, for Motivate Publishing, and an academic writing skills course, akin to the work I produce for Oman's Ministry of Health, due for publication in 2006. So did they have sunshades? Did they eat heathens? "Actually yes"; factually no. But who's worried? My top travelling tip would be to pack some "willing suspension of disbelief", and be surprised when it delivers some universal truths.

Most helpful customer reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful.
Review of UAE Book by Lonely Planet
By Fred
Of the seven books I've recently purchase prior to my trip to the UAE, Oman, Quatar, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, this was by far the best reference book. The maps are not a fancy as in some other books, but the B&W maps they had were the most useful. The tourist guide provided was also the best of the books. I highly recommend it!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful.
Great Guide
By sunshine608
Good travel guide for the region. I enjoyed the history of each country and some of the tips provided by the author. I used this book for travel to Doha, Qatar and Dubai, United Arab Emirates and found most of it pretty spot- on. I had another book that focused just on Dubai, but I really enjoyed this book for the depth of information about the entire region. Hopefully one day I'll make it to some of the other countries.

As with any guidebook, changes ( especially in such a growing area) occur rapidly and some of the information in this book was outdated, but that was my only complaint.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful.
Lonley Planet-Oman
By Blumenmom
Like all of the other Lonely Planet books, this one is a storehouse of knowledge for any traveler. Before our recent trip to Qatar, I had a number of questions one of which was , "which adapter plug should I take?" It was a simple matter to turn to the appropriate page in this book and find that Qatar uses the "English-3-prong plug" and with that I was good-to-go! No detail is too small for the Lonely Planet series...and if anything, they may include too much. But I would be hard pressed to suggest what to leave out; just skip what is not of interest.

See all 9 customer reviews...

South Pacific (Multi Country Travel Guide)

With 10 authors hitting the islands everywhere from the Solomons to Pitcairn and Easter Island, Lonely Planet's South Pacific is more comprehensive and more rigorously researched than any other guidebook. See inside for the real story on tropical beaches, island resorts, blue lagoons and friendly Pacific cultures.

Lonely Planet guides are written by experts who get to the heart of every destination they visit. This fully updated edition is packed with accurate, practical and honest advice, designed to give you the information you need to make the most of your trip.

In This Guide:

Honest assessment of resorts. Read this book before you book!
Diving chapter takes you to the best of the Pacific beneath the waves
Unique Green Index to help make your travels ecofriendly

Lonely Planet guidebooks are, quite simply, like no others.' --New York Times

Most helpful customer reviews

43 of 47 people found the following review helpful.
Below the LP standard, and biased in the region's favour
By Maurizio Giuliano
As all of Lonely Planet's guidebooks, this is of course an excellent travel tool, and truly "sets the standard". Any traveler is surely better off to the South Pacific with, rather than without, this densely written and wonderfully filled book (even though, for this particular destination, the Moon Handbook for the South Pacific would also be a very good choice). However, two things should be said about this particular LP guidebook. First, its coverage is hampered by the region's magnitude and diversity. The effort to cover so many different islands, with their own realities, their own peoples and cultures, is surely a noble endeavour. Yet, it resulted in lack of clarity, and data which is vague or uncomplete, especially on some countries (such as those of Micronesia) more than others. Getting separate LP guidebooks for individual countries or sub-regions (Micronesia, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Samoa, Fiji, Tonga, Rarotonga & Cook Islands, Tahiti & French Polynesia, etc) would be a much better choice for the discerning traveler - even though it may involve carrying a bit of extra weight around the beautiful seas and skyes of the South Pacific. Second, this guidebook suffers from an evident's "author's bias" in favour of the region. It is quite natural and inevitable, and also very positive, for authors to feel that their region is the best and nicest on our planet, home to the finest wonders of this world (to have the opposite, namely authors who are biased against their own regions, would be horrible). Yet, not all regions of the world can be great and perfect, and their peoples the finest and most friendly. Unknowing travelers should not be led to believe this. The South Pacific can indeed be a very tough place: not all islands and places are as great and beautiful as they may appear from this guidebook, getting around and having a nice time is not always easy (in fact, the region can be horribly frustrating), and the people are not always as pleasant as one might wish. By following indications for visa requirements for the Republic of Kiribati ("British citizens do not require visas"), I found myself pushed back on the aircraft, having to force my way in order to remain on the ground, and avoiding one nigt in a cell only thanks to the intervention of HM High Commissioner. Likewise, in Nauru it is not true that "you'll get a visa on arrival, provided the hotels have rooms". The Otintaai Hotel in Kiribati (allegedly the best in the country) does not have hot water as is claimed in the guidebook, and the Waterfront Villa Hotel in Palau (allegedly "the best deal around") is apparently so simply because the owners are extremely rude and prone to cheating, able to make your stay in beautiful Palau a real hell. Altogether, many countries which may sound like earthly paradises, are simply not so. The people, who are made seem friendly almost without exception, can be extremely obnoxious and difficult, not always happy to receive foreigners - especially in Micronesia and to a lesser extent in Melanesia, yet not so much in Polynesia. The advice contained in this guidebook should be taken with great care. Yet, in the end this remains a truly valuable tool, in a region so hard to get to know, where getting around and finally managing to enjoying one's trip - for those who do decide to go - can be truly hard. The sections on culture, wildlife, etc., despite their being rather summary, are extremely valuable and provide enjoyable reading. This book may not be up to the Lonely Planet standard (we should also consider that this is only the guidebook's first edition); but, considered LP's already high standards, it is not bad at all.

32 of 36 people found the following review helpful.
Incomplete
By Readz Alot
A typically good LP guide, but be aware that while earlier editions of the title included the whole South Pacific area, this edition does not include Micronesia. (And LP hasn't updated their micronesia guide since 2000.) So if you're planning to visit Kiribati, Palau, or other countries in Micronesia, this guide won't meet your needs.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
Great intro to the French Polynesia
By V Atan
If you've never been to the French Polynesia, this is a great book to start with. If you are planning to check out a few islands as we did, it gives a lot of good information with low, middle and high prices. I particularly enjoyed the little history sections it had for each island. However, some islands are still wilder than others and Moorea is a great example. It was very hard to find places that were mentioned in the book, simply because the locals don't care as much about tourists as some other islands do and they don't mark their establishments so that they can be seen easily from the road. So take the book with you but always explore and find those hidden gems. We did and found amazing places.

See all 17 customer reviews...

Lonely Planet Estonia Latvia & Lithuania (Multi Country Travel Guide)

Nobody knows Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania like Lonely Planet. Our 5th edition has all you need to plan a trip to these three fascinating countries - lose yourself in medieval Tallinn, test your adrenalin-sport limits in Gauja National Park, or party with the locals in festival-heavy Vilnius.

Lonely Planet guides are written by experts who get to the heart of every destination they visit. This fully updated edition is packed with accurate, practical and honest advice, designed to give you the information you need to make the most of your trip.

In This Guide:

Features interviews with locals, including the former president of Latvia.
Includes full-color sections featuring highlights and the best outdoor activities
Unique Green Index for easy reference to the most sustainable options.

The most comprehensive guide to the area, with a chapter on Russia's noncontiguous Kaliningrad region, this guide combines background information, cultural insights, and information on practicalities. Outdoor activities range from stork spotting to bobsledding and bungee jumping.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Best for curious and independent-minded travelers' --Wall Street Journal

LONELY PLANET aims to cater for every independent traveller, whatever the destination, whatever the style of travel and whatever the phase of the journey.

Most helpful customer reviews

55 of 60 people found the following review helpful.
No improvement upon the old edition
By Andrius Uzkalnis
The best thing about this edition is its stunningly beautiful cover. It goes downhill from there.
The previous edition (was it around 1995?) was really, really very good; ahead of everyone in the business. I wrote a glowing review at that time. Since then, the countries have moved on at an amazin pace, but LP did not manage to catch up.
Cultural information is still good (and that is the area where fewest changes were needed). It is not as good with practicalities: the book is full of small inaccuracies - money, costs, payment options, transport information all suffer from lazy, complacent research.
Another sad fact is that the authors seem to draw upon their one-off impressions: waiters tipping themselves by not giving you the change, what's that about? Credit cards accepted in "main cities and towns" - well, hello, when did you last go to any of the countries? These things go on and on.
As for "Getting There" information, one wonders which planet are Lonely Planet researchers living on. Has anyone told them about the Internet? About cheap offers from the airlines? How long can continue with their ridiculously irrelevant drivel about bucket shops and courier flights?
A good thing that can be said about this Lonely Plant is that it is not of trademark "bleeding-heart" variety and that anti-American propaganda still has not found its way into it. You will have to get the Iceland guidebook if you want some of the most bitter, biased and unwelcome LP campaigning.
Overall, it seems like Lonely Planet is cutting costs, and the most recent thing that they have chopped off is proper research and verification. This is unfortunate, for the start was really good.

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful.
Accurate, detailed and competent
By Andrius Uzkalnis
In common with our Lonely Planet publications, the book is extremely strong on research and honesty; the latter sometimes can border with cynicism, but then I do not see anything wrong with this. It is perhaps a good idea to have realistic expectations.
For getting around, lodging and day-to-day needs, the book is superb (although upon arrival, you will also want to buy one of locally published "In Your Pocket" guides - these remarkable and inexpensive magazines are in the league of their own).
Unless you already know a lot about the history and spirit of the Baltic states, you may long for some more pictures and articles where timetables and opening times are NOT mentioned. In this case, Baltic States by Insight Guides can be recommended as a supplement - but by no means as a substitute.
The Baltic countries, which do not have a streamlined and shrink-wrapped tourist industry, are a destination where a Lonely Planet guide is needed, whatever your budget. Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are friendly and well-developed, but even premium-paying customers can seldom expect to be steered through their holiday or business trip without a bit of understanding how things work. This book is a perfect tool fitting this purpose.

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful.
By far the best guide to Lithuania
By A Customer
I am a fairly frequent visitor to Vilnius, and can confirm that this is by far the best guide to Vilnius and the rest of Lithuania, whether as to culture, history, or current attractions. (Leaving aside, of course, the invaluable Vilnius in Your Pocket which you should buy at the airport). I haven't been to Tallin since 1993, but the Estonian section seemed very good too. The Vilnius section of the competing Let's Go Guide to Eastern Europe is riddled with errors.

See all 27 customer reviews...

Lonely Planet West Africa (Multi Country Travel Guide)

Experience the best of West Africa with Lonely Planet. With our 7th edition you'll discover the varied landscape of this fascinating region - take a slow boat to Timbuktu, camp under the Sahara's starry skies, hike through ancient Dogon Country, discover Cote d'Ivoire's cosmopolitan Abidjan and kick-back on Ghana's palm-fringed beaches.

Lonely Planet guides are written by experts who get to the heart of every destination they visit. This fully updated edition is packed with accurate, practical and honest advice, designed to give you the information you need to make the most of your trip.

In This Guide:

Essential safety information provided throughout
Unrivalled activities and courses information for the whole region
Green Index to make your travels ecofriendly

…Lonely Planet, the intrepid traveler's bible...' --Los Angeles Times, April 2005

Who We Are
At Lonely Planet, we see our job as inspiring and enabling travellers to connect with the world for their own benefit and for the benefit of the world at large.

What We Do
* We offer travellers the world's richest travel advice, informed by the collective wisdom of over 350 Lonely Planet authors living in 37 countries and fluent in 70 languages.
* We are relentless in finding the special, the unique and the different for travellers wherever they are.
* When we update our guidebooks, we check every listing, in person, every time.
* We always offer the trusted filter for those who are curious, open minded and independent.
* We challenge our growing community of travellers; leading debate and discussion about travel and the world.
* We tell it like it is without fear or favor in service of the travellers; not clouded by any other motive.

What We Believe
We believe that travel leads to a deeper cultural understanding and compassion and therefore a better world.

LONELY PLANET aims to cater for every independent traveller, whatever the destination, whatever the style of travel and whatever the phase of the journey.

Most helpful customer reviews

43 of 44 people found the following review helpful.
From a returned Peace Corps Volunteer
By Jason Chance
This book is practically the bible for W. Africa travel. I lived and worked in W. Africa for 3 years (2 years as a Peace Corps volunteer) and I never went anywhere without consulting LP. The information is as accurate as anything out there. It offers you suggested itineraries and "off the beaten path" suggestions as well as the traditionally touristy destinations. Many parts are less objective than other parts and the writers tend to harp on corruption. But W. Africa is a pretty corrupt place in general. If you don't like the editorial sections, skip 'em, the info you need is still there.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful.
Decent info, but presented awkwardly.
By James S. Dodds
This is an adequate guide, but was disappointing in a few areas. Firstly, it is not geared to someone making a comprehensive West Africa trip but rather reads like a collection of individual country guides. It's OK if you are going to just fly in a hang out in a single country, but information about planning cross border itineraries is very thin. There could be better integration for the area.

Secondly, using the maps and references to them is a bit taxing. Place names that would likely be obsure to the reader are presented in the text without specifying country or area; the only way to figure out where or how is to scan maps randomly for some idea of specifically where they are talking about. Place names are often referred to with different spellings, or more colloquially, in the text than on the maps, making finding them once again a tiring guessing game. There is a lack of consistency. Beyond that, the maps are small and lacking in detail. In other words, you can sort it all out, but this guide makes you work harder than you should have to. You get the feeling that it was written by people who assume you already know the area well, and that it needed to be proofed once more.

I agree with the accusations of ethnocentrism mentioned previously, but I've grown used to it in LP guides, and in a way appreciate seeing the author's predjudices up front.

Use this guide and you'll have a fine trip, I think, but you'll spend too many hours wrestling logistic details from the text when you could be perusing the fun stuff.

I use LP, Rough Guide, and Moon guides alternately when I travel. Actually, I usually buy all three, study them all before departure, and take the one I think is most useful. I have not found any one brand to be consistently better or worse, it varies by area and author. In this case I think the Rough Guide is much better. It very neatly addresses all my reservations above, and with a better layout.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful.
Good Job!
By A Customer
I spent several weeks travelling through Ghana, Cote D'Ivoire and Senegal in late 1999. it was the first time i had ever travelled alone and this book served as my primary companion. although i didn't always agree with the ratings of particular establishments (especially in Cote D'Ivoire), I found it to be very well researched and handy to have both for its quick maps and background information on the countries. I also purchased the Rough Guide to West Africa, b/c I am a big fan of their series, but the Lonely Planet guide was by far the best for this region. Keep in mind that the political situations in these countries change so abruptly that you still need to be prepared for anything. For example, there was a coup d'etat in Cote D'Ivoire while i was there. I still had a tremendous time on my trip, and i know that lonely planet deserves some of the credit.

See all 27 customer reviews...