Travel with Children (Lonely Planet Travel With Children)

Lonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher*

Toting kids on the road? Our crack team of parent-authors has assembled the motherlode of ideas and advice for kids and families of all ages - where to go, what to see, and how to answer at least some of those 'but why?'s.

• Fully revised and redesigned
• Health chapter written with a medical expert
• Tips on choosing the right kind of trip for your family
• Special advice for solo parents and parents with teenagers
• Travel games to while away long trips

Authors: Written and researched by Lonely Planet, Brigitte Barta, Katharina Lobeck Kane, Celeste Brash, Amelia Thomas, Monique Choy, Korina Miller, Fritz Burke, Charlotte Hindle, Jayne D'Arcy

About Lonely Planet: Started in 1973, Lonely Planet has become the world's leading travel guide publisher with guidebooks to every destination on the planet, as well as an award-winning website, a suite of mobile and digital travel products, and a dedicated traveller community. Lonely Planet's mission is to enable curious travellers to experience the world and to truly get to the heart of the places where they travel.

TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice Awards 2012 and 2013 winner in Favorite Travel Guide category

'Lonely Planet guides are, quite simply, like no other.' - New York Times

'Lonely Planet. It's on everyone's bookshelves; it's in every traveller's hands. It's on mobile phones. It's on the Internet. It's everywhere, and it's telling entire generations of people how to travel the world.' - Fairfax Media (Australia)

*#1 in the world market share - source: Nielsen Bookscan. Australia, UK and USA. March 2012-January 2013

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

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful.
Good Book ... If You're New To This
By Arnim Zola
If you're a new to traveling with kids, this book provides a good overview. If you've made several trips before, you really don't need this book.

My own personal experience has been flying with kids from NY to Hawaii (10+ hours each way) and from NY to Hong Kong (15+ hours each way). I was hoping for additional tips to make things smoother in flight but there wasn't anything earth shattering here.

The book is broken down into a few key sections:
- Trip Preparation (52 pages, 8 of which is dedicated to air travel specifically)
- On the Road (20 pages on routines while traveling)
- Types of Holidays (21 page overview on camping, resorts, tours, etc)
- Destinations (155 pages on different cities to visit around the world with about 1/2 page dedicated to each city)
- Travel Games (4 pages)

So it's not a "complete resource" as the full book title claims. More than 1/2 of the book is a travel guide of various cities. And each city is only given 1/2 page of coverage. I would suggest buying a few travel books focusing on the cities that you are considering instead. (There are many travel destination books with a focus on kids. And most travel books have at least a small section for kids). I feel this book could have been a lot better if it used the ;ast half of the book for more travel tips rather than an overview of cities around the world.

GOOD POINTS
===========
+ Good overview of air travel with kids (if you've never done it before). Also consider the CARES, Child Aviation Restraint System harness in place of lugging a car seat. You can buy this harness for kids 2+ and it's FAA approved for use in flight. But this wasn't mentioned in the book.
+ Good tips on trip preparation like immunizations, medical kits, etc.

BAD POINTS
==========
- This book is more of a destination guide and each destination is only covered with 1/2 page of information on average.
- Not really needed if you've traveled with kids (successfully) before

SUMMARY
========
I love Lonely Planet guides and this was not the among the best. It's good for an overview for the inexperienced. It is not the "complete resource" that it claims to be.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful.
Definitely worth it for new parents, decent for experienced travelers...
By Y. R. Wu
Summary: An excellent resource for new parents (5 stars) who haven't traveled with small kids before. A decent value for more experienced parents (3 stars). Targeted at the "Lonely Planet" type - those who prefer traveling off the beaten path.

I have to admit I was somewhat jaded when I received this book to review from Amazon Vine - My wife and I have taken two toddlers (including a terrible two) to Taiwan and had three kids five and under to the Virgin Islands, Utah, Puerto Rico, Maine, and on planes more times than we could count. What could this book tell me I hadn't already lived?

For one, more than half the book (~185 of 275 pages) is dedicated to telling you which places are good for given activities (Beach, camping, cities, adventure, etc) while being kid friendly. It also gives a few pages on travel games you can play to keep the kids occupied. There is also advice on older children, up to teenagers.

I admit that much of the advice in he first two sections ("Before you go" and "on the road") seemed very basic, but I expected that given my experience with our kids. There are some good tips on how to address issues like schoolwork while you're away. Very little is rocket science, but it's a thorough resource for covering all the bases.

We have several extensive travel checklists - one for overnight road trips, others for week long trips by plane. A sample checklist for different scenarios would have been a good add.

In fact, I'd recommend anyone traveling with kids adopt this approach - it's not like you can easily go get the right kind of pacifier or lovey at 11 am in a foreign country....

Full disclosure: I received this item through the Amazon "Vine" program

If you've found this review helpful, please let me know!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful.
Not much more than your average parent already knows
By Bookphile
When I travel, I usually swear by travel guides. Thanks to the insider information provided by some of them, I've seen truly extraordinary sights in places such as Hawaii and Paris that I would otherwise not have known existed. My general rule of thumb when preparing for a trip is to get myself a good guidebook.

Naturally, I was excited about this one. My husband and I are planning a trip to Europe next summer and we will be taking along a six-year-old and a one-year-old. We have some ideas of things we can do that will be fun for the kids but I was looking for some hidden gems that wouldn't be known to the casual traveler, the kinds of tips that only insiders would know about and that would help us to make this a wonderful trip for the kids.

I eagerly turned to the section on Europe only to find it extremely slim. Apparently, countries like Germany, Belgium, and Switzerland--amongst others--are a total waste of time if you have kids as they are not even covered in the book. Even the countries that are covered--such as France and Italy--consist of little more than some very general information. Thanks to the guidebook, I now know that taking the kids for a gelato in Italy should prove an enjoyable experience for them. I'm sure I would never have thought of this myself. Really, the only thing worthwhile are the hotels named in various regions as that does give me something of an idea of good places to stay with kids. I did also find the bits of information on how people of other cultures respond to kids to be somewhat informative. Still, there is no real insightful information here and I'd venture to say that any parent would deduce that taking their kids to Euro Disney would likely go over well with said children.

The only other part of the book that I found at all useful was the section on travel games. There were some good ideas in there as to games to keep the kids occupied not only while in the car but also while standing in line waiting to enter tourist attractions. I will definitely test some of these suggestions when we are on our trip.

Other than that, there is really nothing to recommend this guide. I'd definitely advise spending your hard-earned dollars on a Frommer's or Fodor's guide. They may not specifically be tailored toward family travel but they offer plenty of insider information that will allow any parent to make a more informed decision about what to see and what to pass up while traveling with the little ones. Not so of this guidebook.

See all 40 customer reviews...

India Travel Survival Guide For Women

This book is one of the most comprehensive of all travel books dedicated for the female traveller to India. It covers the most important aspect of travelling in India - safety. The fact that rapes in India is on the rise and foreign women are also at risk; the book is directed to those female travellers who are considering travelling to India on their own. 

The book has been designed taking the solo female traveller to India into consideration and the problems they face and how to overcome them; some of which include rape, verbal, sexual, physical assault and/or harassment, groping and other issues faced by foreign women in India. The book also gives an insight on how 'white women' are viewed by Indian men. 

The book covers major areas of safety including how to avoid rape, how to be safe in Indian hotels, what to wear, travelling alone and being safe in a country where women are often treated like objects rather than human beings. This book is a practical and essential resource for women travelling safely in India so that they can enjoy this magnificent country by overcoming their safety concerns. 

It's better to be safe than sorry. So pick up your copy of "India Travel Survival Guide For Women" today to prevent yourself from being targeted and make your life and travels in India easier.

From the author:
The book stems out of my experiences of travelling in India and around the world. I therefore hope to portray true pictures of the realities and issues facing travelling foreign women. My aims are to help overcome the issues faced by women travelling solo in India. This book will therefore be helpful to those who wish to travel alone or in groups.

Shalu Sharma is a traveller, a blogger and a social media enthusiast. She writes on her blog, tweets and wastes a lot of time on Facebook. She lives in India with her husband, two children, a fat cow, a goat and 5 chickens. Despite having a Masters in Business Administration, she accidentally took out a huge mortgage and has no idea how to pay it off. Find her on ShaluSharma.com. 

Most helpful customer reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful.
Really useful information for the female traveler
By anjgi
A long overdue book for women traveling to India. The chapters were well conceived and the information imparted was thought provoking and genuinely useful. Women should not be afraid to travel and this book is a definite must buy if you are thinking of a trip to India.It's possibly also very useful for men too, because many of the tips about safety and customs are common sense insights into another culture's way of life. Shalu's passion for India shines throughout. Go buy, and travel with confidence.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful.
A reality opener to the Indian culture with care taken to not discourage Indian travel.
By Michael Belk
This book is very helpful to someone considering Indian travel. India is a culture like most when it comes to crimes however, it has issues that are surprising to many foreign tourists. The author covers the harsh realities of crimes committed against tourists. The crimes are a reality however, no one should be discouraged from visiting this beautiful country. The book gives the reader many helpful tips to consider before placing themselves in a vulnerable criminal situation. Things to remember about India or any other unfamiliar culture is to take the proper caution when dealing with potential criminals. I highly recommend the book for several reasons however, I was really impressed with the extra travel tips given by the author in relation to non-criminal acts. The crimes against women are well documented in the book however, Shalu also warns women against feeling too comfortable when traveling with singe-male protection. When I read that no one is safe just because they are traveling in pairs; I immediately realized these are not just travel safety tips for women because men are sometimes victims as well. One should take care when travelling anywhere, whether it be overseas or down the street. Crimes are awful, but they are not isolated to one section of the world. You will learn many travel tips you should consider before traveling to India. This information is given to the reader with no attention to profit from the author.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
Practical and useful
By desi Traveler
Traveling in India can be confusing and scary even for Indians due to many languages, food habits and cultural differences between different regions and states of India, so you can imagine how a first time visitor to India from a foreign country will feel. The book is written in simple language as it targets the average traveler who need practical suggestions. As the author herself is a women traveler, she has given first hand experience on traveling in India as well as cited news reports about experiences of women travelers who faced extreme cases of violence and rape. The author gives very practical advice which cam make your trip safe and enjoyable. Now some of the tips may appear to a person coming to India as very simple but they make perfect sense, e.g. do not eat anything offered by somebody on train, as there were incidents where the food was drugged. Or take for example the concept of putting a chain on your luggage under the train seat. I am sure a first time visitor to India would have no idea why this is needed.

While the newspaper headlines can scare you, with a bit of precautions and common sense you can have an enjoyable experience and that is what the book tries to achieve. Some of the reports may appear too graphic to western readers, but they have been taken from news reports and not made up.

I think if you are first time visitor to India of either sex, it would be a good idea to read this book written in a very practical matter of fact style by somebody who understand India very well and has personally traveled in India.

See all 40 customer reviews...

A Life Sold - What Ever Happened to That Guy

What on earth would make someone decide to put their whole life up for sale... on eBay?

When Ian Usher decided that it was time to leave the past behind and move on to the next chapter of his life, that is exactly what he did. The results were surprising, entertaining and challenging.

However, the auction was only the beginning of the adventure. What does someone do when they have sold their life? Well, just about anything they like really!

Armed with a list of 100 lifetime goals, and a self-imposed timeframe of 100 weeks, Ian embarked on what could truly be described as the journey of a lifetime - a global adventure spanning six continents, two years, and almost every emotion.

From the amazing highs of achievement, happiness and love, to the terrible lows of disappointment, loneliness and despair, come along and enjoy the rollercoaster ride of life, as experienced by one traveller who is simply looking for a new start.

"A Life Sold" is proudly offered by Wider Vision Publishing. We specialise in amazing and uplifting stories in the travel/adventure/personal journey genre. This wonderful book certainly fulfils all three criteria many times over - a two-year journey filled with adrenaline-fuelled fun, and an emotional search for a fresh start, and a new home.

Ian Usher was born in 1963 in Darlington in the north-east of England. He grew up in the small northern market town of Barnard Castle, and went to college in Liverpool, gaining a teaching degree in Outdoor Education. A varied and chaotic career followed, involving many jobs, locations and businesses. From 1992 to 1996 he ran Scarborough Jet Skiing in partnership with long-time best friend Bruce. It was on the beach during this time that he met his wife-to-be. Laura and Ian married in 2000, and they moved together to Perth in Western Australia. The marriage ended five years later, and in 2008 Ian put his life up for sale on eBay! Two years of travel followed, in which he tackled a list of 100 goals, aiming to achieve them all in a period of 100 weeks. He currently lives in Whitehorse in Canada.

Most helpful customer reviews

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful.
Living every desk jockey's fantasy life
By theglobalguy
I met Ian in Nepal when he and I happened to be on the same trek to Everest Base Camp. I had a vague recollection of the story of the guy who put his entire life up on E-bay, and was amazed at the coincidence that would bring that guy into my own life. Ian was a joy to travel with, and his stories of his adventures kept me laughing and entertained through our two week journey. When he told me that he was thinking of turning the entire adventure into a book, I couldn't wait to read it. Well, now that the book is published, I'm pleased to have been able to finally read about his back story, previous adventures, and the events that followed his and my adventure together.

The book is well written, with a combination of blog entries and personnal narration. Switching between the styles is easy on the brain, and never feels disruptive to the narrative. His writing is laid back, funny, and very personal at times. This is a person who has had more than his share of personal challenges, and been able to find the good in everything. It's a great testimony to the human spirit, and the tendency of humankind to help a traveler, no matter where he hails from.

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful.
It's about the journey...
By RunsWithScissors
I sat down to read this book thinking I would just start it, but could not put it down! I read the entire book in one sitting. When I was done, I felt that I had traveled around the world with Ian, and was better for it. I cheered with him, cried with him, and relived the joy of healing from a broken heart. I was inspired. The book is framed around Ian's goals, but really it's about so much more. The very thing that catapulted Ian into action worldwide is what brought him such joy in the end, with a hell of a journey along the way.

The writing flows well, is accessible and enjoyable with just enough detail. I felt I was along for the ride, and was welcomed to join in the fun, just as Ian so freely shared his goals with so many others. The goals are interesting and enjoyable, and the people Ian meets are just as much fun as the goals. I felt I shared parts of my bucket list with Ian, and although he beat me to it, his accounts invite me to feel heroic and relaxed enough to follow. (Except, I'll never run with the bulls!) There are lots of good travel tips. The book reads in parts like a helpful TripTik, and is very informative about details that matter.

The book reminds us that life is not as much about the destination as it is about the journey, that we are all more alike than different, and that anything done with good intentions and an open heart can't be wrong. Oh, and there's a very happy ending. Expect tears again. It's a good thing.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful.
A great read for a real life adventure!
By Sonny
Having experienced many of the same struggles as Ian, I easily identified with his unique and challenging journey through life, this world and the most difficult: Where am I going? How will I get there? Will I find the true love of my life? I HIGHLY recommend this book for so many reasons but mostly because Ian's casual attitude comes through his writing. You experience the same highs and lows that people experience when traveling. Forcing himself to trust in his fellow man and hoping for the best in total strangers can be daunting and a little scary. Ian's two year odyssey will give you much to ponder as well as practical advise for globe trotting on a budget. Pick up this book and you will have a hard time putting it down! Congrats Ian!

See all 42 customer reviews...

Lonely Planet Israel & the Palestinian Territories (Country Travel Guide)

Lonely Planet knows the magic of Israel and the Palestinian Territories. We've walked the lively alleyways in Nazareth and Jerusalem, explored biblical ruins, slept under the starry Negev skies and floated weightless in the Dead Sea. Take your own unforgettable journey with our guidebook's 6th edition.

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:

Day Trips to Petra in Jordan & Sinai in Egypt
Color feature with locals' tips on the best sights and food
Green Index makes responsible travel easier

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

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.

Amelia Thomas has contributed to Lonely Planet Rajasthan, Delhi & Agra as an author. Amelia Thomas is a British journalist, working in the Palestinian Territories and Israel. She is a correspondent for the Christian Science Monitor, Middle East Times, Lonely Planet and Egypt Today.

Most helpful customer reviews

29 of 35 people found the following review helpful.
Wait til you get there
By O Shepard
The lack of available travel guides to Israel is amazing if you consider the amount of attention the world gives to this tiny state on the western Med. Most that are available are often outdated. Frommer's Israel 5th edition is perhaps the best overall but should have been updated better. Lonely Planet's guide, biased and ill informed, is the worst. Eyewitness's guide is great for background info. Fodor's guide is new and I haven't looked it over yet. If you are visiting Israel, you might be better served to buy guides when you get there. Several I have seen that are area and city specific are a lot better than what is available in generic country guides. If you must purchase ahead of time, or need to research your trip before leaving, Frommer's book will serve you well, not this one however. Lonely Planet's books are often amusing as the editors tend to editorialize a lot in many of there guides. Not here. The editor's prejudices are all too obvious.

66 of 83 people found the following review helpful.
Too little information, too much commentary
By Y.R.
I am generally a fan of lonely planet books, and have used them as a guide on other trips. This particular lonely planet guide disappoints. I found this book to provide precious few details about important Jewish sites. Significant space in the book is devoted to the authors' (one-sided) political commentary. The Let's Go guide is more comprehensive and informative (with less political fluff). I recommend skipping this particular lonely planet guide.

56 of 72 people found the following review helpful.
Disappointing
By F. Moghul
As a center for Judaism, Christianity, & Islam I was really excited about reading up on the section on Jerusalem. I'm planning to visit in May but after reading this guidebook, I'm left disheartened. This is the first time I've been disappointed by LP. This book doesn't do a good job of representing the 'Holy Land' traveler. The attitude that the best reason to visit sites with religious significance like the Church of the Ascension & The Mount of Olives are their 'spectacular views' is a let-down. Give me a break! The "Haram Ash-Sharif/Temple Mount" is covered very poorly. And forget about The Dome of the Rock which they didn't cover because it was only open to Muslims that day (probably because it was Friday- so SMART). I was expecting a guidebook on the 'Holy Land' to be a little more sensitive to the religious significance of the sites & would not try to serve as a reader on history tinged with political bias. I was expecting useful info like: what time to go, what is the best entrance, tips & shortcuts. For GOD'S SAKE get an expert to cover their respective sites so that they're adequately & accurately represented. This way pilgrim and the lay traveler will find useful & relevant information. We don't need cut & paste history lessons.

See all 43 customer reviews...

Lonely Planet Australia

The best-selling guide to Australia providing 16 page full-colour road map section, with GIS mapping throughout. Includes an environment chapert by award-winning environmental scientist Tim Flannery.

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

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 books are sold in more than 200 countries. Its website, www.lonelyplanet.com, receives over five million unique visitors per month.

Most helpful customer reviews

63 of 66 people found the following review helpful.
It is really really really bad travel guide!!!
By K. Chen
I started to use Lonely Planet 15 years ago. I can say that I am a witness of how much quality deteriorite it has been. I used to just buy it by default. It was a Bible for me. But, a BIG but, this Lonely Planet Australia set a new lowest standard for the series.

First of all, it had so old information. The hostels listed in the book in Sydeny probably were closed more than 5 years ago. One hostel in bondi beach that I wanted to go that was listed in the book. When I showed up in the hotel address, there was a internet café and pub. No hostel at all.

Second. The most unbelieveable of all, the book I have, which is 2004 version, has no mention at all about the Olympic Village in Sydeny. Oh my God! Sydney Olympic was in 2000. Can you believe that after 4 years, they still didn't update it? I was reading it again and again, before I throw this book away to trash can, I still didn't belive that they can omit all the information about Olympic, like the village, the boat to go there, like the stadium... they pretend that there is no such a thing!

I know that Lonely Plante started many years ago in Australia, by some Australian backpackers. So it is a REAL shame that Lonely Planet Australia is so bad. If there is negative score, I will give that. As one star is minimum, I have to give that. But my true belief is that this book deserves negative 5 stars!!!

73 of 78 people found the following review helpful.
Unless These Books Bring Back Destinations and Hostel Listings They'll Be Lonely on the Shelves Due to New Better Competitors
By Mr James N Simpson
Since the late 90's Lonely Planet have been dwindling down the number of destinations and hostel listings in these guides and replacing that space with more five star hotels, fine dining and other useless information backpackers will never use. In this edition Lonely Planet lists the most expensive Hotel in Australia, Palazzo Versace in their Gold Coast accommodation listings. They are so out of touch with their target market now it is not funny.

Buy the Backpackers Ultimate Guide (BUG) Australia instead as it is what Lonely Planet and Lets Go used to be. A comprehensive coverage of all hostels in a destination, not just the one or two that pay to be listed and no weight increasing space taking up useless information that we backpackers do not want to lug around an entire continent.

If you can find an old copy from ten years ago buy it otherwise give Lonely Planet a miss!

40 of 43 people found the following review helpful.
Good for travelers on a budget
By A Customer
I just wrote a review of Australia Handbook and decided to have a look at the reviews for Lonely Planet's Australia guide. I bought both books as well as Frommer's and Fodor's guides for my trip to Australia. I have used many Lonely Planet guides through the years, but must agree with the comments of other posted reviews--it is oriented almostly solely to young people out looking for a a job picking fruit and wanting to know the latest nightclub hotspot. I did find the first sections of this book to be thorough on the country's history and what to expect, but as for myself and my wife (40 year olds staying in motels and with a rental car) it was useless once we got there. Lonely Planet is also way behind when it comes to listing websites.
These books may serve budget travelers well, but for my money, it's the Frommer's or Moon book.

See all 44 customer reviews...

Travel Like A Pro: Road-Tested Tips for Digital Nomads and

A fun, info-packed read to turn your travel from “panicked” to “pro”

It’s an amazing privilege to be able to zip all over the planet. But the process of travel can be exhausting, panic-inducing and complicated – even when you do it all the time.

Perplexing flight options, overpriced accommodation and dragging a wobbly-wheeled suitcase through an awful airport are enough to take the gloss off even the funnest of trips.

It doesn’t have to be that way: Travel Like A Pro is an entertaining, practical guide to becoming effortlessly mobile. With road-tested tips on everything from packing and flights to visas and insurance – and countless links to extra recommendations and resources – it’s for anyone who wants to skip the stress and glide through their globetrotting life.

In the book you’ll learn:

• What you should always take with you, and what’s really not worth the extra weight
• How to protect yourself, and your stuff, with the right insurance
• A system for booking the cheapest flights – without being forced into indirect routes and layovers, or having the experience take over your life
• Handy hints for surviving the airport and hacking carry-on baggage allowances
• Where to find the very best travel gear
• Which handy websites will make your trips a triumph

This book isn’t about “seeing the world on $50 a day”. It’s for people who want to get there and get sorted – minus the aggravation and confusion that plague most people who just take a couple of trips a year.

With practical advice, plenty of jokes and over a hundred links to extra resources and material, Travel Like A Pro is the perfect travel companion for digital nomads, frequent travellers and anyone who wants to see the world but get the hell on with it.

Scroll to the top of the page and click “Look Inside” for a preview!

Mish Slade has spent three years as a “digital nomad” – running her businesses from over 20 different countries, and blogging about the experience on makingitanywhere.com. She travels with nothing but a backpack (and her husband), and has travel down to the finest of arts – yet still can’t quite be trusted not to make jokes while going through security.

Most helpful customer reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
Great guide for experienced nomads AND vacationers
By Julie Rogers
My husband and I are digital nomads and have spent a lot of time working from our computers and travelling through Europe, Asia, and North & Central America. I wasn't sure how much I would get out of the book that I hadn't discovered through trial and error on our own journey but BOY WAS I WRONG. And I'm not one to admit that often, lol. Reading through I was surprised at how many of the cool tools I was unaware of... and here I thought I was a professional at this whole traveling business!

After having read the book I keep finding myself going back to it to reference the well thought out guides and links to tools I've already started using to plan our next trip. We tend to travel for quite extended periods but I think most of the book is actually applicable to short vacation type travel as well and I've already gifted a copy to two friends who are vacation travelers.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
Indispensable for the new or nervous traveler!
By Casey
Indispensable for the new or nervous traveler! This book is exactly what it claims to be, a down to earth practical guide for would-be long term travelers. The tips and advice are things you could learn the hard way, after years of travel, but save yourself the crappy luggage, expensive tickets, frustration and wasted effort by picking up some tricks from this book.

Now I didn't give it 5 stars because I felt it didn't offer much to me as someone who's already achieved the perpetual traveler gig. There are some great nuggets of advice in there about visas and health insurance, but only really applies to US and UK citizens. To be fair Mish makes nods to other EU citizens, so she's aware that not everyone comes from the USA, UK, or even the rich West in particular.

Almost all this information you could find online for free, but you'd have to sort and sift through thousands of pages of noise, parse out the dregs from the gold and make a correct judgement. But in this book Mish has collected an astounding amount of relevant practical advice, complete with links to resources. That brings up another point, I'm not sure how ever green this book will be. The internet landscape changes fast, as do product lines. If you're considering this book years from print date, and it hasn't been updated, well I'd read some more recent reviews to make sure it is still relevant.

If you're a new traveler or aspiring, you can't go wrong in purchasing this book at any price point.

If you're already a long-time traveler, familiar with the digital landscape, the e-book might be worth it to you as there's a few nuggets in here, though not enough to warrant purchase of the dead tree edition.

Disclaimer: I wrote this review after receiving a free copy of the book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
Indispensable practical guide for those ready to make the nomadic leap
By Sarah V
So, my only complaint is that this book didn’t come out about three months earlier! Mish has put together an easy-to-read and highly informative compendium of tips and resources for just about all of the questions I was struggling to answer while I was getting ready to take off on my own digital nomad experience at the beginning of the year. I am a pretty seasoned traveler, but setting off on an indefinite journey requires a different type of thinking (although much of the information contained in the book would be helpful for travel of any length). Packing both light and right, booking flights, finding the perfect accommodation, making insurance decisions, getting visas, coping at the airport – all of the big logistical and planning issues are covered. I have had several “aha” moments while reading and am excited to implement some of Mish’s strategies as I start to plan my next move.

If you are looking for a soul-searching, is-extended-travel-for-me? book, you are best to look elsewhere. However, if you are looking for a practical guide to help save you time, aggravation, money, and a few grey hairs, don’t pass it up!

See all 51 customer reviews...

Lonely Planet New Zealand (Travel Guide)

#1 bestselling guide to New Zealand*

Lonely Planet New Zealand is your passport to all the most relevant and up-to-date advice on what to see, what to skip, and what hidden discoveries await you. Behold Rotorua's bubbling geysers, hike past aquamarine bays and sparkling glaciers, or try abalone and other Maori favorites while overlooking Auckland's waterfront; all with your trusted travel companion. Get to the heart of New Zealand and begin your journey now!

Inside Lonely Planet New Zealand Travel Guide:

• Full-colour maps and images throughout
• Highlights and itineraries show you the simplest way to tailor your trip to your own personal needs and interests
• Insider tips save you time and money and help you get around like a local, avoiding crowds and trouble spots
• Essential info at your fingertips - including hours of operation, phone numbers, websites, transit tips, and prices
• Honest reviews for all budgets - including eating, sleeping, sight-seeing, going out, shopping, and hidden gems that most guidebooks miss
• Cultural insights give you a richer and more rewarding travel experience - including history, environment, Maori customs, arts, music politics, landscapes, wildlife, cuisine, wine, and more
• Free, convenient pull-out New Zealand map (included in print version), plus over 75 regional or neighbourhood maps
• Useful features - including Trekking Guide, What's New, and Month-by-Month (annual festival calendar)
• Coverage of Auckland, Bay of Islands, Coromandel Peninsula, Central Plateau, Rotorua, East Coast, Wellington, Marlborough, West Coast, Christchurch, Dunedin, Queenstown, Fiordland, Southland, and more

The Perfect Choice: Lonely Planet New Zealand, our most comprehensive guide to New Zealand, is perfect for those planning to both explore the top sights and take the road less travelled.

• Looking for just the highlights of New Zealand? Check out Lonely Planet's Discover New Zealand, a photo-rich guide to the country's most popular attractions.
• Looking for a guide focused on just the North or South islands of New Zealand? Check out Lonely Planet's New Zealand's South Island guide or New Zealand's North Island guide for a comprehensive look at what each of these islands has to offer.

Authors: Written and researched by Lonely Planet, Charles Rawlings-Way, Brett Atkinson, Sarah Bennett, Peter Dragicevich, Lee Slater, Professor James Belich, Tony Horwitz, John Huria, Josh Kronfeld, Gareth Shute, Nandor Tanczos, and Vaughan Yarwood.

About Lonely Planet: Started in 1973, Lonely Planet has become the world's leading travel guide publisher with guidebooks to every destination on the planet, as well as an award-winning website, a suite of mobile and digital travel products, and a dedicated traveller community. Lonely Planet's mission is to enable curious travellers to experience the world and to truly get to the heart of the places they find themselves in.

TripAdvisor Travelers' Choice Awards 2012 and 2013 winner in Favorite Travel Guide category

'Lonely Planet guides are, quite simply, like no other.' - New York Times

'Lonely Planet. It's on everyone's bookshelves; it's in every traveller's hands. It's on mobile phones. It's on the Internet. It's everywhere, and it's telling entire generations of people how to travel the world.' - Fairfax Media (Australia)

*Bestselling guide to New Zealand. Source: Nielsen Bookscan. Australia, UK and USA, March 2011 to February 2012.

As a likely lad, Charles suffered in shorts through Tasmanian winters and in summer counted the days until he visited his grandparents in Adelaide. With desert-hot days, cool swimming pools, pasties with sauce squirted into the middle and four TV stations, this flat city held paradisiacal status. In teenage years he realised that girls from Adelaide, with their Teutonic cheekbones and fluoridated teeth, were better looking than anywhere else in Australia. These days he lives with a girl from Adelaide in the Adelaide Hills and has developed an unnatural appreciation for Coopers Pale Ale.

Most helpful customer reviews

55 of 56 people found the following review helpful.
Good for the basics, but you need another soure
By Jen Tilly
Just got back from our second trip to New Zealand. This trip was far superior to our first because we had figured-out the country and how to plan our travels far better for these last three weeks. We are so excited that we plan to return yet agin. The eye-popping sceneries of New Zealand just don't stop, as well as all the fun outings, tours and adventures too.
Here's the how we planned it better this time (and I'm writing this because we met-up with so, so many travelers who had made the same mistakes we had made our first trip). First off you get this L-Planet in order to have the info on each town and some guidance if you want to go on tours, go to restaurants, all that kind of stuff (you could also buy the previous version and save a few dollars). We also had a DK guidebook that a friend had gifted us, but other than a few color pictures, it wasn't of much use because all the I-Sites in New Zealand offer all the same tourist-oriented full-color brochures and pamphlets. You actually get pretty tired of all the brochures for all the this-and-that adventure tours, jet boat rides, and heli-everything. New Zealand sure knows how to get money out of everyone. We also, before we left the U.S., got the AA touring book (via Amazon), as we had stupidly left behind the map/atlas book that we had bought on our first trip. This was a great book of area maps to have handy at every New Zealand road intersection, as well as it had all out notations from our at-home plannings. The final thing we had was the NZ FRenzy guidebook to the South Island. This book (and its Northern counterpart) are indispensible. This book became our day-to-day bible to have the most fun finding little not-so-known spots that blew our mind with beauty, yet had no other campervans around. Really, the NZ Frenzy made our trip in more ways than one...BUT, it doesn't cover the basics of travel-needs like L-Planet does. You wouldn't want to go to New Zealand with either only a L-Planet....or just a NZ Frenzy...or a map/atlas book. Get all three/four and then you'll be equipped to plan a far more wonderful trip. We made the mistake on our first trip of thinking that L-Planet was enough. Don't make the same mistake. Get more resources at home and your plan for this amazing country will become much much much better. We can't wait to plan our next New Zealand foray, and maybe we'll see you there.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful.
Save your $ - get the book instead
By Christy A
The idea seems to make a lot of sense: we were already taking a Kindle, so why not save the weight & get the guidebook on Kindle? Well, we now know why ...

Completely aside from the sense that the Kindle version seems to have less info than the print versions (based on having actually LOOKED at the print version ..), Lonely Planet has managed to get all the DISADVANTAGES of an electronic book & none of the advantages:

1) The maps are less than useless. They're the same ones as in the book - but now, on a display that is much smaller than the print version, so impossible to read. That would be OK if the Kindle version also included larger versions - but it doesn't.

2) No index. I'm pretty sure the print version has one ... And, no, search is not an adequate substitute. Maybe if the search algorithm were good enough - but it's not. Wading through several pages of search results ... sorry, I'd rather have an index.

Save your $ - get the book instead, or wait until Lonely Planet learns how to do an electronic version right.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
Great for travelling city to city
By Libby
As always the Lonely Planet guide provides great information for the main attractions. We used it to call ahead for accommodations and find the sights in cities big and small. However New Zealand's main attraction is it's outdoors and we needed to find another guidebook to provide information on beaches and hikes.

See all 51 customer reviews...