Budget Books

I only bought this because it has Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia and I was going to all three and only those three.
I previously used the England, Scotland, Ireland one.
These books are not geared towards travelers who travel to learn rather than be sporty.
They are helpful to an extent, but the Lonely Planet books seem to be more intelligent.
Not all young travelers are out to party and shag the locals.
*rolls eyes*

It may be understandable that these are 3rd world countries, and things change all of the time (especially prices). However it often seems as though the reviewers couldn't be bothered to find out the correct opening-times to tourist information centres etc.

However as a rough guide it pretty much covers everything with invaluable town maps as well as hotel,hostel and restaurant recommendations.

It is a good thing too that finally one of the big Travel Guide's have included Bolivia to their Peru and Ecuador book to create a succinct yet sufficient review of the popular trio of destinations.

Avoid taking a library in your backpack - this book should cover your needs - if you are going to two or three of these destinations then this is certaintly the book for you - but don't trust all the information it gives you.

I bought this book mainly because it was supposed to be up to date. Some of the information (most notably internet addresses) is already outdated. The information itself is valuable but prices should be cross referenced.

Through this book I was able to save more than a hundred dollars on a Lima-Cuzco flight. That fact alone pays for the book 4 times over.

In short, if you want to visit Peru, Ecuador, or Bolivia on a budget this is your book but use it as a rough guide and not as your sole source of information.

I have been to NYC on two vacations. I bought this book before my second vacation and had a much better time thanks to Let's Go. I highly recommend this book! It has very useful and easy to read maps, great info on places to stay, eat, and what to do, plus great bits of history about each part of the city. I wouldn't go to NYC without it!

The Big Apple definition in the book is wrong again. Other guide books have it right, but LET'S GO just doesn't care about accuracy.

I recently relocated to New York City with only this book in hand. It has been invaluable in helping me find my way around as well as finding fun things to do.

Actually, I'd give it 3.5 stars. Excellent exposition and developement of material. However, there are quite a few typo's that would throw the reader with less math off the trail (and possibly some with good math). Good coverage of different types of cases, underlying math, real world appications and properties of solutions. Personally, I would have preferred all the rigorous material (including math proofs) in the one book rather than making statements and referring to seminal real options papers very often. Some credit is due here, however, as there are some proofs in appendices at the end of each chapter - I think these could have gone into a little more detail and depth - (I say this only because there isn't the vast library of books on this subject that exists for more mature disciplines - guess I was looking for a more comprehensive reference.) I have read Trigeorgis' other books so this was not an introduction. Liked the book, learnt a lot and am applying it to real life projects, however had to learn a fair bit on my own too.

OK, I admit the year has not ended yet, but that doesn't mean you mus not read this: now! This book is co-edited by Trigeorgis, one of the most proeminent author in the area. It deals with all the new developements on real options. It's objective is to give the researcher or student a key to enter the world of real options. Contributions are worldwide, mainly by people with a strong mathematical background. This makes it sometime difficult to understand for more management focused readers. However the book by the quality of the writting and the new ideas it brings, keeps you awake like a thriller. To be own by any person who want's to know about the future (nearly present) of corporate finance.

This book gives you the latest update on what's going on in real options theory. Brilliant throughout, but its really too hard mathematically to be of much value for someone who's not a math-person. I found the chapter on the Antamina mine to be immensely interesting. It was originally used as a case study on options theory at Harvard and shows you how these academics went about valuing a peruvian mine. It's a very valuable chapter because it is focused on the practical side of real options theory. The chapter on "Rules of thumb for capital budgeting" didn't make much sense at all to me. The rest of the chapters are no easy read, but if you feel up to it mathematically, you're going to find this a very interesting book. If your not that much into mathematics, I think it's going to leave you rather frustrated. This book cannot have been meant as a guide for practitioners, it's more of a field day for academics, that's my impression at least.

I was dissapointed with this book. It covered a lot of material, but seemed to skim many subjects and didn't provide very helpful suggestions. Ideas were mainly things like "avoid impulse purchases" and "look for discounts and sales." I suppose if you wanted a basic guide about budgeting and an introduction to different types of investments, this book would be good. But if you are looking for something more in-depth, then keep on looking!

I have been looking for a book that simply goes through the basics of money and financial planning without going over my head and I found it in this book. I think its great in that it just lays out what anyone should know about having and saving money and its easy to read. I would have liked a little more explanation at some parts or at least clearer cohesion within chapters, but it was manageable in any case. I think its also good for college students who might need to look ahead and start their planning. For me, this book lays the foundation and I will count on Suze Orman for the rest. :)

A book with interviews with american exploitation directors who worked during the 70's, 80's and 90's like Jim Wynorski, Fred Olen Ray, Paul Bartel, Sean Cunningham, Sam Raimi and Wes Craven. This book was written before the Scream trilogy so Craven isn't treated with that much respect, they claim that Sean Cunningham (Friday the 13th) have been more successful! Interesting look into the lowbudget direct-to-video business in the 80's. Some directors don't exactly seems to be proud over their work. Guess it must be hard for fans of a movie to hear that the director just did it for the money and that he himself unliked the film. I'm not exactly the biggest fan of these directors and their films so I guess those who are will find this book much better than me. But it's informative and the information about their work comes directly from the filmmakers themselves so I'll guess this book is the best source you can get on the subject.

First came Re-Search's "Incredibly Strange Films". Then came this. It's an excellent book in it's own right, with interviews and overviews of cult movie directors. And it DOES continue where the first book left off, updating and presenting newer directors as well. A must-have for all genre movie enthusiasts!!

Although this book seems to provide an adequate overview of the areas it covers, the pricing system does not include budget travelers. I was appalled to see that it listed only expensive hotels for one of my destinations and not one of the less expensive peniones. Fortunately, I found enough information on websites to locate some REAL BUDGET accomodations. I am not referring to camping or staying in someone's home. No. I mean centrally located places to stay with full baths, TV, AC, etc. for a half (or less) of Fodor's cheapest hotel option. Fodor's seems to cater to a wealthier traveler, and that is fine. Just don't tell me it is a "guide for all budgets." I'll never buy one of these books again.

This book is great for anyone who wants to focus their trip in Barcelona but still take some side trips outside of the city. The book made it easy for us to decide what we wanted to see, and then to find our way around the city. Directions and tips on how to get places were much appreciated, esp in some of those areas with tiny twisted streets. The history and background information was informative (esp since we don't speak Spanish) and surprisingly fun to read. We weren't sure where to go out of the city, so we just followed the guide. It leads you from Barcelona to Bilbao along the Costa Brava, which is gorgeous. There's just enough information about the seaside villages along the way to help you decide where to stop, eat and stay. We let the book really shape our trip- and it turned out to be a great one!

This book contains the bare basics one would need for a trip. It's somewhat outdated and isn't nearly as comprehensive as the Rough Guide for Tuscany and Umbria, which is a much, much better book. Had this been the only guidebook I had, my trip would have been much less enjoyable. Its information for towns in Tuscany and Umbria outside of Florence is minimal. For a much better trip, buy the Rough Guide instead.

I've been to Italy several times.....Rome, Venice, Florence, Bologna, Milan, some of the hill towns, etc. Here are my reviews of the best guides to meet you r exact needs.....I hope these are helpful and that you have a great visit! I always gauge the quality of my visit by how much I remember a year later......this review is designed to help you get the guide that will be sure YOU remember your trip many years into the future. Travel Safe and enjoy yourself to the max!

Fodor's
Fodor's is the best selling guide among Americans. They have a bewildering array of different guides. Here's which is what:
The Gold Guide is the main book with good reviews of everything and lots of tours, walks, and just about everything else you could think of. It's not called the Gold guide for nothing though....it assumes you have money and are willing to spend it.
SeeIt! is a concise guide that extracts the most popular items from the Gold Guide
PocketGuide is designed for a quick first visit
UpCLOSE for independent travel that is cheap and well thought out
CityPack is a plastic pocket map with some guide information
Exploring is for cultural interests, lots of photos and designed to supplement the Gold guide

Rick Steves' books are not recommended. They may be an interesting read but their helpfulness is very poor. They don't do well on updates, transportation details, or anything but the first-time-tourist routine and even that is somewhat superficial on anything but the mega-major sites.

Frommer's
These are time tested guides that pride themselves on being updated annually. Although I think the guides below provide information that is in more depth or more concise (depending on what the guide is known for), if your main concern is that the guide has very little old or outdated information, then this would be a good guide for you.

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet has City and Out To Eat Guides. They are all about the experience so they focus on doing, being, getting there, and this means they have the best detailed information, including both inexpensive and really spectacular restaurants and hotels, out-of-the-way places, weird things to see and do, the list is endless.

Blue Guides
Without doubt, the best of the walks guides.... the Blue Guide has been around since 1918 and has extremely well designed walks with lots of unique little side stops to hit on just about any interest you have. If you want to pick up the feel of the city, this is the best book to do that for you. This is one that you end up packing on your 10th trip, by which time it is well worn.

MapGuide
MapGuide is very easy to use and has the best location information for hotels, tourist attractions, museums, churches etc. that they manage to keep fairly up to date. It's great for teaching you how to use the public transportation system. The text sections are quick overviews, not reviews, but the strong suite here is brevity, not depth. I strongly recommend this for your first few times learning your way around the classic tourist sites and experiences. MapGuide is excellent as long as you are staying pretty much in the center of the city.

Time Out
The Time Out guides are very good. Easy reading, short reviews of restaurants, hotels, and other sites, with good public transport maps that go beyond the city centre. Many people who buy more than one guidebook end up liking this one best!

Let's Go
Let's Go is a great guide series that specializes in the niche interest details that turn a trip into a great and memorable experience. Started by and for college students, these guides are famous for the details provided by people who used the book the previous year. They continue to focus on providing a great experience inexpensively. If you want to know about the top restaurants, this is not for you (use Fodor's or Michelin). Let's Go does have a bewildering array of different guides though. Here's which is what:
Budget Guide is the main guide with incredibly detailed information and reviews on everything you can think of.
City Guide is just as intense but restricted to the single city.
PocketGuide is even smaller and features condensed information
MapGuide's are very good maps with public transportation and some other information (like museum hours, etc.)

Michelin
Famous for their quality reviews, the Red Michelin Guides are for hotels & Restaurants, the Green Michelin Guides are for main tourist destinations. However, the English language Green guide is the one most people use and it has now been supplemented with hotel and restaurant information. These are the serious review guides as the famous Michelin ratings are issued via these books.

I bought this guide along with two others and this was a nice, complete guide covering all the islands. I used it in conjunction with the other guides, which targeted the specific islands I was visiting, for a big picture overview of Hawaii. Fodor's helped me decide which islands to visit (Maui and Kauai) with color photography and descriptions. I also enjoyed reading about the history of the islands. The list of website links in the back of the book were also very helpful. I don't think this one book is enough, overall, to pinpoint where to go once you're on the islands. I didn't like that it didn't give me complete descriptions of the beaches. Turns out my hotel was on a beach that wasn't suitable for swimming. But the book didn't tell me that. You'll definitely need this book plus another, it's not enough on its own.

In general, Fodor's guides are the best on the market because of their accuracy, authority and wit. Fodor's Hawaii is no different. It gives the skinny on all the must-see places on all the major Hawaiian islands -- Hawaii, Oahu, Maui, Lanai, Molokai and Kauai. What's more, Fodor's Hawaii, like all Fodor's guides, mention both places on and off the beaten path. The section on Maui is particularly good, right down to the description of rainbows "on the hood of your car."

Since I had never been to Paris, I bought a number of books besides this one. Thank God! Not only did the room description in the book not resemble the room I was in, but the directions to the hotel were messed up. The closest subway station to the hotel (as per the instructions) was on a different subway line in a different neighborhood than the real station - which by the way -was a rail road station. I have no idea where they dug up the hotel from, because no-one around it even knew the street name. I would not be surprised if the Eifel Tower directions send you Versaille. Luckily - I did not have to find out.

Assuming you aren't a Paris expert, then you do need a guide to give you some orientation and also to suggest lodging, etc. Fodor's has published a sufficiently wide-ranging guide that you could make do with it alone. So, if you can only take one guide, buy and take this one. Also, it's lightweight and well sized for travel.

So they say you want a guide published recently and that makes this product just a little out of date, but it's a good guide.

Since it isn't the latest, newest thing it rang my chimes as the cheapest thing for a summer trip in 2007. Backpacking and trying to pack light I cut out the sections of the book I wanted. (Which works when you are essentially paying for the shipping.)

Budapest especially is going through some massive changes so if you want up to the minute buy something new. (The upcoming change to the Euro comes to mind.) It's a beautiful city, but beware, outside the tourist zones or say the mall or near the universities nobody really speaks English or German either.

Prague is, well, it's Prague. Who needs a guidebook anyway, just follow the masses and pay to enter everything. Wrong. There are some less-traveled gems in Prague and this book lists some of them. Not a bad buy at all.

This a very nice and comprehensive travel guide. I have no doubts of takeing it to my trip. The only BIG MISS in it, is that thera are no www pages or e-mail references for hotels, restaurants, museums, guideing services etc. etc.