"Big Trips on Small Budgets"

Advantages: Handy to carry whilst on the road.
Disadvantages: Slightly outdated grasp of budget.

...This is the first book from the 'Lonely Planet' guide, originally titled in 1973 as 'Across Asia on the Cheap' - after initial success, the book was later developed by writers Tony Wheeler and his wife Maureen into the title it still holds today; 'South-East Asia on a shoestring'. With the slogan 'big tips on small budgets' on the front cover, the book is geared mainly towards backpackers on a budget (as the title suggests). The countries roughly covered total as eleven, Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar (Burma), Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, i say roughly with emphasis because all these areas are covered in 988 pages (latest edition, 14th, which I have infront of me - published March 2008). The beginning of the book features highlights of the entire region, and example itinerarys...

Trav3ller 15.07.2008 · Read review
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Review of Southeast Asia on a Shoestring (Lonely Planet Shoestring Guides) - China Williams

The Wild East - excursions in Southeast Turkey

Advantages: a place to rediscover forgotten cultures; beautiful landscape
Disadvantages: huge distances to cover

...You don't need to fly all the way to Central Asia, South America or Central Africa to discover untouched territory. Southeast Turkey bears a treasure of undiscovered culture and nature - little known even by most Turks, let alone western tourists. This is the land of the ancient Mesopotamia, the world's first real civilisation (that is if you don't believe in Atlantis), from 12 thousand years ago. Embedded between mountain ranges and the rivers of Euphrates and Tigris, this region has been the source of legends for generations. Let yourself be mystified. This part of Southeast Anatolia is part of the Kurdish territory, and has been barred from visits for decades due to severe security threats. But since late 1999, this part of Kurdistan is open to visitors again, and you may only have a few years to discover this region before...

From_The_Continent 14.03.2001 (26.03.2001) · Read review
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Review of Anatolia (Turkey)

These boots were made for walking...

Advantages: Incredibly detailed walking routes & nice country pubs - hooray!
Disadvantages: Doesn't stay open at the page you want it to - boo...

......

tigswade 17.09.2006 · Read review
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Review of The Rough Guide to Walks in London & Southeast England - The Rough Guide

Anything but rough

Advantages: Very, VERY detailed; excellent tips and advice; good lot of maps; very useful for before travel and during
Disadvantages: None I can see - perhaps may be *too* detailed for some?

......

nikeair 22.01.2001 · Read review
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Review of The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia - The Rough Guide

The most amazing sight in south-east asia.

Advantages: Stunning site; beautiful old architecture
Disadvantages: some sights can be overun with package tourists

......

nealen 09.12.2006 · Read review
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Review of Bagan (Myanmar)

some of about me

Advantages: i can pick things up quickly
Disadvantages: i can get distracted easily

...Hello my name is Rebecca but prefer to be called Beckie. I grew up in London, in a estate in the south-east called Bellingham. I moved to Bromley with my mum about 2 years ago, but am staying with my sister in Germany for 3 months! I am going home in about 3 weeks! I am an auntie to two and have 4 siblings, 2 bothers both older and 2 sisters one older and the other younger. I have just finished school and have dicieded to continue on to college to retake Maths. I want to get a job in an office somewhere, and begin to save for the futrure! I don't really kow what else to say. Thanks for reading my review and please leave comments and i will return the favour! Lots of love Beckie.xxxx...

bubblegum28 02.09.2008 · Read review
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Review of All About Me

Another one bites the dust...

Advantages: Leaves room for something bigger, better...
Disadvantages: Rebuilding work will have aknock-on effect for those staying in the environs.

...On a trip to Malta in mid-July this year, surprised was I to find that this once ornate, marble-lined oasis of luxury in a 4-star hotel, opened in the early 1980s and operated by the Corinthia Group, now lies derelict; now merely a collection of some 360 rusting balconies on a sprawling sandstone shell. It is survived by the nearby St. Thomas Tower, completed ca 1614 by the Knights Hospitaller of the Order of St John of Jerusalem under the leadership of Grand Master Alof de Wignacourt, and just visible in the left of the picture attached to this review (taken during the hotel's heyday, I hasten to add!). Fear not, however - in August 2008, local developers JPM Brothers have indicated their desire to build a luxurious 5-star landmark on this prime seafront promontory location in the south-east of Malta. At the same time, the Maltese...

pgn0 02.08.2009 · Read review
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Review of Corinthia Jerma Palace Hotel, Marsascala

I'll donate my Ciao earnings to SE Asia

Advantages: £5 doesn't buy much in the UK
Disadvantages: £5 makes a huge difference in Sri Lanka

...For weeks, I've been looking forward to my first £5 payout, and indulging in wicked fantasies. A nice bottle of wine? A sinfully unhealthy meal at McDonalds? Or fish&chips by the beach? A pile of second hand fantasy novels from Ebay? Seeds for frost-hardy fig trees? A luxuriously fragrant bubble bath? Renting exciting DVDs? Today, as my earnings have climbed to £4.64, I've realised that although £5 can be fun to spend, they won't make any difference to my life at all. Whereas in Southeast Asia, the same amount can make a huge difference. For example £5 can purify enough drinking water for several families for several days, and so prevent them from getting cholera. Therefore I will forgo the wine and the bubble bath, and donate the money to the Red Cross for their Southeast Asia fund. I've chosen the Red Cross...

queen_rain 02.01.2005 · Read review
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Review of All About Me

Time to grab your backpack?

Advantages: Entertaining, good characterisation
Disadvantages: Lightweight read, gets a bit silly at the end

...I enjoyed thisbook much more than I thought I would. While it belongs firmly in the "chick-lit" genre, it also evolves into something of a murder mystery as the plot progresses. Tansy, a conceited, drug-addled Londoner decides to escape fashionably to South-East Asia, but while there her life begins to take a less predictable course as self-awareness dawns. I read this in Malaysia while en-route around SE Asia and it was great to read descriptions of places I've been, as it accurately describes some of the stereotypes about backpackers in Asia and the party culture out there. It's interspersed with email-style interludes where Tansy is writing to/ hearing from people back home and others she's met on her travels, which work to a degree. Part of the appeal of the early part of the book is sneering at the arrogance and naivety...

cathy_m80 12.04.2008 (24.03.2008) · Read review
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Review of Backpack - Emily Barr

Watch out for the eager porters.

Advantages: Good taxi service to it
Disadvantages: Duty Free not great

...The Grantley Adams International Airport is about half an hour by taxi from Bridgetown and is in the Southeast of the Island. Taxis services are plentiful and get you there and to your destination although if you are a nervous passenger then you won't enjoy the ride. The duty free is adequate, for cigarettes and rum, but for a lot of other things like wine and champagne it is not worth bothering. There are quite a few shops and bars and newsstands. Parts of the airport are airconditioned and generally it is fairly well ventilated. One thing to beware of, is that on leaving Barbados you are liable for a $B25 (about GBP8) departure tax, on top of the airport taxes....

Morgenhund 03.09.2000 · Read review
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Review of Bridgetown, Barbados (BGI)