LP Vietnam, Laos & Cambodia 2007 - 2012 version
Replies: 10 - Last Post: Nov 10, 2012 10:11 AM Last Post By: MissKellyMojo
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LP Vietnam, Laos & Cambodia 2007 - 2012 version
Hello all,a couple of years ago I purchased the LP Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and the greater Mekong Delta (edition 2007). However, I did not go on that trip but on another one.
Now I am flying to Vietnam and Cambodia in January and purchased already the brand new Cambodia only LP.
Comparing the greater one from 2007 to 2012, would you reccomend buying it?
Actually I focus on HCMC and the Mekong Delta for more or less travelling transit or however you want to call it.
If anyone knows both or other updated LP I am looking forward to hear your comments :)
Thanks & Cheers
MM
2
I do not like the multi country guides at all - the indiviual ons have much more informationUp to date or not? well the places will be the same but hotels/resturants may have opened/shut,/got worse/changed prices and some transport options may have changed
If I have an old guide I will often browse the new one and note any important changes as too mean to buy the new one
3
The multi country one was very helpful as a starting point to that area. Because I want to know more I now purchased the 2012 Cambodia one.But maybe I should then either buy the Vietnam one or no new one. Yes, montyman, I also think that the basics (like sights and so on) should be the same. Plus I am doing a lot of internet research in advance and write down important aspects like bus reccomendations etc. down in my "personal travel guide".
Accomodation recommendations are not that important to me, same for restaurants. Before running around for hours in order to find that recommended spot I just go outside and look around or ask locals or other backpackers.
Mhm. I guess I should not get the updated version then :)
5
They have a place and can be very useful for the intial planning and sometimes the maps with things such as sites/hotels/bus and train stations can be very useful to get one's bearingsI do use guidebooks (if I am using one) to point me in the direction of suitable hotels when I first arrive BUT not to chose them - and work on the principal if it was cheap when the guide came out it is still likely to be cheap now (or the other way round). Often I do not stay in any of the hotels mentioned.
On other occaisions I might use the guide to make the decsion not to visit a place or to avoid an area.
6
when I was going to Yunnan for first time I saw a 1996 LP for £1 in a bookshop and toreb out the Yunnan section and everywhere it said you needed a guide and driver Ha! Ha! plus manty restrictions so old I thought chairman mao had written the forward Ha! Ha! however it was useful for palces of interest and also for translation directions in Mandarin at bus stations.Normally i dont use guidebooks b8t research ie here when i went to mo0rrocco first time, but have on occasions glanced at others whilst travelling
7
I like having a guidebook as a travel friend. It keeps be busy when I am alone, on the bus etc. Plus it is fun to share stories from it with friends (if you are not travelling alone). I also write down the most important telephone numbers in it and let people I meet along the way sign it or leave a message for me. I would say they are an essential part of what I take with me and probably the only books in my possession which are aloud to get wet, folded, written in ect - maybe it is more a philosophical thing for me.The 2012 Cambodia guide, which arrived today, is great! It features lots of eco and social friendly suggestions which is important to me, often I feel sad if I could have supported something but was just not informed about it.
However - I have decided to purchase the Vietnam one and leave the regional one at home to indulge into other worlds from time to time when I need a head escape.
8
Any book is better than none sometimes.On our 2nd trip to Vietnam, we were entering from China. We'd already been once and thought we wouldnt need to take the LP we already had. First thing we needed when crossing the border was the guide book and it so happened there wasnt another tourist to be seen. Pouring with rain and we couldnt remember the best way to Sapa without being scammed.
