Do you really need to buy that guide book?

There was a time when a good, chunky guide book was a traveler’s best friend.  I am not sure if we can affirm that anymore.

Let’s face it.  The world of the printed word has changed enormously during the last couple of years.  E-books, audiobooks and all those smartphones applications are affecting the way we consume information.  Even big bookstores like Borders are disappearing. That is why I am asking, are we at a moment where it is possible to travel without a guidebook?

I still use guidebooks to plan my trips and often buy more than once per trip.  The thing is that I don’t feel like I am getting a fair amount of value for my money anymore.  Every day I am relying more and more on the free travel information found on the Internet.  And I am talking about top-notch, professional information.

In this post, I aim to share the free of charge travel planning sites I heavily use.  I believe these web pages can help anybody to plan a fantastic trip.  Common, take a look.  Who knows? You may discover an invaluable travel planning tool.  Plus, you may be able to save a couple of bucks.

Guide Books Websites

For me, this is the reason why is getting harder and harder to buy a guidebook.  Some companies in the business of selling traveling information are publishing excellent content on their websites.  You may be thinking the information they have upon their websites is not as complete as in their guidebooks.  Sorry, my friend but you are wrong.  Some companies have their entire guide book content online.

After looking thru different guide books websites, I can say that the one offering the best content is Frommer’s.  They have complete travel guides (in other words, content identical or very similar to what they have in their guidebooks) for a wide range of worldwide destinations.

They have information on the usual topics such as attractions, accommodations, restaurants, shopping, and general planning information.  What I find great about these travel guides are the editorial recommendations, suggested itineraries, step by step walking tours (with maps) and tips on how to know in depth the place you are visiting.

Plus, they offer recommendations on organized tours, outdoor activities and active pursuits.  This is one of the first places I check whenever planning a trip.

I have noticed Moon Handbooks (which publish great travel guides) have started to upload their entire travel guides to their Internet site. I almost went nuts when I discovered this since these are my favorite guide books.

These guides usually divide the cities, areas or countries they are featuring into regions.  There is extensive information on what to do and where to stay, eat and shops on those regions.  The guides also offer trip planning ideas which can help you to put together your trip easily.

Additionally, they contain a background section where you can read about the geography, climate, flora fauna, government, economy, culture, etc of the place you are visiting.

Ok, let me tell you a little secret about these guidebooks.  They are really good detailing transportation information (good maps and public transportation details).  A lot of guidebooks fail in telling you how to go from one place to another.  The authors of these guides seem to have all this information figured out and present it clearly.

Drawback: Currently, the only guides available in the web site are for the Americas.

The DK Eyewitness Travel Guides offer decent information at their website. They offer the usual travel information plus information on suggested itineraries.  Drawback:  There is information for about 60 destinations worldwide.

In my opinion, other guide books companies like Fodor’s, Let’s Go, Rough Guides, Lonely Planet, and Insight Guides do not offer enough information on their websites.  They contain some information but it is pretty general and there is no additional expert advice.

Travel Magazines

What is true for guide books is also true for travel magazines.  A lot of them publish and keep on archive all their printed articles.  So theoretically, you have thousands of free travel articles at your disposition.  Just go to the magazines’ web sites and do a search for the destination you are expecting to visit.  Insider information is at your fingertips.  Take a look at the following sites:

National Geographic Traveler

Budget Travel

Travel and Leisure

Conde Nast Traveler

Islands

Caribbean Travel and Life

Endless Vacation

Shermans Travel

Travel Forums and Communities

These are great ways to find personal and insider travel information.  I am not an expert on these sites so I am referring you to links where this information is already compiled.

Travel Blogs

Travel blogs have a lot of advantages.  To name a few, they provide up to date, insider and hard to find information.  There are thousands of blogs out there.  I am not going to start naming them in here.  The point is that if you follow a particular blog, you can browse the archives or ask the blogger for information.  I have seen bloggers going great lengths to help their readers. So, go ahead and ask.

Trip Advisor

When planning a trip, I also like to go to Trip Advisor to see what the most popular activities in the area are.  I have discovered fun activities like cooking classes and river rafting trips in this way.  Just go to the web page and type “things to do in XXX” in the search box.  For example, if you want to look for information about New Orleans, type “things to do in New Orleans”.  Hit enter and a list of the top attractions and tours are going to appear on the screen.  Sometimes the site gives you the option to download a PDF document containing a travel guide for the city you are interested in.  These are compilations of their user’s recommendations.

As you can see there are tons of reliable and free travel information on the web. Now, I will ask you again, do you think a printed travel guide is still needed?  Let me know your opinion in the comments section below.  Also, let me know what sites you use to plan your trips.