Ali O'Neill
While many travellers rely solely on their own online research and word-of-mouth recommendations, there's nothing like reading a travel guide for completely immersing you in your destination. Here are eight travel guides that cover a wide range of budgets and styles.
If you’re big into visuals, you’ll be a fan of these travel guides, with their elaborate diagrams and illustrations of famous sites. In addition to their full-length guides, Eyewitness also do handy, pocket-sized Top 10 guides for major cities.
The cult classic of travel guides, Lonely Planet provides comprehensive information on destinations suitable for all kinds of travellers—from beginners to experts. Their Shoestring series is great for those on a tight budget.
These guides are great all-rounders, offering clear, thoughtful information on major sites as well as those a little more out of the way. Great for lists and suggested itineraries and walking tours.
These aesthetically pleasing guides are by no means an exhaustive guide to a city, but if you’re looking for carefully selected recommendations for chic hotels, bars, restaurants, and shops (albeit in a very opinionated manner), then look no further.
While certainly not extensive in their content, these little guides get the “Look the Coolest on Your Bookshelf” award thanks to their brightly coloured covers (a different shade for each city).
These guides are packed with information, and are perfect for those who want a thorough understanding of the destination they’ll be visiting (from its history to current listings of hotels, restaurants, and the like). Perfect for older travellers.
These user-friendly guides have great photographs and descriptions that really capture the essence of a place, and include nice little touches, like a “Further Reading” section for literary recommendations.
Researched and written by Harvard students, these guides are great for young, budget-conscious travellers. The writing is lively but not overly opinionated, and there are many useful features like public transportation maps and up-to-date price ranges for lodgings.
