Lonely Planet California

Lonely Planet Road Trip California Highway 1 (Road Trip Guides)

Average customer rating:

Lonely Planet Road Trip California Highway 1 (Road Trip Guides)
Review #2 Lonely Planet Road Trip Hwy 1
Fantastic Guide
Very usefull
Disappointing

Lonely Planet Road Trip California Highway 1 (Road Trip Guides)
Paige Penland
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Pacific Coast Highway: Traveler's Guide (Photographic Tour)
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Lonely Planet San Francisco

ASIN: 1740595823

Book Description

Hit the road with Lonely Planet's Road Trip: California Highway 1. Explore the twists and turns of this dramatic drive along California's spectacular coast, with all its towering cliffs, secluded beaches, redwood forests, picturesque seaside towns, surfing meccas and big cities along the way.

* All the Sights - highlights like Mendocino, Big Sur and Hearst Castle, plus loads of lesser-known attractions

* Where to Stay - from romantic B&Bs to forested campgrounds, options for every budget

* Coastal Dining - feast on local specialties like steamed clams, artichoke soup and apricot pie

* Wildlife Watching - where to see whales, elephant seals and monarch butterflies

* Family Fun - hayrides, otter feedings, roller coasters, antique trains and more

* Detours - visit a quirky Dutch village, a lovely island and the first Zen monastery in the US

Customer Reviews:

Lonely Planet Road Trip California Highway 1 (Road Trip Guides).......2007-01-12

I went on the trip with the book and it gives you minimum information. In most of places I had to visted information centers. Better than nothing.

Review #2 Lonely Planet Road Trip Hwy 1.......2006-11-10

Very informative, but needs more sprcific information on "Places to Stay" and "History."

Fantastic Guide.......2006-10-24

This book will fit in a purse or backpack. Just took a road trip up the PCH and this book was extremely useful..We used several recommendations for restaurants and sights to see.. I highly recommend this book..The maps are awesome..

Very usefull.......2006-08-01

This book was extremely useful!!! We had this book and this book only to guide us up the PCH and it was very informative. I highly recommend it.

Disappointing.......2005-06-23

I was hoping for more. No pictures. Not a lot of information. It does have a handy little map, though.

Average customer rating:

Lonely Planet San Francisco
The only guidebook you need (just add a detailed Muni bus route map and you are set for weeks of fun)
Lonely Planet is the way to go!
grain of salt
Bulky and mostly useless

Lonely Planet San Francisco
Tom Downs
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Streetwise San Francisco (Streetwise)
Lonely Planet California
Not for Tourists Guide 2007 to San Francisco (Not for Tourists Guidebook)
Frommer's San Francisco 2007 (Frommer's Complete)
Lonely Planet Road Trip Napa & Sonoma Wine Country (Road Trip Guides)

ASIN: 1740598563

Book Description

Shop for boho chic in post-hippie Haight, walk in the path of prisoners on Alcatraz, enjoy a pint of Anchor, then leave your heart in a Mission taqueria. Filled with insider favorites and laced with tales of the city, this smart and sassy guide takes you on a joyride through the streets of San Francisco.

POUND THE PAVEMENT - handy cross-referenced color maps and seven detailed tours steer you to the hills, hotspots and hideouts TAP THE EXPERTS - our local author and contributors handpick the city's top rock venues and salsa clubs, only-in-SF shops, classic hotels and more EAT YOUR HEART OUT - the skinny on local cuisine and taste bud treats, from bay-fresh four-star seafood to North Beach old-school Italian SWALLOW THE CITY - Beatnik haunts, ultra lounges, tiki bars, brewpubs, neighborhood cafÃ©s...a slew of thirst-quenching options TRIP OUT - excursions to Wine Country, Marin, Berkeley, Santa Cruz...even Burning Man!

Customer Reviews:

Lonely Planet San Francisco.......2006-11-04

Loved seeing the city of San Fancisco after reading about the local neighborhood haunts. Lonely Planet has long been my first choice of Travel Guides. This one was good, although it lacked some of the overall insights that I have liked in other LP guide books, and had some of the poorest photography ever edited for such a scenic city.

I recommend the guide books suggestion of renting a mountain bike and taking in the sites of Golden Gate Park and heading out to Salsalito via the Golden Gate Bridge and taking the ferry back into town.

The only guidebook you need (just add a detailed Muni bus route map and you are set for weeks of fun).......2006-07-05

I'm pretty easy to please when it comes to guidebooks. I don't believe that there is one-size-fits all guidebook, and when I travel, I get an arsenal of books and select the top three to use on the road. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that I needed no other guidebook to San Francisco! As a general rule, Lonely Planet guides are the most compact and info-packed books on the market, and this guide is unparalleled. It fits neatly in any purse or backpack and the only add-on I would recommend for your trip is a detailed Muni bus route map.

Even without a detailed map, this guide can get you all around the city. Every attraction, restaurant, and hotel is listed indexed and numbered on a half dozen neighborhood maps in the back of the book. There's no need for detailed directions because the maps allow the traveler to plan their own route.

The attractions? Wow! You get all your essential tourist hot spots, plus info on alternative forms of sports and recreation, hidden shopping sites, stores which have house cats or dogs, free wine and cheese at poetry readings, theater reviews, upscale/campy adult entertainment, and much more. San Francisco is well-known for dining options, and this book has the most listings of any guidebook. Nightlife is given extensive coverage, so that anyone can find sites of interest, from late-night coffee shops to Latin dance clubs to sports bars. Of course, a site such as City Search can augment your search for good eats and nightlife.

The book can be read in a number of ways. It offers a week full of suggested itineraries which make a great starting place. The reader can also search by neighborhood or by type of excursion desired, and complete public transportation information is provided. The guide even offers limited information on side trips outside the city proper. A complete index to all attractions, hotels, and restaurants is included.

Don't travel without the Lonely Planet, especially when visiting San Francisco.

Lonely Planet is the way to go!.......2006-03-17

I travel a lot and a Lonely Planet book of my destination is always in my carry-on. This SF book was very helpful for my sister and I who recently went on a 'girls shopping weekend' up there (from the L.A. area). We did manage to find all the great shops (thanks to the 'Shopping' section) and then have time for some sightseeing on the side. All the directions, maps, addresses, opening times, admission costs, etc. were accurate and precise. The transportation maps are especially helpful in a city like San Francisco where a rental car is not only not necessary but can definitely be a burden (not much parking!). The book also provided interesting facts about historical sites such as Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge. I recommend this book to anyone who is traveling to San Francisco whether it be for a weekend or a month or anywhere in between. There is enough stuff in this book to keep you busy, I promise! And it's very easy to use and has a nice Index in the back where everything is possible to find =)

grain of salt.......2005-12-29

I used this guidebook for my first visit to San Francisco and liked where it took me. I just moved here and needed to acclimate. I think it's geared more for younger tourists that are less set in their ways. I wanted to see more than just San Francisco and used the Golden Gate Trailblazer to fill in places to hike around. They were a nice duo to carry around. After two weeks, I'm finally getting the hang of it and less dependent on the maps.

Bulky and mostly useless.......2005-12-27

I know that's a very sweeping subject title but I am afraid its very relevant from the perspective of the average traveler who will pick this book up. The maps are horribly designed. Often you need to go back and forth to make sense. In the end, I just had to print out Google maps to actually get about the city. Too much information and little organization. Probably not written for the tourist but rather for the resident of the city.

Average customer rating:

Too much politics, not enough substance
Helps you see the whole state
Essential travel companion
great travel guide
From a Californian: don't buy it

Lonely Planet California
Andrea Schulte-Peevers , and Sara Benson
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Similar Items:

Lonely Planet Road Trip California Highway 1 (Road Trip Guides)
Lonely Planet San Francisco
Lonely Planet USA
Lonely Planet Los Angeles & Southern California
Lonely Planet Road Trip Napa & Sonoma Wine Country (Road Trip Guides)

ASIN: 1740599519

Book Description

Tempt vertigo on the hills of San Francisco and rub elbows with a star in an LA boutique. Sample syrahs in the Wine Country, cruise cliff-hugging Hwy 1 or hike in the heat of Death Valley. Whether you're a city slicker, road tripper or adrenaline junky, grab this in-depth, cheeky guide and let our local authors steer you to the treasures of the Golden State.

PLOT YOUR ROUTE - 120 detailed maps and seven handy itineraries help you navigate and plan your adventure TAKE IT OUTSIDE - surfing Steamers Lane, climbing Half Dome, skiing Tahoe, diving San Diego: the scoop on the hottest California activities EAT YOUR HEART OUT - hundreds of restaurant reviews, from tasty taquerÃas to celebrity-chef bistros SLEEP EASY - the best places for California dreaming, from mountaintop campgrounds to oceanfront resorts CROSS THE BORDER - expanded Las Vegas chapter shows you how to hit the jackpot in flirty, fabulous Sin City, plus tips on heading south to Mexico

Customer Reviews:

Too much politics, not enough substance.......2007-06-14

1. I live in California and thus I'm familiar (at least) with the surrounding region I live in etc...

2. This book physically looks good, has a nice layout, but is relatively devoid of concrete data (ie places to eat, stay etc...). Furthermore, it reads as if it were written by some college political science major at USF...

3. It's tough to find a good travel book; Perhaps the Moon publication might be better. However one thing is sure--> if you want a book with actual good information--> forget this one. If you just want a book with very cursory info--> this might be ok in that it's fairly compact, it covers the entire state etc...

Helps you see the whole state.......2007-01-19

Most people can say they know San Francisco/Bay Area, Los Angeles/Orange County, or San Diego. These are the places people typically hit up when they plan a trip to CA. Having lived several years in SoCal, I found this book opened my eyes to all the state has to offer. It balances the sections on the large cities with other destinations and activities. You can easily stay with friends in LA or SFO and get a better tour of the town than the book can offer, but what about Death Valley or the Redwoods or PCH? This is where the book has been of great help to me.

Essential travel companion.......2007-01-10

This book is full of gems that I would never have found otherwise. Descriptions and prices listed are spot-on.

great travel guide.......2007-01-10

everything perfekt, understandable for me as an german.
Like everytime when I use a lonley planet.

From a Californian: don't buy it.......2006-01-12

I'm a Californian, and know several cities reviewed by this guide very well. While I love Lonely Planet guides, I cannot recommend this book after spending an hour looking through it one day at a Borders. (We were headed so San Francisco and I needed a good CA guidebook.)

I live in San Diego and so - as a test case - I graded the book on its coverage of San Diego. I gave it a "D" because every time I checked what it had to say about a location/restaurant I knew, this book got it wrong or missed the fine points. An example? One of the finest restaurants in La Jolla (or all of San Diego, for that matter) is George's at the Cove, but dinner entrees start at $30. Restaurant-savvy Sandiegans know this pricey restaurant has an upstairs open-air sister restaurant, Ocean Terrace Café, with a fabulous view of the bay - and offers a chance to sample a limited selection of George's entrees, at - relatively reasonable - prices ($14 to $20 for dinner entrée). LP Californian seemed to always miss helpful little tips like that, and Frommer's seemed to include many of them. Now maybe Lonely Planet California book has great coverage of all the other cities besides San Diego, who knows? If that's the case then my review is inaccurate. However, if their San Diego coverage is representative of the rest of the book, then I suggest don't buy it! We ended up buying Frommer's California 2006, which I'll give a lukewarm endorsement to because at least its coverage of CA cities I know was better than LP California. Of course, Frommer's guides are so dry and boring, lacking the character that LP guides sometimes have.

Lonely Planet Yosemite National Park (Lonely Planet National Park Guides)

Average customer rating:

Great to have along
Good stuff!
Handy guide to Yosemite for first or second time visitor
helpful and clear.
useful to plan trip

Lonely Planet Yosemite National Park (Lonely Planet National Park Guides)
Kurt Wolff , Amy Marr , David Lukas , and Cheryl Koehler
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Photographer's Guide to Yosemite
Best Easy Day Hikes Yosemite National Park, 2nd (Best Easy Day Hikes Series)
Moon Handbooks Yosemite (Moon Handbooks)
100 Hikes in Yosemite National Park
Hiking Yosemite National Park, 2nd (Hiking Guide Series)

Accessories:

Rayovac SPHLTLED 3-in-1 LED Head-Lite

ASIN: 1741041171

Book Description

One of the USA's most gorgeous natural wonders, Yosemite National Park has something to offer every traveler from vacationing families to hardcore outdoors enthusiasts. From rocky ascents up Half Dome to wildflower walks through Tuolumne Meadows, from the soaring vistas atop Sentinel Dome to the gentle slopes of Badger Pass, this book takes you there. <ul>

coverage of the entire park, plus neighboring highlights and worthwhile excursions </li>

outdoor activities: hiking, biking, rafting, skiing, climbing, canoeing </li>

in-depth history, geology & ecosystem chapters written by known experts </li>

20 maps showing every corner of the park </li>

special focus on family travel, with short & long-stay itineraries </li></ul>

Customer Reviews:

Great to have along.......2006-11-08

I've lived in California for 3 years and have been to Yosemite at least 5 times. We have gone for backpacking trips, car camping trips, and stayed at Curry Village. We always bring this book with us. You need to have a book like this with you when you are there so you can both plan ahead and do things on the fly. It's a great book that highlights all the must-see spots. Yosemite rarely disappoints.. even if some spots are crowded, once you get there, you can understand why! Lonely Planet books in general area always well organized and have great maps. I like how this book had both short hikes as well as some longer overnight backpacking trips. It also does a good job of detailing all the campgrounds. If you want more detail (or a little different perspective) on hikes and backpacking trips, get "Hiking in the Sierra Nevada" by Lonely Planet.

Good stuff!.......2006-06-03

I thought this was a pretty well-rounded overview of Yosemite with some nice pics to boot. I've been hiking all over Calif but never quite got around to hitting the Big Y. I had seen pics and knew it was great, but I wasn't quite sure what the best approach to schedule a three-day weekend. Well, this baby helped a lot -- reservations, planning hikes, meals and all that a snap. The maps and spotlight-recommendations were great.

Handy guide to Yosemite for first or second time visitor.......2005-12-31

A very well assembled collection of recommendations and facts for planning a trip to Yosemite. If you want to get the most of your trip to the region, planning is essential. Just showing up will severely compromise the options you have available. If you are planning to also visit Sequoia/Kings Canyon, you might want to opt for the Frommer's Guide or Lonely Planet's "Hiking In The Sierra Nevada." Personally, I think this guide has a little more detail and better organization than the Moon guide, with the maps being far better.

Planning: The book does a very nice job giving you phone numbers, camp locations, amenities, and tips on which sites will fill up first. This really is the most important, especially if you want to camp at a popular location or want to do overnight hikes in one of the more popular destinations. If you want to stay in one of the valley hotels think a year in adavance (at least), camping in the valley needs reservations 6-8 months in advance.

Trip descriptions: For the places I visited the descriptions were thorough but not overwhelming in detail. The book has both short trips (1-3 days) as well as longer excursions, but many of these can be abbreviated to suit your needs.

Maps: You will certainly need your own big topo map when on the hike, but the maps here (and in other Lonely Planet guides) are among the best you will find in this sort of guide. First they are topographic, which helps you with overall planning, even if you will eventually make use of a big map later on. Second, the maps are in two colors, which facilitates reading immensely. Finally, the printing is fine and crisp. Some other guides have blurry reproductions of USGS maps that look like they were printed onto a paper towel.

Other: The book is compact and lightweight. If you are an obsessive type you could carry it along on your hike without adding too much weight.

Overall, this is a great guide to aid in planning a trip to the region, especially those on their first couple of excursions to the region. For those who want more details on other trips check out Sierra North and Sierra South, as well as books by Mike White, R. J. Secor, and Steve Roper.

helpful and clear........2005-09-23

I enjoyed this guide for the easy to find information and easy to read maps. It gave good hike descriptions and the list of spotlighted activites was right on target. I do use this regularly to create my plans for the park. This did lack the personal touch that I found in some other references and found myself picking up other guides to go with the maps in this book. The Moon guide was by far my favorite. But do check it out if your going to Yosemite. More information is always better.

useful to plan trip.......2003-10-19

Good book - content useful, maps clear. I use their books a lot, and this one seemed expecially well laid out and clear.

Lonely Planet Hiking in the Sierra Nevada

Average customer rating:

The Best (and most crowded) Parts of the Sierra
Winner, 2002 National Outdoor Guidebook Award

Lonely Planet Hiking in the Sierra Nevada
John Mock , and Kimberley O'Neil
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Walking | Hiking & Camping | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

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Sierra North: Backcountry Trips in Californias Sierra Nevada
The High Sierra: Peaks, Passes, and Trails
Sierra South: Backcountry Trips in Californias Sierra Nevada
Backpacking California (Backpacking)
The Tahoe Sierra: A Natural History Guide to 112 Hikes in the Northern Sierra

Accessories:

Rayovac SPHLTLED 3-in-1 LED Head-Lite

ASIN: 1740592727

Book Description

Winner of the 2002 National Outdoor Book Award for Adventure Guidebooks

Heed the call of the rugged and pristine Sierra Nevada. Explore Lake Tahoe Basin and Sequoia, Kings Canyon, and Yosemite National Parks. Featuring the best day hikes, weekend backpacks and long-distance treks, this inspiring guide puts you on the trail to adventure. <ul>

detailed trail descriptions of more than 60 hikes </li>

accurate, two-colour contour map for every hike </li>

illustrated Sierra Nevada wildlife section </li>

feature chapter on the Tahoe Rim Trail, the Tahoe-Yosemite Trail and the John Muir Trail, including long and short hikes </li>

up-to-date information on access towns and transport to trailheads </li>

expert advice on responsible hiking, permits, equipment and safety </li></ul>

Customer Reviews:

The Best (and most crowded) Parts of the Sierra.......2006-09-11

This guidebook really is worthy of the award it won. It describes over 60 hikes in the Sierras the bulk of which are long day hikes or backpack trips. Each route has a topographical map included, detailed descriptions and alternative routes or side trips included. What makes this guide fairly unique are the many (very beautiful) color plates and some wonderful sidebars on local history, including a discussion of arborglyphs left by Basque sheepherders and the fight by the climbing community to save "Camp 4" in Yosemite Valley.

Nonetheless, I cannot give the book 5 stars. There are several minor errors in the book. Arrowheads have not been found atop Mt. Whitney: that is an apocryphal story that dates back to Clarence King. Similarly, the claim that Mt. Rose is the only 10,000 ft. peak with a trail to the summit in the Tahoe area is untrue. The Tahoe Rim Trail goes right over the summit of Relay Peak and this even appears on their own map of the Mt. Rose hike. The main drawback of this book, however, is that it really only covers the popular backcountry hikes in the range. The book lists only 8 hikes in Sequoia and Kings Canyon and these are the premier hiking parks in California. So, while this book is good if you really have no idea of what is available in the Sierras, hikers with some foreknowledge, or those seeking solitude, will need to supplement this book with other sources.

Winner, 2002 National Outdoor Guidebook Award.......2002-11-16

"Hiking in the Sierra Nevada is a user friendly, rock-solid guidebook with clear writing, useful topographic maps, inviting photos, and it's conveniently sized to fit in the side pocket of your pack." - NOBA award review

Winner, 2002 National Outdoor Book Award for Best Outdoor Adventure Guidebook: Hiking in the Sierra Nevada. By John Mock and Kimberley O'Neil. Published by Lonely Planet Publications, Footscray, Australia. ISBN 1740592727.

Book Description

Enjoy the good life! Just a short drive from San Francisco, the glorious Wine Country is Northern California's favorite getaway. From wine-tasting to balloon rides, award-winning cuisine to grape-stomping festivals, the Napa and Sonoma Valleys are feasts for the senses. Or for a real splash, try a wine-and-water vacation in rural Russian River Valley, also covered here. Cheers!

* Winning Wineries - choice vineyards for tours and tastings

* Fine Dining - mouth-watering reviews of top restaurants and local favorites

* Where to Stay - spectacular spas, quiet campgrounds, cozy cabins and rustic ranches

* Perfect Weekends - special itineraries for cycling and river-running trips, plus the ultimate epicurean holiday

* Aroma or Bouquet? - learn how to talk wine like a pro

* Outdoor Fun - the best spots for hiking, horseback riding, golfing and gliding

Customer Reviews:

A bit brief.......2005-09-05

Useful book but concentrates on only a few wine farms and producers.

Lonely Planet Los Angeles & Southern California

Average customer rating:

Best of the crop.
As usual you don't get disappointments from LP
Very Helpful

Lonely Planet Los Angeles & Southern California
Andrea Schute-Peevers , and John A. Vlahides
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Top 10 Los Angeles (Eyewitness Travel Guides)
Streetwise Los Angeles (Streetwise)
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Lonely Planet San Francisco
Lonely Planet Las Vegas: City Guide (Lonely Planet Las Vegas)

ASIN: 1741044324

Book Description

Lights, camera, action! Welcome to the reality show called Southern California, where rock stars and cherry cars share the spotlight with Mexican mariachis and seasoned surfers. Disney treasures, balmy beaches, desert getaways, Sunset Strip clubs - put the top down and let our local experts steer you to the best in the City of Angels and beyond.

• GET ORIENTED - more handy maps than any other Southern California guide, plust detailed itineraries from family favorites to offbeat adventures

• DRINK & DO DISNEY - expanded coverage of the Santa Barbara Wine Country, Disneyland and other thrilling theme parks

• TAKE IT OUTSIDE - the lowdown on surfing, diving, hiking, golf and other outdoor fun

• DINE IN STYLE - extensive reviews of SoCal cuisine, from Afghani to Zambian, plus the best places for celebrity-spotting

• CALIFORNIA DREAMING - a slew of recommended slumber spots, from beachfront cottages to Hollywood haunts and Palm Springs resorts

Customer Reviews:

Best of the crop........2006-03-28

We spent a week in the LA area visiting a long term resident and used this book every day! We wanted to visit both tourist sites and places off the beaten track, and were able to do both. Our family had a diverse list of places to go and things to do - see a star or two, visit hollywood, visit some ethnic areas (such as Little Saigon for an article for chaobannewsletter.com), visit an aquarium, eat family friendly food, hit the beaches, go to an amusement park, etc. It helped us with everything.

My only quibble is that we could have used even more family oriented advice and recommendations.

I looked at five or six guidebooks before picking this one - both because I have used their guides before and because it seemed to do the best job with details and off the beaten track exploration. This definately was the right choice. We used it every single day - to plan, to get to each place and also to eat.

As usual you don't get disappointments from LP.......2005-09-04

This is not the first LP guide that I buy and you could say I really am a regular customer
It was so helpful and useful that my trip without it couldn't have been the same... A must for all LA visitors

Very Helpful.......2005-08-28

These guides are always helpful. There is something for everyone. There's a good mix of everything you could want; from shopping to dinners etc etc. I've always found their books to be 99% acurate (as far as prices etc for sights), and they are well detailed. This book is no different. You'll find your travels much easier with this.

Average customer rating:

Helped facilitate our vacation from Laguna to Monterey.
Helpful guide :-)
Inferior to Lonely Planet's California Guide

Lonely Planet Coastal California
John A. Vlahides , and Alex Hershey
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Lonely Planet San Francisco

ASIN: 1741044715

Book Description

See what happens if you lift your shirt on Disneyland's Splash Mountain ride, p. 209.

Peer into the Pacific at 2am while floating naked in a hot-spring bath, p. 162.

Squeeze organic peaches with hemp-shirted hippies and couture-clad foodies at a farmers' market, p. 50.

Grip your toes on a waxy board and teeter down your first wave in a surfing course, p. 36.

Two fabulous local authors, 700+ hours of on-the-ground research, 64 detailed maps.

Driver essentials: detailed color map section, driving distances, fun and funky detours and itineraries.

A San Francisco drag queen, and LA surfer and other locals divulge their favorites.

The adventure continues: visit lonelyplanet.com for up-to-the-minute reviews and traveler suggestions.

Customer Reviews:

Helped facilitate our vacation from Laguna to Monterey........2007-06-24

We used this guide on a recent trip to California. It is a good solid guide that helped us with hotel selection as well as helping us navigate. All the major sites and landmarks are noted. Maps of highways and downtown area were helpful. Recommendations for hotels and restuarants were good.

We explored Laguna Beach and walked the paths along the cliffs and shoreline. The parks are well kept and are immediately across from the Laguna business disricts.

When in Los Angeles we visited the Petersen Car Collection in downtown Los Angeles. This collection includes historic cars but also a vast collection of modified cars for drag racing. We also visited a second car museum, the Nethercutt Collection, which was established by the owner of the Mary Kay Cosmetics fortune. These two car museums were not included in the Lonely Planet book but they are exceptional collections for car enthusiasts.

We spent the night on the ocean in Santa Monica and took a long evening walk down Venice Beach, certainly an interesting stroll. The next day we went into the Santa Monica Mountains. There are literally dozens of National Park Service areas spread across the Santa Monica Mountains. I strongly suggest going to the State Park District Headquarters and obtaining maps and advice on the numerous hiking opportunties in the mountains above Los Angeles and the Pacific Ocean. We selected the Rancho Sierra Vista and Satwiwa Trail, both of which were excellent hikes.

We stayed at the El Prado Hotel in Santa Barbara. Santa Barbara is upscale with expensive shops and restaurants throughout the downtown area. Lonely Planet recommended we get a hiking map, which we did, and they also recommended the Hot Springs Loop. A fellow at the hiking store told us to ignore this and take the Cold Springs Trails instead. We enjoyed this hike with its canyons, overviews, and waterfalls. Throughout the mountains above Santa Barbara are mixtures of mansions and farm houses. Several blocks from downtown Santa Barbara is the El Presidio de Santa Barbara, which is undergoing reconstruction and shows the life of a Spanish fortress in colonial California. Outside of town is the impressive and beautiful Santa Barbara Mission and gardens.

San Luis Obispo turned out to be delightful with a massive impressive downtown mission and more moderate hotels and restaurants and shops than Santa Barbara. At the advice of Lonely Planet we spent the night at Petit Soleil, a wonderful bed and breakfast where each room is decorated in some theme from the South of France, the food is fantastic and the staff were exceptional, even helping us plan our hikes around the area. We selected the hike to Bishop's Peak. This is highly recommended. The hike circles a volcanic mountain, one of 9 in the area, and offers exceptional views in all directions.

We then went to Hearst Castle. Lonely Planet is very diplomatic in their description of this site. The home and the guest houses are exceptional but seem to be monuments to an enormous ego. The guides and the orientation film are too glowing in their praise of William Randolph Hearst and they make his efforts to build a vanity castle seem like an accomplishment like the Panama Canal or the Statue of Liberty.

Point Piedras Blancas just north of Hearst Castle is a treat. We saw hundreds of elephant seals sleeping in the sun on the beach and rocks. as you drive north from this point, the road climbs and climbs high above the Pacific as you near Big Sur. This is an amazing part of the USA with many spectacular views of ocean cliffs. Be ready for twists and turns and narrow roads. Redwood and Lupine forrests line the east while the Pacific stretches out to the west. We spent the night in a cabin near Pfeiffer Beach, which we found after some searching. Lonely Planet helped but some local folks showed us the almost hidden entrace to the beach. We also hiked in the Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park with its enormous Redwood trees and Lupine stands. The hike to Pfeiffer falls is cool and moist and short.

Carmel by the Sea is another up-scale village with expensive stores and restaurants. On the edge of town, Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo had stone walls, towers, and an attractive garden courtyard. We were not impressed by the 17 Mile Drive because it is small in comparison to the spectacular views on Highway 1 going through Big Sur. We did see Pebble Beach Country Club along the 17 Mile Drive. This is where the famous antigue auto restoration competition takes place. Downtown Monterey was very nice and we took the walking tour of Portola Plaza, Monterey State Historic Park, and Custom House Plaza where we saw many colonial homes and buildings still in use.

This book was more than adequate for helping us navigate along coastal California.

Helpful guide :-).......2006-07-03

Lonely Planet are always the source I go to when looking to research a new vacation spot. Their books are informative and helpful and they are compact enough to take with you if nessesary.
The featured highlights in the book are places like Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, Hearst Castle, Point Arena Lighthouse, Griffith Park and Queen Mary - so they have the main points covered. They show you various detours you can make if you are travelling by car so you can see other places that may normally not be seen by you. They go into the usual information that they normally do such as History and Culture, and then it's broken up into sections like North Coast, San Fran and the Bay Area, Central Coast, LA Area, San Diego Area. I find that by the time they talk about restaurants and hotels and tourist spots in each town, there is pretty much nothing uncovered. For this reason, I highly recommend this book. It gives you plenty of places to think about when making your travel plans.

Inferior to Lonely Planet's California Guide.......2005-06-24

I lived in Southern California for 18 years (I moved in '02). On a trip back in Winter '04/05, I decided to take a friend on a "grand tour" of all of Southern CA and then the world famous Pacific Coast Highway 1 (or as we called it, PCH). While I'd bought the big Lonely Planet (LP) California guide for hitting the lesser known spots on the way back (we planned to only take PCH one way), I thought I'd cover all my bases and try out this "Coastal California" edition, especially since it had a different author and maybe had a different perspective.

I regret this more specific version is not worth it. The writing was actually less in depth on the areas it covered than the bigger all-CA guide. They also used different maps in key locations. As regular LP guide users know, the maps are one of the most useful elements of the LP series. After a while, I realized that some of the maps in the Coastal California edition were the inferior maps. Midway though my trip from LA to Eureaka I tossed the Coastal California book in my bag and simply stuck to the much larger but in depth LP California guide.

The price between the books is not big enough to really warrant not buying the much longer and more indepth full-CA version. You might as well pay the extra $5 or so and get the whole shebang.

Finally, a minor quibble: Inexplicably, this book is oriented for a trip from North to South. I don't know many people who enter CA from the far northwest corner.

To conclude: this guide isn't bad by any means, but as an LP guide it's not quite up to snuff -especially when there's another LP guide that covers the same areas but better.

Happy and Safe Travels!

Lonely Planet San City Map Francisco (Lonely Planet San Francisco City Map)

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Lonely Planet San City Map Francisco (Lonely Planet San Francisco City Map)

Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Map

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ASIN: 1740597222

Book Description

Lonely Planet's city maps present the travelers' city in one easy view

• Complete street and sight index makes navigating the city a breeze for walkers and drivers alike

• All new, improved mapping styles and fully updated

• Sturdy, laminated, easy-fold format

• Quick-find highlights and reviews of the top city sights

• Includes up-to-date transit maps and essential practical information

Book Description

Just west of the Mexican mainland and south of the US border lies the Baja Peninsula - land of lovely beaches, remote deserts and crystalline waters. Whether you want to view ancient Indian rock art, surf off Islas de Todos Santos or savor the best margarita in Ensenada, Lonely Planet reveals the best of Baja on and off the tourist track. <ul>

sleepy? where to stay from desert camps to ritzy resorts </li>

hungry? local cuisine from huevos fritos to lobster burritos </li>

active? diving, surfing, whale-watching and fishing hot spots </li>

lost? 38 detailed maps throughout </li>

no habla español? handy Spanish language and menu translators </li></ul>

Customer Reviews:

as comprehensive as a telephone directory..........2002-10-10

... and with about as much personality and selectivity. Like the Moon guide, a very useful book to have once you find yourself in Town X but not very useful for figuring out whether it would be better to plan a trip to Town X versus Town Y.

Practical and fun.......2001-06-09

Lonely Planet's Baja book is an excellent guide to the peninsula. I especially appreciated the detailed info on how to get around in Baja. The section on health in the front of the book came in handy after a small altercation with a manta ray! It was excellent for travelers on a budget. The descriptions of cities, places to stay and restaurants were all very accurate, but left enough room for our personal tastes to guide us to the spots that seemed especially fitting.

I felt as though once we arrived at our final destination there was a lot more there than was really covered in the book, but I guess they only have so many pages to work with!

This was the only book we brought with us, and it made for a great trip!

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