Lonely Planet Crete

Average customer rating:

All have the same problem
Big disappointment
An excellent upgrade to a tired guide
Lonely Crete
Unusually disappointing

Lonely Planet Crete
Paul Hellander , and Jeanne Oliver
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Lonely Planet Greek Islands

ASIN: 174059049X

Book Description

Unlock the Mediterranean treasure-trove that is Crete, with its stunning natural beauty, ancient Minoan ruins and sun-drenched beaches. This indispensable guide is your key to exploring this fascinating island. <ul>

30 detailed maps and floor plans of ruins </li>

special section on the life and times of the Minoans, with a detailed guide to Knossos </li>

'Head to the Hills' - our special activity guide to Crete's rugged interior </li>

local knowledge onfinding that deserted beach of your dreams </li>

accommodation to suit all budgets including domatias, mountain hideaways and five-star beach resorts </li></ul>

Customer Reviews:

All have the same problem.......2005-01-16

The LP guide to Crete seems no worse than any of the other printed guides. They all, by nature, suffer the problem of possibly being out of date even before they go to press. Businesses on the island change very quickly and when a new edition is due to be released some information will have gone quite stale. LP seems to suffer no more than any of the others and the style is typically readable. The usual introductory sections on basics, history, mythology etc are brief but cover a lot of bases in a short space. One major gripe is that it could easily, in itself, warrant a LP volume as thick as that for the mainland. Some popular and interesting areas getting tens of thousands of visitors a year only get an insufficient couple of pages each. Overall though the 1st and 2nd editions seem to have been decent introductions to the island for the first time independent traveller

Big disappointment.......2004-11-12

Lonely Planet publishes some outstanding travel books. Unfortunately its Crete guide is not one of them. This book is pitifully short on detail. It is full of generalizations with very little truly insightful information. In fact, it appears to be mainly a guide to hotels and restaurants, with comparatively scant information about the places where those hotels and restaurants are located. I found this book to be a huge disappointment and practically useless as a travel guide. An infinitely better alternative is the Rough Guide book on Crete, which is absolutely outstanding and leaves Lonely Planet in its dust.

An excellent upgrade to a tired guide.......2002-02-10

Lonely Planet has finally got its act together and upgraded the badly flawed and messy 1st edition of its traveller's guide to Crete. The 1st edition while 75% there just had too many inaccuracies and inconsistencies to be considered a good guide: directions were often 180 degrees out, maps were incorrect, recommendations were strangely pitched at travellers with more money than taste and that front cover ...urrgh!

All that has changed with the new edition of the Crete guide, published in February 2002. This book, after an initial review by this critic, is a stunner and a winner. With a striking Minoan fresco painting as a front cover the book looks immediately tight and controlled. The two new special sections on the 'Minoans' and 'Back to the Hills' - a guide to outdoor activities - are well written and informative. Restaurant reviews now recommend dishes and give prices and hotel listings give much more useful information like email addresses and web pages. There is a whole new selection of sidebars that range from the funny to the cerebral. Some chapter re-structuring is now in evidence and information is that much easier to follow. New destinations are in evidence including the hitherto 'undiscovered' village of Mochlos near Agios Nikolaos. I thought only I knew about that place! Hats off to Greece specialist and veteran Lonely Planet author Paul Hellander who updated this guide: the expertise shows. I for one will be looking forward to my annual vacation this year with the Lonely Planet guide to Crete as my companion. Thank you LP!

Lonely Crete.......2000-06-16

With some regret, I have to say this book is disappointing. Lonely Planet has taken a long time to find Crete, but on the evidence of this it could have been written from reviewing all the others. I bought it yesterday and got a third of the way through before reading anything useful about the island rather than Greece. On the plus side, the website references are useful, and the prices are reasonably accurate still - except for the buses (I arrived back from this year's visit three days ago). Crete is still crying out for a guide that tells you how to get about in a practical sense - not everyone is pretending to be an explorer in a land with no tourists. For example, getting to anywhere in the south west by bus from Chania/Rethymnon areas requires careful planning, but it's safer and cheaper than the extortionately priced car-hires in Crete. The benchmarks for guidebooks to Crete are still the blue and yellow German one (can't remember the publisher) and the Greek one 'Unexplored Crete', pub 1996, and now about 4500 Dr. Not a bad guide, just disappointing from Lonely Planet.

Unusually disappointing.......2000-06-07

Lonely Planet, for me, are "the" tried-and-tested guide books. Usually very thorough and accurate.

This Crete edition is therefore somewhat of a let-down. I can only put it down to having a single author rather than the multiple authors in most editions.

It does remain a very useful source of information but it seems to be more targeted at the casual holidayer rather than people looking to get off the tourist trail. Some areas are completely uncovered, or only very briefly mentioned.

Worst is many mistakes along the lines of "16 km west of..." where if you went 16 km west you'd be in the sea, and 16 km EAST is where you need to be. I'm OK as I have other books and maps, but the fact that these errors are repeated throughout the book is quite unacceptable.

You may still find this a useful companion guide, but don't depend upon it alone. I'm off to buy the Rough Guide and hoping it will be better or at least fill in some gaps. I also have had to buy a 1:100k map and a hiking book for the region.

Book Description

Dramatic mountains and sparkling seas, bustling cities and secluded olive groves, ancient ruins and sleek resorts - Crete is an island of irresistible contrasts. Whether you're gorge walking or Minotaur hunting, celebrating Orthodox Easter or simply sun seeking, our definitive guide gives you detailed regional coverage for the perfect getaway.

• EXPERT ADVICE - insider tips help you escape the crowds and discover unspoilt hideaways

• HIT THE HILLS - detailed walks guide you through Crete's spectacular gorges and coastal scenery

• DISCERNING DINING - our refined eating reviews ensure you'll find a slice of authentic Cretan cuisine

• GET UNDER THE SKIN with our in-depth history and culture coverage, including an informed guide to the Minoan civilization

• PLAN YOUR ADVENTURE with comprehensive itineraries and extensive grid-referenced maps

Customer Reviews:

It was great for me. .......2007-05-01

Let me start by saying I have been to Crete before.

I bought the book, rented a car and drove around Crete in 2005 using this guide only with the objective of looking for value for money accomodation and places of interest to me for this trip ie. beaches on the south west: Paleohora, Elafonissi, Plakias etc. The accommodation I stayed at was picked from the book and was superb. The prices (in 2005) were completely accurate. I am not a backpacker (such as the previous reviewer) and I had different aims from the guide and had a different experience. (Other guides are more informative if you are looking for more culural experiences). For me, I can't wait for the next edition to come out to plan my next trip to this beautiful place.

Little more than a tourist guide.......2005-10-12

The book is just a little more than a turist guide. Maybe it can be usefull when making a tour with a small suitcase and a credit card, but backpackers and budget travelers shouldn't lean too much on it. Do your own research when planning the trip and talk to your kind of travelers on the trip. I guess the author did't do any researhes on her own but just copying the previous text. Maybe just some prices that are different than in the previous edition.
Manos hotel in Chania is (let say) recomended by the book and it advertises that in the street proudly. When i asked for the room the price was double than written in the book and not negotiable. The hotel was dirty and the owner arogant. This was just one of my experiences on the trip that don't fit into the guide. But O.K. this can happen. The problem are missing information. For instance that you can sleep half price in the turk part of the historic centre of Chania etc.
Overall: It is O.K. to have a guide on a trip but after visiting Nepal, India and Turkey with Lonely Planet is this one quite a dissapointment to me.

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