Lonely Planet the Arctic

Greenland & The Arctic (Lonely Planet Travel Guides)

Average customer rating:

Good Greenland guide - Crappy Arctic guide...
Perfect for those few travellers headed to Greenland
A take-along 'must' for any destination-bound traveler

Greenland & The Arctic (Lonely Planet Travel Guides)
Etain O'Carroll , and Mark Elliott
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Greenland | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 1740590953

Book Description

Kayak past towering icebergs, dog-sled frozen tundra to picture-postcard villages, marvel at the midnight sun or dancing northern lights - Greenland and the Arctic are the perfect backdrop to an unforgettable experience. Whether you crave quiet solitude or bold adventure, this inspiring and practical guide takes you to the heart of the cold north.

• EXPLORING MADE EASY - slumber in colorful cottages, dine on reindeer or sail the coast in style, with our extensive, practical listings

• PLAN YOUR ADVENTURE - inspiring itineraries for exploring the Arctic Circle, from Lapland to Deadhorse, Nuuk to the North Pole

• GET BENEATH THE SURFACE - topical coverage of cultural and environmental issues affecting the region, with chapters on indigenous peoples and Arctic research projects

• AMAZING ENDEAVORS - from Norse voyages to legendary explorers, storybrook adventures uncovered in our dedicated history and exploration chapters

Customer Reviews:

Good Greenland guide - Crappy Arctic guide..........2007-06-01

For those who want a good read and a good guide to fascinating Greenland, then this book will do it (though I think the previous edition of LP's guide to Greenland had a bit more coverage - especially the more off-the-beaten-track settlements). But anything beyond Greenland, LP seems to really lose interests in the rest of the Arctic world. It seems as if they just threw in a few sections just to say that they've covered it... It should really be titled "Greenland and an Introduction to the rest of the Arctic". All they give you are some sloppy details of a few selected regions under their "suggested itineraries" sections for other Arctic regions.

Living in Northern Canada myself (Yukon by the way...not Vancouver), I know that there are tons to offer for any Arctic fan. But this LP guide has missed out so much...to mention a few:

1) Yukon - there's more to this territory than just Dawson and Dempster Hwy...such as Old Crow, Vuntut & Ivvavik Parks, and simply the rest of Yukon itself. BTW, Whitehorse, which is the hub of the Yukon, sits at about the same latitude as Qaqortoq in Greenland. It's sub-Arctic...but close enough...

2) NWT - Yellowknife, the areas around Great Bear Lake such as Deline and Tulita, etc... same thing, its all sub-Arctic environments similar to Inuvik's...what's the problem?

3) Nunavut - there's a lot more places than just Baffin Island or Resolute...how about Kitikmeot and Kivalliq regions? Every region of NU is worth a visit.

4) Nunavik (Northern Quebec) - how could they forget this beautiful Arctic region of Quebec? Colourful villages, beautiful landscapes, rich Inuit culture ...even the LP guides to Quebec/Canada mention very little on this region. Better do your planning online... though slightly southerly regarding its latitude and location, this place has nothing but Arctic landscapes and climate.

5) Northern Labrador - another beautiful Inuit region of Labrador completely forgotten on this so-called "Arctic" guide...

6) Scandinavia - Northern Norway is very beautiful, but this guide only gives you a vague idea of this fascinating region. Buy the individual guides instead (Norway, Sweden, Finland...but don't bother with the "Scandinavian Europe" unless you only plan to see only a few places from each country)

7) Arctic Russia - I know its a difficult place to go to, but there are fascinating untouched areas out there in Siberia. But this book covers very little of this vast region...especially the Far East - Chukotka. Even LP's "Russia" guide is next to useless to this region if you're really interested into visiting these areas. Once again, do your homework online...

8) Alaska - get the "Alaska" guide instead...

I was quite disappointed with this LP publication. I hope their next edition will be a heck of a lot better. Otherwise, its a waste of time and money. It's really just a Greenland guide ...but for the rest of the Arctic, don't count on it...

Perfect for those few travellers headed to Greenland.......2005-11-19

Apart from Antarctica, this is the most obscure place covered by LP. Half of the book (about 165pp) is specifically about Greenland in the customary LP format, and the remainder is about other Arctic regions. (One tidbit: It is impossible to fly to Nuuk, the capitol, without changing planes in another Greenlandic town.)

This guide covers a casserole of places that cannot conceivably be visited on a single itinerary, because so few Arctic air routes cross national borders. For example, charter flights between Canada (Iqaluit) and Greenland were terminated after the book went to press, so now it's impossible to fly from North America to Greenland without going through Europe.

Alaskan coverage is only Fairbanks and points north; Yukon is Dawson and north. The Inuvik region and nearly all of Nunavut are covered. Places like Whitehorse, Yellowknife, and Anchorage are too far south to be covered in this volume, which is unfortunate because it's impossible to reach northern Alaska without passing through either Anchorage or Whitehorse.

Also covered are Arctic Russia, northern Norway (town of Mo and north), and northern Finland (Rovaniemi and north). The end result is a book that's fun to read but of doubtful utility except for those few Greenland-bound travellers.

A take-along 'must' for any destination-bound traveler.......2005-09-05

The second updated edition of Etain O'Carroll & Mark Elliott's Greenland & The Arctic is out, and is an indispensable guide for any heading North sans travel group. From overviews of regional history and culture to local sights, activities, and opportunities, Greenland & The Arctic highlights all kinds of opportunities, from transportation options between small towns and remote regions to rare shopping opportunities and plenty of nature. A take-along 'must' for any destination-bound traveler; especially since relatively few other titles cover the region in depth.

Lonely Planet the Arctic (Lonely Planet Travel Guides)

Average customer rating:

overall nicely done

Lonely Planet the Arctic (Lonely Planet Travel Guides)
Deanna Swaney
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0864426658

Book Description

This unique guide to one of the last wilderness frontiers is the essential companion for both intrepid adventurers and armchair travellers. <ul>

comprehensive coverage of the Arctic regions of Alaska, Canada, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Russia and Sweden </li>

special sections written by experts on Arctic issues including indigenous peoples and cultures, research, history, exploration, and literature </li>

detailed activities chapter covering options from sea-kayaking to dogsledding </li>

43 detailed maps </li>

32 page, full-colour nature guide </li></ul>

Customer Reviews:

overall nicely done.......2003-05-18

i had already picked up the LP guide to the antarctic and i saw this and just couldn't resist. (and this is a guy who *freezes* when it gets below 60 degrees!)

overall, the book seems great, though of course i can't speak from experience. just as an introduction to the arctic it's not bad at all. you get lots of long sections on all sorts of stuff -- the flora and fauna, the history of arctic exploration, the indigenous peoples, past and current arctic research programs, even arctic literature, plus of course all the introductory stuff covering history more generally, geography, climate, "environment and ecology", and national parks. you also get short (usually one-to-four page) insets on a particular subject (alcoholism among the Inuit, Fridtjof Nansen, the Sea Ice, SAD == Seasonal Affective Disorder" [seasonal depression from lack of light], "Arctic Phenomena" == the Northern Lights and other such things). etc. etc.

in general i've had good luck with the lonely planet guides -- they give you detailed info about all the basics (getting there, visas, getting around, potential health problems, religion, basic phrases in the most important languages, etc.) and they seem well-organized and to-the-point when it comes to telling you what are the interesting things to see, as well as making it possible for you to make your own choices based on what *you* find interesting.

Amazon.com

Just looking at the hauntingly sculpted blues, vast horizon-touching Shelves, and towering behemoths of Antarctica's ice formations makes the traveler know why she wants to go there and why she needs a good guidebook. Lonely Planet has once again done its homework. In addition to a thorough and succinct history section, useful overviews of Antarctic tour companies, information about how to plan your trip, detailed maps, and interesting facts about the places you'll visit, this book includes a 32-page color wildlife guide that introduces you to Chinstrap penguins, elephant seals, and eight types of whales.

LP has sought out the experts on Antarctic issues to write about science, environmental, and exploration issues. Shaded boxes offer in-depth highlights about topics such as traveling by zodiac (the small inflatable boats used by tour companies--ideal for cruising among "bergy bits"), Antarctic fiction, glaciology, and icebergs: "The Antarctic ice sheet is the iceberg 'factory' of the Southern Ocean. The total volume of ice calved from the ice sheet each year is about 2300 cubic km, and it has been estimated that there are about 300,000 icebergs in the Southern Ocean at any one time."

This book offers sage advice and is not afraid of the stark and sometimes dangerous realities of traveling to such a harsh and foreboding land: "If you fall overboard, you will die. Although this may not be true in every single case, it is almost certain, for human survival in the -1.8°C water of the Southern Ocean is calculated in minutes. Since drowning is thought by some to be preferable to freezing to death, one bit of only half-cynical advice for those who fall overboard is to swim as hard as you can for the bottom."

Book Description

This new city guide gives you all the tips for getting the most out of a visit to this radical and picturesque city.

Includes: background notes on history and culture; where to eat, from canalside cafs to international restaurants; how to get good value out of Amsterdams limited accommodation; extensive notes on galleries and museums; entertainment venues, from "smoking" coffee shops to live jazz to opera; and full guide to the city's public transport

Customer Reviews:

close to excellent.......1999-03-15

When the book came out, I wrote themthat I wished it had been around beforemy first trip to Antarctica! What ahelp it would have been. They respondedvery quickly to my criticisms of whatthey had left out.

close to excellent.......1999-03-15

Absolutely best and most complete travel guide to The Ice........1998-12-22

If you plan a trip to The Ice, you will find this book invaluable. If you do not, you will find it fascinating, and it will make you want to go. In addition to all manner of practical advice for travelers, it is packed with thorough and interesting history of the continent, its wildlife, its geography, and also contains tempting suggestions for further non-fiction and fiction reading, films and videos, and even CD's. It is written with grace and humor, and contains really useful maps and charts. (How about that map of "Non-Existent Islands"!) Highest recommendation.

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