Favorite Guidebook Series for Islands Worldwide: Be sure to consider titles to Island destinations from the guidebook series we review on our Guidebook Series page. (You'll also find some helpful comments on the major guidebook series below.)
Click on series name below to read the review on the Guidebook Series page. Use link to series' Web site in our review for full list of titles currently available:
Open Road series: A good quality, lesser-known series, which is great to use with major guidebooks to compare and contrast your selections. Knopf Mapguides: Small pocket guides with ingeniously designed fold-out maps. Includes sites, restaurants, and more.
And how about the major guidebook series? Our Web site does not focus on the major guidebook series, but we certainly do make use of these often excellent resources. Some brief comments should be useful: The major guidebooks we choose vary by place: For the Caribbean, a great first choice is Fodor'sCaribbean, winner of the Lowell Thomas "Guidebook of the Year" award in 2006--though do note that there are limits to what a guidebook covering more than 100 islands can do--be sure to also find quality guidebooks covering more limited territory whenever possible (www.fodors.com/shop). For the islands of the South Pacific and Indian Oceans we look to Lonely Planet (www.lonelyplanet.com, click on "online shop") and Moon Handbooks (www.moon.com/booklist). For Hawaii it is Fodor's again, plus the Moon Handbooks. For the islands of the Atlantic, we use the Bradt guides for North Cyprus and the Azores (www.bradt-travelguides.com), Lonely Planet for Malta, Gozo, Sardinia, and Cyprus (see link above), and the appropriate country guide for other islands (i.e. Portugal for Madeira, etc.) For the budget traveler, Let's Go has guidebooks to Hawaii and Puerto Rico (www.letsgo.com). See additional comments on major guidebook series and on selecting from the guidebooks we review on our Choosing Guidebooks page.
Reviews of Favorite Guidebooks:
Kauai Trailblazer: Where to Hike, Snorkel, Bike, Paddle, Surf by Jerry and Janine Sprout, 256 pages, Diamond Valley Company, 2nd edition, 2006 Maui Trailblazer: Where to Hike, Snorkel, Paddle, Surf, Drive by Jerry and Janine Sprout, 256 pages, Diamond Valley Company, 2nd edition, 2006 Oahu Trailblazer: Where to Hike, Snorkel, Surf from Honolulu to the North Shore by Jerry and Janine Sprout, 256 pages, Diamond Valley Company, 1st edition, 2006 Hawaii the Big Island Trailblazer: Where to Hike, Snorkel, Surf, Bike, Drive by Jerry and Janine Sprout, 256 pages, Diamond Valley Company, 3rd edition, 2008
The best activity guides to the islands period! The Sprouts have been roaming the Hawaiian islands for 20 years and taking lots of useful notes and beautiful photos along the way. Written in the spirit of aloha, these books are respectful of the land and its people. You’ll learn a lot about these magical, magnificent places in addition to the activities that best meet your needs. No matter what island you pick, each book is similarly organized and equally well done. And the black-and-white photos are a joy. But be sure to read the “How to Use This Book” section to learn how to get the most out these great resource books. And don’t miss the “Best Of” section, which is divided into lots of useful categories from waterfall walks, big views, and sunset beaches to town strolls, gardens, and perfect places with little walking—there is something here for everyone. There are also good maps to orient you. Driving and parking directions are excellent—no small trick in a place where the only sign to tell you you’ve arrived may be a small mile marker along the highway. You’ll definitely want to learn two, new, directional words, which are very helpful in a land surrounded by water: makai—meaning “toward the ocean,” and mauka—meaning “inland or toward the mountains.” Read carefully, follow along and the Sprouts will get you to some places few tourists ever go. Each walk or hike provides round-trip distances, elevation gained, and the “How To” section helps you estimate the amount of time needed. Hiking/walking directions are also very well done. In general, you won’t need a topographical map, but for more serious hikes some folks may feel more comfortable with one. Other activities at each location, such as surfing, biking, snorkeling, are carefully described as well. Practical information on every possible subject includes great driving tours, the best stuff for kids, climate, important resource numbers, and cryptic but very well chosen lists of the best food and lodging choices in each area. Whatever all-purpose guide you choose, don’t visit the islands without the appropriate Trailblazer guide in hand. It will make all the difference. Back to Top
Kauai Underground Guide, by Lenore Horowitz, 240 pages, Papaloa Press, 18th edition, 2007
The Kauai Underground Guide has been a labor of love for Lenore Horowitz (with lots of help from other members of the Horowitz family) ever since the first edition in 1980. She deserves an award for stick-to-it-iveness, that's for sure. Her dedication to making this happen year after year is remarkable. Her first edition, as her introduction will tell you, was only 16 typewritten pages. Of course, there wasn't as much happening on Kauai back then and 16 pages pretty much covered what was needed. Recent editions are much more substantive, replete with lots of color pictures and a very nice Hawaiian music CD as well. A real bargain! We've enjoyed this guidebook for many years. Nowadays we like to use it in combination with Kauai Trailblazer (reviewed above), which we feel is the preeminent outdoor activity guide to the island. Together the two books make a dashing duo for those Kauai bound. Don't misunderstand. Kauai Underground Guide has lots to offer when it comes to ideas for things to do and see. The Horowitz family, a San Francisco-Bay-area crew, spent lots and lots of time on Kauai over the years. The four kids basically grew up on the island. So Lenore has lots to say about what places work best for what kind of needs. Our favorite part of the guidebook though is the restaurant section. Lenore really know what's happening on the food front and is perfectly happy to share. The section is so much fun to read, we sometimes sit around reading it even though no trip to Kauai is even planned. It helps to mentally take us back to the land of aloha and our favorite Hawaiian island. Bottom line: When it comes to restaurant reviews, this is as good as it gets on Kauai. And, of course, there's lots of other useful info waiting for your use. Check it out! Back to Top
Tahiti and French Polynesia Guide by Jan Prince, 648 pages, Open Road Publishing, 5th edition, 2008
Jan Prince's guidebook is a top seller to the region. She has lived in that area for 40 years and certainly knows the terrain. These guidebooks are updated about every three years, so wait for the January release of the new edition. Combine it with guidebooks from Moon Handbooks and Lonely Planet and you will be definitely all set--between the three you'll find everything you need. No one guidebook will work as well. It's well worth the expense and weight to take several. This guide is part of the Open Road series listed above under Favorite Guidebook Series. Back to Top
Azores: The Bradt Travel Guide, by David Sayers, 272 pages, Bradt Publications, 3rd edition, 2006.
Released in December, 2006, this is another great guidebook from the Bradt series. The Bradt travel guides are much respected on the Continent, but less known in the U.S. The Azores guide, now in its third edition, is a popular choice and rightly so. It is well organized, packed with practical information and lots of helpful suggestions on activities of every sort. Especially well done are the suggested walks and the information on nature reserves. David Sayers is a trained botanical horticulturist and provides a most helpful illustrated plant guide for your use. The Azores are a delightful place with much to see and the author's enthusiasm for the place is hard to resist. Back to Top
