Comments on: 4 Guidebook Alternatives for Frugal Travelers

By: Michael

Michael — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 00:52:18 +0000

Sometimes if you find a really cool place to stay online, you might actually change your route. That’s what happened to us last summer when we started planning our trip to Umbria. The b&b we got most excited about was in the Marches, and so we revised our whole trip.

Check out http://www.darngooddigs.com for unique places to stay that you might not find anywhere else – and might make you rethink your itinerary.

By: Allison

Allison — Thu, 22 May 2008 16:37:18 +0000

Also:

TripAdvisor
Book swaps (particularly while en route)
Used book stores (old editions!)
And, my personal favorite, WikiTravel! Whole guide books at your fingertips, for FREE.

By: Kayu

Kayu — Mon, 05 May 2008 10:56:08 +0000

I travel a lot around my country (the Philippines) and have never used a traditional guide book. I’m actually averse to guide books since I like taking the road less traveled. My approach to travel is hit-or-miss, i guess.

What I do instead is pull out a map, select a region, and do a Google search. I read travel blogs and travel forums.

When I arrive at my destination, talking to the locals gives me an idea of other things to do and see.

My unsolicited travel advice: ditch the guidebook and take your common sense instead.

P.S. Nora, consider a stopover in the Philippines!

By: Loose Change - A round-up of recent travel tips from around the web (26th of April) « Oz Traveller

Sat, 26 Apr 2008 09:15:21 +0000

[...] Traveler has a guide to guides; five tips on how to pick a guidebook. Vagabondish goes one better with four alternatives to let you dispense with the darned things for [...]

By: Rory

Rory — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 20:36:01 +0000

If you’re heading to Central and Eastern Europe, or Belfast, try http://www.inyourpocket.com.

I’ll put my hands-up and admit I used to work for them, but it really is an excellent guide. Updated by resident writers, they feature honest reviews to restaurants, bars, hotels and sights. There really is no messing about, they generally call them like them see them. If a restaurant is crap, they’ll say so.

While there only a couple of Euro in country, you can also download free PDFs from the site.

Despite being a guidebook writer myself, I feel this is the way of the future, regularly updated guides, 1-3 months, written by writers who live in country.

The downside is, quality varies wildly. So while Poland might be the equal of Lonely Planet, Croatia is dire

By: Sheila @ GoVisitHawaii

Sheila @ GoVisitHawaii — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 20:42:56 +0000

I agree with Coqui about travel blogs and forums. However, I would say that the blog doesn’t necessarily have to be written by a local. Though I don’t live in Hawaii, anyone planning a trip to Hawaii could find loads and loads of unbiased advice on where to go and what to eat from my blog. Even Hawaii residents follow my blog and learn about places they’ve not been to on the islands. My blog may be the exception to the norm though.

By: Chris

Chris — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 19:03:07 +0000

I aggree with Coqui that travel forums can be a great resource. Bug.co.uk and Fodors.com both have great forums where questions are answered quickly and by people who know. Of course there is something to be said for just showing up in city and picking up a free, local “what’s happening this week” type publication which lists local events and hot spots. In bigger cities you will find these in Bars, bookstores, newstands etc. Usually any major site can be found without a guide book (just follow the herd); navigating a city on your own often yields surprises only locals know about. Another good rule of thumb when looking for something interesting to do and not spend money…find the traveler with the tent and sleeping bag attached to their pack…they’re the ones who know where the great music festivals and off the beaten path places to chill-out are.

By: Mike Richard

Mike Richard — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 18:29:58 +0000

Twitter is great, especially if you have a group of followers that you can bounce questions/ideas off of. Yahoo Answers is one I hadn't thought of for travel advice but that's a great idea. I've had great luck with the local, destination-specific threads on Lonely Planet's tried-and-true Thorntree forums.

By: Coqui

Coqui — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 18:12:43 +0000

I tend to use the following:

Travel forums such as tripadvisor

Travel blogs especially if they are written by someone local. Having a travel blog myself for Puerto Rico, I think these can be a valuable resource for people. Provided the information is accurate.

Have started using twitter.com and would probably ask on there for local advice for a particular destination

yahoo answers is another place.