Reviews (13)

A must have for your travel book library
As someone who's outgrown Lonely Planet and Let's Go guides, I found Fay's book to be an excellent guide for those looking for more in-depth perspective and history than simply finding a hostel or looking for the next watering hole. Pictures are gorgeous and one can easily tell a good deal of money went into the exquisite design.A great writer and guide, Kim is someone I wish I had along with me in my South East Asian travels!

Don't understand the fuss
I bought this based on the reviews here on Amazon - and I'm sorry that I did. It doesn't contain any valuable information and the organization is odd for a guidebook. I just don't see the point of this guidebook.

Dreadful guide book
Badly organized, can't find anything quickly...most of the tips can be found in lonely guide for the various counries....in the end was totally useless on our trip to cambodia, laos, and vietnam... ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - General    2. General    3. Reference - Guides (General)    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign    6. Travel - General    7. Travel / General   

Reviews (13)

Great resource
This had all that you would want or need out of a guidebook--helpful maps, ideas and descriptions, etc. A bit outdated, but that is to be expected with a country that is changing as quickly as Cambodia.

5th edition not updated as it should be
So I thought that investing in the most recent edition of this book would behoove me, but upon looking up one of the "author's picks," for lodging, I discover that he and Lonely Planet have not updated the book for the hotel's *price.*This is really important to me, as I work in non-profit and can't afford expensive digs when travelling.
Great Guide
I love this book.I was able to find out lots of new things in the book that I couldn't find in others.My parent went to visit Cambodia and I gave them this Lonely Planet Cambodia book.They were able to find great accommodations and good restaurants.I love the tips and quick facts in the book.I learn lots of new things I didn't know before.After going through the book, I felt that the author really love the country and knew things that only Cambodian natives would know. I can't wait until I get to visit Cambodia and experience all the places in the book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Cambodia    3. Guidebooks    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign    6. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (7)

Outstanding Photos and history
I purchased three books on Angkor Wat after my week visit to Siem Reap, Cambodia and this book was by far the best I have seen.The photos are excellent and the narration in very informative.It is expensive but worth it.

Awesome Angkor
Wow, what a spectacular book, truly amazing.I was blown away by the quality of the photography, the reader actually feels like they are in the jungle amid the ruins of Angkor.I have never visited Angkor Wat and probably never will, but after experiencing this book, I feel somehow that I have been there.The quality of the book is superior and the book even comes in a wonderful case.The publisher should be congradulated, it's a luxurious book.Some books are extremely expensive and you wonder why, I can assure you, you will not ask that about this one.If you have any interest in this subject or just like to own beautiful things I urge you to purchase this book, it will be a jewel in your book collection

A Must-Have Book on Angkor Temples
Through his magical photographic eye, Jon Ortner has created a wondrous collection of striking images and scholarly prose.His perfectly lit photographs and well-documented historic descriptions allow one to easily understand this complicated ancient subject.Each temple is clearly organized into relevant sections from the central Angkor area to the rare and never-before-seen temples in the outer lying areas.If you have visited Angkor - Ortner's book is the perfect addition to your library.Or, if you have not visited, this book provides the perfect impetus. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Angkor (Extinct city)    2. Archaeology    3. Architectural & Industrial    4. Asia - Southeast Asia    5. Cambodia    6. History - General History    7. International Architecture - Asian    8. Pictorial works    9. Social Science    10. Sociology    11. Temples    12. Asian / Middle Eastern history: c 500 to c 1500    13. History of art: c 500 CE to c 1400    14. Places & peoples: general interest    15. Religious buildings    16. South East Asia    17. Photography    18. History    19. Travel   

Reviews (15)

A Classic
I was drawn into this book after first viewings of the film "The Killing Fields."At the time, I was unaware of a lot of the background to many of the events depicted onscreen, and was looking for something a bit more detailed.
Haing Ngor Review
What a great story of determination and power. The irony of it all was, that, after all the suffering he went through, he died because of someone trying to steal his watch. Haing Ngor Review
What a great story of determination and power. The irony of it all was, that, after all the suffering he went through, he died because of someone trying to steal his watch. Read more

Subjects:  1. 1975-1979    2. Asia - Southeast Asia    3. Biography    4. Biography / Autobiography    5. Biography/Autobiography    6. Cambodia    7. General    8. Haing Ngor    9. History    10. Political refugees    11. Refugees, Cambodian    12. United States    13. Biography & Autobiography / General    14. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (2)

Wished I brought this with me
I just recently returned from a visit to this amazing city. It's huge and so utterly incredible. I sure could have used this book to help understand what I was looking at. This book has great photos, history and temple layouts. I bought a guide book at one of the temples (one needs it because a local guide isn't always understandable) and it is not even half as good as this book is. If you're planning a visit, this book is essential.

Excellent guide!!
First of all, you got to know the author Jean Laur was the Director of Angkor monuments from 1954 to 1959. He's very knowledgible about Khmer Angkor and the architects. Now, if you want to know about Angkors (all of the monunents in Cambodia) you got to read it from the source--the director of Angkors himself!! You can't never go wrong with this book. Every Angkor monument in this guide has some illustrated picture. Surprisingly the monument names are both in English and Khmer. I got 4 copies and gave them to my Khmer friends. They love it, especially the Khmer character names of the monument !! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Architecture    2. Art & Art Instruction    3. Asian    4. General    5. History - Medieval    6. Sculpture    7. Architecture / General    8. Art / History / General    9. Cambodia    10. Religious buildings    11. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (1)

Adventure-of-a-lifetime guidelines for smart traveling
The Treasures And Pleasures Of Vietnam And Cambodia: Best Of The Best In Travel And Shopping is an amazing, "user friendly" touring, travel, and shopping guide. Individual chapters focus upon the marvels of Vietnamese and Cambodian cities, as well as adventure-of-a-lifetime guidelines for smart traveling and shopping. Filled with sensible advice, maps, addresses, tips, great places to go and an easy index, The Treasures and Pleasures of Vietnam and Cambodia covers everything short of being a primer in the native language. Highly recommended for anyone planning a trip to these exotic and beautiful lands, The Treasures And Pleasures Of Vietnam And Cambodia is a "must" for getting the most out of a business or vacation trip to these exotic lands. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Cambodia    3. Commerce    4. General    5. Guidebooks    6. Indo-China - History    7. Shopping    8. Travel    9. Travel - Foreign    10. Travel Guides    11. Vietnam    12. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (8)

The Best
This is the best guide available. Moon travel beats the major competitor (the main travel-trail eye-sore creator) in almost all respects, but not all. Disappointing
This book is getting mixed reviews. It seems like friends of the author say its great. Those who tried to actually use the book are disappointed that everything is so out of date. This edition was not updated since the first edition and is now really out of date. Things change, but sloppy research is always out of style.

An Outstanding Guidebook
I've been using Michael Buckley's Vietnam Handbook for two months now and have found it to be excellent. It's well organized with country introductions which told me almost everything I wanted to know. Michael'ssidebars are intriguing and I especially appreciate the city walking tourswhich have led me to many hidden little places I might have missedotherwise. The maps are better than those in the other guidebooks becausesites are labeled right on the maps themselves rather than coded in a keywhich is impossible to read in dim lighting (a fault with the Lonely Planetseries). Michael has provided not only the usual city and country maps, butalso detailed inner city maps and even maps of the individual templesaround Angkor Wat. This book covers three countries and sure beats havingto buy and lug around individual guides to Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos.I've found that the coverage better than adequate and certainly head andshoulders above the general Southeast Asia guides which are surprisinglysketchy about these countries. Indochina is changing so fast that much ofthe practical information in any guide is bound to be out of date beforethe book reaches the shelves and this 1998 edition does require updating,but so do all the other guides to the region. You usually end up gettingthat kind of information from other travelers anyway. Of the threecountries included, the coverage of Cambodia is the weakest, obviouslybecause that country is only now opening to independent travel. Nextedition Michael needs to get to places like Kampong Cham, etc. Meanwhile Irecommend this handbook highly over all its competitors. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Travel    3. Travel - Foreign    4. Travel Guides    5. Cambodia    6. Laos    7. Travel & holiday guides    8. Travel / Asia / Southeast    9. Vietnam   

Reviews (1)

Impressive tour of Angkor
The most beautiful collection of color photographs of the Angkor Wat complex that I have seen. The accompanying narrative is thorough and places the images in an understandable perspective. Anyone planning to visit Angkor will want to review "Angkor: The Hidden Glories" first. Those who see this book will be pleased to find that the trip is easily made in comfort these days, unlike the days of the PRK era when Warner made this great photo survey. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Ancient Art    2. Angkor (City)    3. Angkor (Extinct city)    4. Description    5. Description and travel    6. General    7. Photo Essays    8. Photography    9. Pictorial works    10. Southeast Asia    11. Cambodia    12. Places & peoples: general interest   

Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Reference - Guides (General)    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. Travel Guides    6. United States - South - South Atlantic (General)    7. Southeastern & South Atlantic states    8. TRAVEL & HOLIDAY    9. Travel & holiday guides    10. Travel / Asia / Southeast   

Reviews (11)

Don't Go Without It
I just returned from a week-long visit to Angor Wat and the surrounding temples and found this guide invaluable. It is concise and well-written, provides the historical background of the Khmer empire, and tells the visitor what to see and what he is seeing.I took the book with me everyday and feel that I would have missed a lot without it.It helped me to appreciate the spirit and beauty of the magnificent temples. Essential Guide
If I had to choose one item to take to Cambodia it would be the 4th edition of Dawn Rooney's book on Angkor. The background on the geography, religion, architecture, and cosmology in the first half of the book provides a wealth of information that will enhance anyone's trip to Angkor. The second half, grouped into ten recommended tours, details each temple by giving an overview of the site, the historical setting, and the layout, which in most cases, is accompanied by a plan. Descriptions of the carvings are clearly written and add to one's enjoyment of the site. My only complaint is that Dawn Rooney didn't tell us more as she obviously loves Angkor and is most certainly one of the world's experts on the subject. I've read the book three times--before, during, and after my visit and, thinking about the lively narrative, good photographs, and comprehensive content, I may just read it again. I give this book five stars plus! Don't go to Angkor without it!

Essential for Angkor
If I had to choose one item to take to Cambodia it would be the 4th edition of Dawn Rooney's book on Angkor. The background on the geography, religion, architecture, and cosmology in the first half of the book provides a wealth of information that will enhance anyone's trip to Angkor. The second half, grouped into ten recommended tours, details each temple by giving an overview of the site, the historical setting, and the layout, which in most cases is accompanied by a plan. Descriptions of the carvings are clearly written and add to one's enjoyment of the site. My only complaint is that Dawn Rooney didn't tell us more as she obviously loves Angkor and is most certainly one of the world's experts on the subject. I've read the book three times--before, during, and after my visit and, thinking about the lively narrative, good photographs, and comprehensive content, I may just read it again. I give this book five stars plus! Don't go to Angkor without it! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - General    2. Asia - Southeast    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. ASIA    6. Cambodia    7. Travel & holiday guides   

Subjects:  1. Reference - General    2. Travel    3. Travel - General   

Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Cycling - General    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. Cambodia    6. Cycling    7. Laos    8. South East Asia    9. Travel & holiday guides    10. Vietnam   

Reviews (2)

A great resource for my holiday!
This guide states in the Intro that it's a companion to their
Interesting but...
This book is not really a guide book. It certainly gives infotmation about gay life and venues in the main countries of South East Asia. It's probably the first book of its kind about this part of the world. And that's already a good reason to buy it. But you must know that most of the book is made out of Internet pages prints. You get some info but also many links, most of which are incomplete. Some travellers comments included are over 2 years old. And after browsing the book, you feel like to go online to get fresh news... ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - General    2. Travel - Foreign    3. ASIA    4. TRAVEL & HOLIDAY    5. Travel / Asia / General   

Reviews (7)

Treated worse than dogs
You need a strong stomach to read the grueling ordeal of a 12 year old girl in Cambodia under the Pol Pot regime.
Chilling and moving
My heart sank lower and lower with each successive chapter. This is certainly not a book one can read while couching comfortably on a sofa. If you are familiar with Cambodian history of the Khmer Rouge regime, this book is indeed a chilling read. But at the same time, one can't help feeling admiration for the author's fortitide in the face of unimaginable hardship and horror.

A child's account of her family's struggle to survive.
One of the earliest (1986) accounts from the survivors of the Pol Pot regime, "The Stones Cry Out" seems to have set the style and standard for another more recent child's-eye perspective on the same era,"When Broken Glass Floats".The minute details of everyday life,not abstract poltical assessments, form the basis for our childhoodmemories.The author's account carries an unvarnished realism which drawsthe reader into her film-like image of daily life under threat ofstarvation and execution.This is probably as close as a reader can cometo the truth of events in Cambodia during 1975-79.Oral histories such as"The Stones Cry Out" are perhaps the best way for survivors ofhuman rights abuses to indict the perpetrators.Sadly, tribunals driven byinternational politics are unlikely to have the same impact as the simpletestimony of a victimized child.Highly recommended reading for all thosewith an interest in human rights, Cambodia, and Southeast Asian culture. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1975-1979    2. Biography    3. Cambodia    4. Description and travel    5. History - General History    6. Indo-China - History    7. Political refugees    8. Politics and government    9. Refugees, Cambodian    10. Southeast Asia    11. Szymusiak, Molyda   

Reviews (1)

For budget travel on a schedule
I am a big fan of Footprint guidebooks and have used them in many countries over the years. I bought this for an upcoming trip to Laos and Cambodia. It seems targeted to budget tourists who want to carry only one guidebook and hit the high points of each country.The hotels reviewed are "B" or lower and 3 countries plus Bangkok (which isn't mentioned in the title) are covered in under 400 pages.
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Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Cambodia    3. Guidebooks    4. Laos    5. Museums, Tours, Points of Interest    6. Travel    7. Travel - Foreign    8. Travel Guides    9. Vietnam    10. Travel & holiday guides    11. Travel / Asia / Southeast   

Subjects:  1. Art    2. Asian    3. Individual Photographer    4. Photoessays & Documentaries    5. Photography    6. Subjects & Themes - Travel - World/Asia    7. Cambodia    8. NATURAL HISTORY, COUNTRY LIFE & PETS    9. Places & peoples: general interest   

Subjects:  1. Ancient Archaeology    2. Ancient Art    3. Archaeology    4. Art & Art Instruction    5. Asia - General    6. Asian    7. Travel    8. Art / History / Asian    9. Asian / Middle Eastern history: BCE to c 500 CE    10. Cambodia   

Subjects:  1. Asia - General    2. Cambodia    3. Guidebooks    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign    6. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (3)

Whose footprint?
Compared to the excellent Lonely Planet guide and even the rough guide, the Footprint book on Cambodia leaves much to be desired... it is full of errors of history and fact, and even gives wrong coordinates on its maps, especially its important map of Phnom Penh.If you buy one guidebook to Cambodia, let it be Lonely Planet, not this very disappointing Footprint guide, no matter how pretty the pictures are. Disappointing
I've been very happy with other Footprint Handbooks, particularly the Pakistan Handbook, but this one falls short of the mark.Maybe it is because this is only the 2nd edition and there has been too little feedback from users.The background info is very well done (that part is worth 4.5 stars) regarding history and religion, but the description of sights is only mediocre.I thought Lonely Planet described things better, and the Moon Handbook was the best of the three.I could have done without bringing this guidebook.

Authors' Affection Seen
I have never read a travel guide book like this.It gives you the overall and detailed picture on Cambodia. Besides history, politics, peoples, places of interests and the information any travel offers, the authors, gives abundant knowledge related to Cambodia, like Buddha's footprint, Pol Pot's life, ruby and saphire... The Ankor area map is the most detailed i have ever seen.Without deep affection to Cambodia, it is impossible to write such an detailed travel guide book. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. General    2. Reference - General    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign