Reviews (16)

Review of the Lonely Planet book on the Philippines
This was an excellent book.I would take it with me and read it when I had the chance.I am not much of a book reader but this book really kept my attention.I would recommend this book for anyone interested in visiting the Philippines.
Don't even bother with this guide
This guide was a total disappointment.I have never been a fan of Lonely Planet guides but since they are popular you can get them cheap second hand. I always end up taking one with me wherever I travel but this is the first one I threw away because I didn't want to carry the weight around.
skip this
The Philippines is a big place and the plane is the best way to get around. This is particularly true as most visas are for only 21 days. Manila outside of Makai is a depressing tgown, Ermita particularly as poor families go there in the hope of begging from tourists. Quiapo of black statue and pirated videos fame is best avoided at night. Pagsanjan, Baguio and other nearby tourist spots are easily reached under your own steam. For Negros, Mindanao or Cebu, a plane is best and LP is worst.
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Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Travel    3. Travel - Foreign    4. Travel Guides    5. Philippines    6. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (5)

Fantastic
Has all the little things you look for, when hiking and diving in a beautiful country.

it's incomplete, but the best there is, as of today.
before i criticize, let me say that this book is crammed with great info--much more info than any other (up to date) book in existance on this country. i would say it is worth taking, and i will use it next week on my return to the islands. my suggestion to jens is to beef up some sections in the next edition.
This is the best!
I have many books & guides on the Philippines but this is the best written and most accurate I have ever seen. While there are many good guides not to be missed out there like Evelyn Peplow's "The Philippines" and Jill & Rebecca Gale De Villa's "Philippines Guide", this one definately surpasses them all, it's the guide I pack on my Philippine trips now. It doesn't deal with as much history as some of the others, but remember, this is a guide and not a history book. The info is exactly what a traveler needs to know. For example, let's say your in Manila and want to visit Naga City,it will tell you how much it will cost, how long it will take to get there by plane,train and bus. It also tells you hotels & resturants in the area & how much everything cost.It tells you of any festivals in that area,stores,churches,banks and other misc places in the area, also has a street map with all the points of interest pointed out for you. There's over 170 maps in this book. There is so much more this book offers that no other does, but it would take too long to long to list them all.So to sum it up, if your looking for the best actual travel guide then this is it. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. General    3. Travel    4. Travel - General    5. Travel Guides    6. Travel / General   

Reviews (2)

Spot On
Couldn't agree more with the first reviewer. This is a better guide book to the Philippines than any other and beats LP by a country mile. It's better written, more thoroughly researched - and actually interesting. I used it when I was there last Easter and also found it to be very up to date. But what I liked most was the honesty. It calls a spade a spade, but always remains fair. The destination summaries are spot on. Even Boracay doesn't get away unscathed.

This is my favorite because it gives frank advice.
There are several good, reliable guidebooks to the Philippines which give you basic information about places, accommodations, restaurants and so forth.Jens Peters "Philippine Travel Guide" is especially comprehensive.The Lonely Planet Guide is also very good.But, the Rough Guide does something the others don't often do; the Rough Guide gives you frank comments on the relative quality of the destinations.For example, from the other guidebooks you'll learn that Cebu City is the "Queen City of the South".The Rough Guide gives a franker description, saying, "there's history and architecture in there somewhere, but you have to look hard for it among the clutter, the exhaust fumes and the nondescript concrete malls."Don't get me wrong, I like Cebu City, but the Rough Guide lets the visitor know what to expect.If they think a place is exceptionally attractive, they'll say so.One of the most important functions of a guidebook is to help the trip-planning traveler discriminate between great places and mediocre ones.If that's what your looking for, the Rough Guide is the best.However, it does not cover nearly as many places and acommodations as does the thicker Philippine Travel Guide.I'd choose the Rough Guide to plan my trip but take along the Philippine Travel Guide or Lonely Planet guide for their more extensive and detailed travel information. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Guidebooks    3. Philippines    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign    6. Travel Guides    7. Travel & holiday guides    8. Travel / Asia / Southeast   

Reviews (3)

Even better than what is taught in school @^:^@
Very high Quality book. The chapter entitled "The Country and Its People"is an excellent account and analyses of our Philippine history.Even better than what is taught in school here.You will be ready to appreciate my country during your visit.It contains many, many beautiful color pictures on high quality paper.I would read this book before I left & take the latest edition of the Lonely Planet Guide with me.

Great travel book
The Philippines tourism bureau should distribute free copies of this book, because it really does a good job of showing off the country in all its glory.I recently spent a lot of time looking at various travel books to research a trip to Palawan/El Nido, and this was the only book that I felt covered the topic adequately.Besides the great text, the book is packed with beautiful pictures!

a treasure in a travel book
I just finished reading the chapter entitled "The Country and Its People" in Traveler's Philippines Companion. I consider it to be one of the best, if not the very best, accounts and analyses of the history of a nation thatI've ever read. My wife, who is Filipino, said it is easily superior inbreadth and depth to what she learned in school.Impressively, itaccomplishes this in a most succinct fashion. I never expected to find sucha treasure in a travel book.I now feel much enlightened on the subjectand therefore well primed to appreciate the country I'm about to visit. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Travel    3. Travel - Foreign    4. Philippines    5. Travel & holiday guides    6. Travel / Asia / General   

Reviews (3)

An excellent map
I had a hard time deciding on giving it 4 or 5 stars, it is an excellent map and is worth it's weight in gold while traveling in the Philippines, but it is some what out-dated and would like to see a new one for 2003. Don't get me wrong, it's a very concise and accurate map, also when you unfold it...the thick creases make it permanent, so it easily folds back up with out any confusion that the usual fold up maps can give us. All in all, this is an excellent map that is a must for you to take on any trip to the Philippines.

Best Travel Map
This is the best travel map I've seen for the Philippines.Very detailed, lots of information and great quality paper.It is much better than the Globetrotter map I bought earlier.Globetrotter doesn't even show the provinces of the Philippines on the map...

Philipines - Periplus Travel Maps
When traveling to new areas or countries it nice to have the best information at your hands.Thats why I like Periplus Maps.Good detailed information and inserts to help with larger metro areas.With 7107islands, foreign names, get the information quick and easy off PeriplusTravel Maps. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - General    2. Asia - Southeast    3. Maps & Road Atlases    4. Reference    5. Travel    6. Philippines    7. Travel / road maps & atlases   

Reviews (3)

Nice concise guide
This book was well laid out and an easy and interesting read.It covers all the main diving areas throughout the Philippines.It gives a brief description of the terrain, difficulty, what you will see and the general conditions you will experience on diving to each location.It also gives tips on traveling to each location, though this could be a little more thorough, due to the difficulty of getting to each site.This book is great if you are planning a dive trip and have no idea which areas to head to.It allowed me to pick certain areas and islands to research further on the internet.It will be a great resource to take to each dive shop when deciding which dives to participate in.

Lacks map of fish.
Very good and contains a lot af info. Lacks a map of fish.
The best Diving Guide to the Philippines
Well written guide with alot of information and contacts for dive locations throughout the Philippines, well worth the price even if just snokeling. Covers Malapascua in northern Cebu, Southern Leyte, best diving around, and Camiguin plus all the well known sites. Alot of good maps. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - General    2. General    3. Scuba & Snorkeling    4. Sports & Recreation    5. Travel    6. Philippines    7. Sub-aqua swimming    8. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (24)

Good for a starter
Much, but not all, of the information in this book is difficult to apply to my wife and her siblings being, what I would consider, "modern" Filipinos. However, it does provide a great deal of insight into where many of the current social mores came from. Just because they may not apply in every case doesn't mean a visitor should be unaware of them altogether. I've not had a problem with being "too polite" yet and you're not going to be dealing with "modern" Filipinos the entire time unless you never leave Makati. Even then, some of the older Filipinos place great value on some of the old things. What it did for me, more than anything, was give me more appreciation of the Filipino culture; where it came from, what it lost, and what has been kept. Just keep in mind this book is only a primer, not a bible. The key to being a visitor in any country is always, be polite, be flexible and stay positive.
This book ain't nothing but trash!
Truthfully, I wouldn't even give it a 1 star! This stuff ain't true about us new breed of Filipinos. This book is a bit outdated. Don't even read it!
Practical and funny but dated
The book is very useful mainly for it's practical tips.My Filipina partner agreed with most of the issues I looked up for advice.If you get asked to be a godparent for a filipino child read this book before you say yes or no!The writing is down to earth and we found it quite funny though friends in the Philippines said some of the ideas were a bit old fashioned. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Reference - General    3. Special Interest - Business Travel    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign   

Reviews (2)

Philippines guide, 2
We were being assigned to the Philippines and I browsed through all the travel books available on the country. I chose this (the first edition) because i liked the way it was written and that the writers live in the Philippines. Let me tell you, I was not disappointed! In fact i found both the information provided and the personalized descriptions of places to stay and eat very helpful. When the second edition came out i bought it and passed on my old copy to a friend. The 2nd edition has new information (unlike others that i have found are almost completely re-writes of past editions) and continues to be a more personal travel guide. I will be sorry to leave the country and this book has helped my family enjoy our travels.

Extremely helpful, highly detailed and accurate information.
I am a traveller from Madrid and was given this book as a gift by a friend from Manila.It was full of everything a traveller who is unfamiliar with an exotic country like the Philippines.When I went there with several friends last year we found the book to be extremely helpful and so accurate in detail that we had an easy time moving around, finding hotels and site-seeing areas.To the authors: thank you for a very relaxing trip to the Philippines! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Guidebooks    3. Middle East - General    4. Philippines    5. Travel    6. Travel - Foreign    7. ASIA    8. Travel & holiday guides    9. Travel / Middle East / General   

Subjects:  1. Asia - General    2. Asia - Southeast    3. Golf - General    4. Sports & Recreation    5. Travel   

Reviews (1)

feel at home in Manila
This map guide you easily through this hectic city.Touristic spots, office buildings, hotels and shopping malls can easily be found in all districts.Also the terminals of the LRT (light rail transit) is veryusefull.On a seperate index you find the names of the most importantstreets and offices, together with the reference where to find them on themap.A pity that the paper is very thin and that the map is notplastified.All in all this map made me feel at home on my last trip toManila. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Reference / Maps    2. ASIA    3. Manila (Philippines)    4. Maps    5. Maps, charts & atlases    6. Philippines    7. Travel / road maps & atlases   

Reviews (4)

GOOD BOOK
THIS BOOK HAD A LOT OF INFORMATION THAT WILL BE HELPFUL ON MY TRIP TO THE PHILIPPINES.

A great book but not a travel guide
This book has a great introductory value. It shows how diverse and beautiful this country is. The photographs are of outstanding quality. The truth is, some of the places I visited looked much worse than their photographs in this book (like Vigan, for example).
Good book to learn about Philippines without going @^:^@
More than a travel guide, it spends more time on background and the meaning of sites in the Philippines.Many beautiful photos. Good book to learn about Philippines without going. My American friends that have read this book say it was BiG help to them in understanding not just travel only. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Guidebooks    3. Philippines    4. Subjects & Themes - Travel - General    5. Travel    6. Travel - Foreign    7. Travel Guides   

Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Etiquette    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. Travel Guides    6. Philippines    7. Travel & holiday guides    8. Travel / Asia / Southeast   

Reviews (2)

Go read...it's good!
i read this book so many years ago, but i can still remember Paterson shares his insights about diving for a living
Paterson is living on a small island in the Philippines and he is joining the natives in diving (i.e. fishing) for a living. We scuba-divers, as we only come for 1-2 week vacations, often are not experiencing the reality around our dive sites.Paterson's book was helping me understanding more of the countries I was visiting. Very instructive are his personal insights about ecology in a third world country and the connections to the economical and social structure.I found it very valuable that the insights do not follow the well known beaten paths about the third world but are rather well founded, personal observations. This makes this book a much more interesting read than any other book about the subject that I have ever read before. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 20th Century Description And Travel    2. Asia - Far East    3. Asia - Southeast Asia    4. Essays & Travelogues    5. Travel    6. Travel - Foreign    7. Religion / Inspirational   

Subjects:  1. General    2. Travel    3. Travel - General    4. Travel / General   

Subjects:  1. Asia - Central    2. Asia - Southeast    3. Scuba & Snorkeling    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign    6. South East Asia    7. Sub-aqua swimming    8. Travel & holiday guides   

Subjects:  1. 1800-1945    2. Chêng Ho (Junk)    3. Description and travel    4. Indonesia    5. Philippines    6. Plant introduction   

Subjects:  1. Asia - Far East    2. Asia - Southeast    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. Travel / Asia / General   

Reviews (1)

Most important book to read; to start to understand us!
This is in many ways an update to "Culture Shock Philippines."It is not a travel guide but does describe a number of good places to visit.It gives a good historical overview, then spends much of it's 168 pages explaining daily life, cultural issues, family values and our focus on the family.
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Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Reference - General    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign   

Reviews (1)

The best choice...
I like to use Periplus Maps when i'm traveling around Asia... and i can confirm that this kind of maps is very usefull... complete...
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Subjects:  1. Asia - Southeast    2. Caribbean & West Indies    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign   

Subjects:  1. Philippines    2. Travel / road maps & atlases