Subjects:  1. Australia    2. Australia & Oceania - Australia    3. Australia & Oceania - General    4. Australia/Oceania - Australia    5. Guidebooks    6. South Australia    7. Travel    8. Travel - Foreign    9. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (1)

Colorful, informative travel tips but lack of maps/direction
This is a colorful book with lots of pictures about New Zealand. Its first couple of chapters include the history and culture of New Zealand are especially interesting.They were very useful for visitors to the Kiwi country.However, its lack of large street maps, area maps and detail route maps are disappointing as well as annoying.Although the front cover has an overview map of both the north & south island, I think it will improve the ease of reading and research if various level of district maps and street maps are provided, especially when a traveller was deciding which hotel/motel to book reservations and how far he/she needs to drive from one scenic spot to the next.Without this, it is disasterous for travel planning.Other things to include will be web sites for driving directions such as www.wises.co.nz etc.For a backpack traveller like me, I will even be willing to pay more if road maps/ street map of Auckland are included with the book (which some of the publishers are already doing). ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - General    2. Australia & Oceania - New Zealand    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. Travel Guides    6. New Zealand    7. Travel & holiday guides   

Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - Australia    2. Australia & Oceania - General    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. Queensland    6. Travel & holiday guides   

Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - Australia    2. Australia & Oceania - General    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. Travel Guides    6. Australia    7. Travel & holiday guides    8. Travel / Australia & Oceania   

Reviews (4)

really out of date and not too helpfull
I found thins book to be not at all helpfull to me in moving to New Zealand. In fact I found it to be very out of date and the back section that talks about the Kiwi people and their way of life seemed depressing to me. I found the book to be constantly stereo typeing Kiwis. Sheep, beer, rugby etc. I think that the information in this book was true 10 years ago but a lot has changed in New Zealand in that time, especially in the cities. The information in this book is all available on the internet and it is constantly updated there.

This Book is good
I read this book before i went on a vacation to New Zealand last year. It was fairly informative. If you have absolutely no knowledge of the country, this book will be very helpful. However books such as this one are not extremely useful, even if they were updated each year. (which this book isn't) The section about Television in New Zealand was outdated. This book makes it seem that even the best satellite service will not compare to even cable in the US. In other words, their television offerings are scarce. However, I found that to be untrue. Sky TV offers many channels and has good variety. This is just an example of how this book cannot possibly keep you informed about a rapidly changing country like New Zealand. The point is, if you really want the scoop on living in New Zealand, ask your friends who've visited for information. An even better way is to search on the internet. Go to a chatroom that has New Zealand inhabitants and ask them. They are very friendly.

Thank you, Mark! This book is a godsend!
I bought this book about a year ago, just as I was beginning to think of a move to New Zealand. Well, here we are, one year later... and I'll be there in four weeks time!Read more

Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - General    2. Australia & Oceania - New Zealand    3. Career And Vocational Guidance    4. Careers - Job Hunting    5. Description And Travel    6. Travel    7. Travel - Foreign    8. Living & working abroad    9. New Zealand   

Reviews (3)

Great info, Maps, & Pics
Wasn't sure what to expect when ordering, but am very happy with the purchase.The maps are great! I have lived in Guam & find that the info in the book is very helpful.I'm still learning my way around the dive world here & now know where some of these places are that people are talking about.It has also helped plan our next dive trip to other islands.Great info on Palau, Chuuk, & Yap.So much to see & so little time!!!

Excellent Book
One of the most informative books about diving in the Pacific , next to Tim Rocks lonely planet guides for diving and snorkelling in Micronesia this is the best , only this one accomodates all the islands in one book meanwhile lonely planet is done over three books .
the best dive book ever
I don't know that I've ever read a better dive book or travel guide.The author covers every minute detail, and somehow, it still reads well--a fascinating and well-treated subject.David Leonard shows great wit and a solid knowledge of his subject.Read more

Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - South Pacific    2. Reference - General    3. Scuba & Snorkeling    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign    6. Micronesia    7. Sub-aqua swimming    8. Travel & holiday guides   

Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - General    2. Australia & Oceania - New Zealand    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. Travel Guides    6. New Zealand    7. Travel & holiday guides    8. Travel / Australia & Oceania   

Subjects:  1. Australia & New Zealand - General    2. Australia & Oceania - General    3. Australia & Oceania - New Zealand    4. Description And Travel    5. History    6. History: World    7. New Zealand    8. New Zealand - History    9. Oceania    10. Travel - Foreign   

Subjects:  1. Animals    2. Australia    3. Australia & Oceania - Australia    4. Australia & Oceania - General    5. Ecotourism    6. General    7. Natural History    8. Special Interest - Ecotourism    9. Travel    10. Travel - Foreign    11. Travel - General    12. Travel Guides    13. Wildlife   

Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - General    2. Australia & Oceania - New Zealand    3. Maps & Road Atlases    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign   

Reviews (2)

Good but still has a lot of unnecessary weight
Vastly superior to it's competitor, this book still has a few inaccuracies but nothing compared to the mistake ridden Lonely Planet Australia.This new edition by Let's Go isn't too different to its predecessors but it is slightly smaller in size. Every centimetre and gram of weight does count when you're lugging the thing around the vast continent of Australia. The best travel guide to Australia
The best travel guide to budget travellers among look alike guides. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - Australia    2. Travel    3. Travel - Foreign    4. United States - West - Pacific (General)    5. Travel / United States / West / Pacific (AK, CA, HI, NV, OR, WA)   

Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - General    2. Australia & Oceania - New Zealand    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. New Zealand    6. Travel & holiday guides    7. Travel / Australia & Oceania   

Reviews (2)

A book for the planning Tramper
This edition is far better than the previous editions. It's new organization and additional information sections are a marked improvement. A new section on Flora and Fauna gives a highlight of any New Zealandtramp.This book acts as an excellent reference book while tramping. Of course, if the book contained every piece of required information,(i.e. highly detailed maps and every step of the way instructions) it wouldrequire 1000's of pages.The authors surmount that difficulty by includinginstructions on how to obtain additional necessary information.The bookis perfect for those that are looking into or planning a backpacking trekto New Zealand.

Easy tramping in New Zealand
This is a great book for planning a tramping trip to New Zealand, although it's a bit too much to carry while actually hiking.The book contains good references and maps to the most popular tracks, and some of the lesser known tracks.If your tight on cash, I recommend going to the visitorcenters in New Zealand and picking up the DOC pamphlets they supply. D.O.C.has detailed pamphlets on pretty much every track in New Zealandand they only charge about 50 cents (US) for each one. But if you want toplan a trip from home, this is the book to get,it's far easier tounderstand than the other New Zealand tramping books, and gives goodinformation on what you need to bring. It also gives good info on the NewZealand back country hut system. Buy a hut pass, they're only 35 bucks (US)for a year.It even supplies some decent fly fishing tips for the riversthat border some of the tracks.But be warned that almost every othertourist hiker in New Zealand also has this book, so if you really want toget away from people, you'll have to do some bushwacking. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - New Zealand    2. General    3. Hiking    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign    6. New Zealand    7. Travel & holiday guides   

Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - General    2. Travel    3. Travel - Foreign    4. Australia    5. Travel & holiday guides    6. Travel / Australia & Oceania   

Subjects:  1. Anthropology - General    2. General    3. Travel - General    4. American Samoa    5. Australasia    6. Cultural studies    7. Social Science / Anthropology / General    8. TRAVEL & HOLIDAY    9. Western Samoa   

Reviews (2)

Snorkeling guide?What Snorkeling Guide?
I bought this book sight unseen because most of Lonely Planets guides are very good.However there are almost no references to snorkeling in the book.The info is all about diving and even that is not very in depth.Adding snorkeling to the title seems to be a blatent attempt to sell more books.

Better Choices Elsewhere.
After using Lonely Planet books exclusively to tour Europe, I expected the same thoroughness in this book. I was surprised how incomplete this book is. My friend did pick a better book while in Grand Cayman, unfortunately the title eludes me at this time. Lonely Planet only touches the surface on the available dive sites but if you want quick easy reading without high expectations then this is the book for you. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Caribbean & West Indies    2. Cayman Islands    3. Guidebooks    4. Scuba & Snorkeling    5. Scuba diving    6. Skin diving    7. Travel    8. Travel - Foreign    9. Australia    10. Caribbean islands    11. Sub-aqua swimming    12. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (15)

Brilliant!
What a blast. We took the original edition on our tour two years ago and will be taking the extended edition this year. We also took a GPS with us and called our tour, "GPS to Mordor: there and back again," and dutifully listed the references we achieved in our trip diaries. Through unseasonal sleet and floods and snow we had more fun than anyone deserves hunting the references and squinting at the photos. "It's this tree. No No. It's that one." We went places we would never have dreamed of going otherwise, met fantastic people and saw astonishing country given a specific quality of discovery by finding the associations. Travels by quotation: "We're going to Rivendell to see the elves," was a particular triumph. The additional trivia of filming and background simply added pleasure to the reading at night while checking the next day's itinerary. Without being a textbook, we certainly found it got us where we wanted to go as close as we needed to get there (except for the parts of NZ that were under water at the time). Think of it as an invitation to get out of the house and go find your own adventures.

How I Found This Guidebook Useful
I've been on two trips to New Zealand and used the first guidebook on the first trip and the revised edition (after Two Towers) on the second trip.The revised edition was much improved over the original one.I visited probably 80%+ of the sites in the book between the two trips.The guidebooks give a lot of interesting trivia about filming LOTR and can certainly help you decide what to visit, how accessible it is and how to plan a route.As all have stated, the problem is that the directions get you sort of there, within a hundred meters if you're lucky, and the pictures are marginally helpful. On the second trip I brought a portable DVD player with the LOTR DVDs and I found the relevant scene in the film while I was at the location, so I could make a positive identification and not have to wonder if I was at the right rock or tree. It was particularly useful at Mavora Lakes, Poolburn and Whakapapa, for example, where so much of the scenery looks the same throughout the whole site.Otherwise, without the DVD, about the only thing to do when you get to Whakapapa using the guidebook is to just look around and know that it was used for the Mordor locations.With the DVD you can identify the exact spot where the opening title for Two Towers was filmed, among other venues.If you don't want to drag a DVD player with you, another option I would recommend is to print out screen caps from the films of those locations you really want to identify and take along a notebook filled with them.Either option is a must for identifying, for example, the Legolas rock at Deer Park Heights, particularly since the rock was flipped 180 in the film.Ian's book is a good start, but its utility will vary for each person depending on just how precise you want to be in saying "I was there."

That extra 10% would have made all the difference
I went to New Zealand with the book, hoping to see as many sites as I could.Everyone has the book, and everyone has the same comment - it gets you almost there.Almost just isn't good enough.But my first complaint is the scattered writing. Stick to the subject - the sites. One site is mentioned.Then a bunch of drivel, and suddenly you're reading about that site again, and this time it's different information.The book could have so much better organized.Why not put decent maps in a location guidebook?One example: we followed the written directions exactly and found ourselves at the park off Gemstone.Okay.So, where exactly along this park is the site?I searched for an hour for rock formations that matched the picture in the book and never found them.Same thing at "Rivendell".Got there, but what good is it if the exact sites are not given?We ended up going out again the next day on a tour, and told the tour guide about our trouble with the book. "Everyone says that," she said."I see people out walking around with the book, trying to figure out the exact site.Finally they ask if they can follow me."Ian, you present this as being a location guide, and you got everyone to buy one. But I didn't go halfway around the world to get "almost" there.It needs better pictures, real maps, and better organization.Keep ALL the information about one site together, not spread here and there over several pages.
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Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - New Zealand    2. Cinema/Film: Book    3. Film & Video - General    4. General    5. Performing Arts    6. Television - General    7. Travel - Foreign    8. Films, cinema    9. Performing Arts / Film / General    10. Travel & holiday guides   

Reviews (1)

Interesting
This book contains short accounts of expeditions to the western highlands of West Papua in the early 20th century, accompanied by 50 black and white photographs and a few maps.Read more

Subjects:  1. Art    2. British    3. Collections, Catalogs, Exhibitions    4. Collections, Catalogs, Exhibitions - General    5. Discovery and exploration    6. Dutch    7. Exhibitions    8. Explorers    9. Indonesia    10. Papua    11. Papua (Indonesia)    12. Photography    13. Scientific expeditions    14. Subjects & Themes - Travel - World/Africa    15. Uhunduni (Indonesian people)    16. Exhibition catalogues and specific collections    17. Geographical discovery & exploration    18. History Of Art / Art & Design Styles    19. Papua New Guinea    20. Photographs: collections   

Reviews (3)

Only Useful as an Overview
This map will only be useful to you if you don't have any other basic resources, like a general world atlas or travel guides, at home.
amazing map
I've been looking for a map for a long time of Oceania because after college I'm settling on an island by myself in search for waves. I could'nt believe all the islands I've never known about. If I was to purchase one map in conjunction with nautical charts, it would be this one.

Excellent coverage of Melanesia, Micronesia, & Polynesia
This map covers an area of the world that is not well represented in most world atlases. Excellent index.Fifty-one detailed inset maps. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Australia & Oceania - General    2. Maps & Road Atlases    3. Reference    4. Travel    5. Travel - Foreign    6. Australasia    7. Maps, charts & atlases    8. Oceania   

Reviews (1)

Some enjoyable South Pacific yarns
I don't know why no one has reviewed this volume before.It is a good readable edition of several of Stevenson's South Sea stories, including the rarely encountered novel The Ebb Tide.The introduction is interesting enough, and the footnotes are very helpful for expressions in the Beach-la-Mar pidgin dialect and nautical terms.This is Stevenson's most mature fiction and is a far cry from Kidnapped and the Child's Garden of Verses. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Classics    2. English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh    3. Fiction    4. Literature - Classics / Criticism    5. Literature: Classics    6. Oceania    7. Short Stories (single author)    8. South Pacific Ocean    9. 19th century fiction    10. Classic travel writing    11. English    12. Fiction / Classics    13. Literature/English | British Literature | 19th C    14. Novels, other prose & writers: 19th century    15. Other prose: 19th century    16. Short stories    17. Western Samoa