Travel to Japan

Lonely Planet Kyoto: City Guide (Lonely Planet Kyoto)

Format: Paperback
Author: Chris Rowthorn
ReleaseDate: 30 July, 2005
Publisher: Lonely Planet Publications
Rating:

Oddly out of date
In the case of Lonely Planet, some are great, others leave a bit to be desired. No guide is perfect, but some are better than others. For whatever reason, the Kyoto guide is missing some important pieces of information that I would have wanted to see. For example, the best vegetarian restaurant in the city, and one of the few places a veggie can eat some authentic Japanese "meat" dishes (made with fake meat) is the Peace Cafe -- which is not listed in Lonely Planet though it's been around for a few years. Another example: The "japanese-only guides" at the Shigakuin Imperial Residence still holds true. . . . except they have a full audio guide now, recorded in English, with lots of information at most stops made by the Japanese tour.

Other guides?
I haven't decided if I want to buy it yet when I go to Kyoto later this year. I borrowed this guide from a friend and have leafed through it.

What do you guys recommend as the best travel guide for Kyoto? While skimming this one, I've noticed a few of the things mentioned here like the unorganized maps and such. But are there betters one there to buy?.

Waste of money - poor maps, poor info, poorly organized

There are countries where Lonely Planet does a very good job (in West Africa, I would be lost without them), but oh my God how they can mess up things elsewhere! Kyoto is one of them. Where do I start? Poor maps, chaotic organization or boring writing? Or perhaps ugly, poor quality photographs (except cover which is really nice - this is the trademark feature of this honest publisher, which is only [inexpensive] as far as publishing costs are concerned, without bothering to reduce the price of the book itself).

With so many good guides to Japan available (Eyewitness, Frommer, Fodor, even Rough Guide, for goodness sake), why bother with Lonely Planet? Well, probably because many readers feel that they have a spiritual affiliation with this seemingly hippy-ish, seemingly anti-Capitalist, seemingly slightly rebellious serious of guides. I can only imagine how they are laughing - this lean and mean publishing house, an efficient money-making machine, being funded by mostly a naive bunch of tree-huggers.

If you feel good because you identify their sandal-wearing image, go and buy this book, by all means. This is only an image, a marketing tool - clever publishing people are laughing all the way to the bank. However, do not expect to have the best available travel advice. Usually LP guides are praised by those who have not read anything else.

Related products:
click image or link for details on these Japan travel books.

	Kyoto Travel Map: 2005/2006 Edition (Periplus Travel Maps)
	Lonely Planet Japan
	Lonely Planet Tokyo
	Old Kyoto: The Updated guide to Traditional Shops, Restaurants, and Inns
	Lonely Planet Tokyo