Travel Guidebooks

Everyone uses guidebooks differently. Myself, I tend to read the history/culture & overview sections, and then otherwise have them with me as a reference if I need a map or perhaps suggestions on a place to stay. While there’s no right way to use one, I can’t help but feel there is a wrong way.

Your guidebook is not a bible.

Guidebooks are fallible. By their nature there’s a relatively significant time lag between when the research & reviews were conducted, and the date the book is put on bookstore shelves, let alone actually ends up in your hands. In addition, they are subjective. Take all guidebook reviews like you should any other: with a grain of salt. They are the author’s opinion. There’s nothing wrong with a little faith in their opinions, but don’t lose sight of the fact that they can be wrong; your experience may vastly differ from theirs.

Regardless of their fallibility, guidebooks are exactly that: a guide. They provide tips, ideas, suggestions, and warnings, along with helpful stuff like maps & phone numbers & approximate prices to help you budget. They give you an overview. A jumping off point. From which you then set out and explore for yourself.

The use of guidebooks as a bible is so prevalent that there now exists “The Lonely Planet Trail” in various places. This goes hand in hand in the Central American region with the Gringo trail, where virtually everyone hits the same places, the only difference usually being whether you’re heading North or heading South. Whilst this can be almost impossible to avoid in regions with un- or poorly developed infrastructure and areas that are just plain dangerous for Westerners to travel in, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be conscious of falling into the trap of relying on your guidebook to make your trip for you. Look to explore, to experience the area through your own eyes, not through what someone else has preordained for you.

That’s the beauty of travel, the real joy. Making your own discoveries. Accidentally stumbling across something fun or quirky or silly or fascinating, maybe all of those things. Talking to other travellers and hearing about their adventures, hopefully learning about places off the beaten path. Meeting locals and finding out how they view their city, learning about their culture from their perspective, not just one written by a relatively wealthy Westerner.

If what you want is someone to tell you where to go, when to go there, where to eat, where to sleep, and everything else besides, well hey: that’s your prerogative. It may even be that what you’re probably really looking for is a packaged tour, or a stay in an all-inclusive resort you never have to step foot outside of.

However if what you want is to really see the world with your own eyes, get immersed and get involved, there’s only one thing for it: put the guidebook down.

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