GinnVillas - Travel in America, Europe, South America and australia

 Search
 Advanced SearchView Cart   Checkout   
 Location:  Home » Asia Travel » General » Central Asia (Lonely Planet Travel Guides)September 6, 2008  


Categories
Travel
World Travel
Asia Travel
Europe Travel
America Travel
America Hotels
South America
Europe
Australia
Middle East
Central Asia (Lonely Planet Travel Guides)
Central Asia (Lonely Planet Travel Guides)
enlarge
Author: Bradley Mayhew
Publisher: Lonely Planet
Category: Book

List Price: $29.99
Buy New: $17.50
You Save: $12.49 (42%)
Buy New/Used from $17.50

Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars(9 reviews)
Sales Rank: 127368

Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Paperback
Edition: 4
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 508
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.7

ISBN: 1741046149
Dewey Decimal Number: 915
EAN: 9781741046144
ASIN: 1741046149

Publication Date: August 1, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
Discover Central Asia

Lose yourself among the blue domes and mosaics fo the Registan in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
Play Marco Polo, exploring Silk Road forts while bathed in the light of the snowcapped Hindu Kush in the Wakhan Valley, Tajikistan.
Watch a Kyrgyz eagle hunter in action, and taste the delights of fermented mare's milk in Kyrgyzstan.
Follow in the footsteps of British spies, Chinese pilgrims and Russian explorers and embark on your own Great Game.

In This Guide:

Five authors, five 'stans, 27 visa stamps (78 visa checks), 182 pots of green tea, one (short) detention by the KGB.
Everything you need to know about visas, travel permits and crossing Asia's remotest borders.
Trek into remote alpine valleys, follow herders on horseback or ride camels with our new Activities chapter.
Visit lonelyplanet.com for up-to-the-minute reviews, updates and traveler suggestions.



Customer Reviews:   Read 4 more reviews...

4 out of 5 stars Your companion to Central Asia   August 11, 2008
Well researched and easy-to-use, this Lonely planet was our primary companion to plan our and along our trip to Central Asia.

The only drawback is that the conversation guide is very limited (on purpose I guess), so if you don't speak any Russian, invest in a conversation guide for your trip.



4 out of 5 stars a practical overview   April 13, 2008
  1 out of 2 found this review helpful

This doesn't answer questions such as, "What kind of winter jacket should I bring", but it does tell you about the traditional Kyrgyz practice of wife abduction. The packing lists on the Peace Corps wiki are a good source if you need to know what kind of clothes to bring: [...]. Type in "Packing list for ___(country)___". Unfortunately, they only have lists for the countries in which the Peace Corps has volunteers. However, most likely they have people somewhere in the region about which you are interested.
This book is full of practical information about each country (and some funny tidbits), some ideas for itineraries, and useful tips. Since I have not seen any alternative, this is your best bet if you want a guide to Central Asia.



5 out of 5 stars Excellent guide to central asia   November 30, 2007
  1 out of 2 found this review helpful

Once again Lonely Planet has done a very good job. This guide is the best introduction to the five Central Asian countries. I used it in Tajikistan recently and intend to use it again.


4 out of 5 stars Very useful   October 31, 2007
  2 out of 3 found this review helpful

Central Asia is steeped in rich mediaeval architecture, soul stirring music, amazingly friendly people, complex history, delicious food & a sense of the prehistoric.
Solo or individual travel to this part of the world is not for the squeamish amateur traveler. Travel here will test you and occasionally frustrate you. But, then the warmth of people and the amazing architecture and natural beauty will more than neutralize that frustration.
A guide to Central Asia is your life support system. You won't be able to do without it and as usual LP does a great job. The information is very accurate and up to date.

I only have some minor comments & recommendations for people planning to Uzbekistan & Turkmenistan.
1. The shared taxi prices in the guide are notional. Most taxi drivers will quote a much higher price (usually in USD), which may be 2 to 3 times the price quoted in the guide. Their rationale is that they will take you out in a brand new Daewoo Nexia car and the ride will be comfortable (hardly ever the case).
2. A popular scam is that taxi drivers will negotiate a price for a non-stop shared ride to your city of interest, but they will cunningly drop you at the nearest taxi stand & transfer you to another taxi, which will leave much later (1-2 hours wait) and demand that you pay them the whole amount. Some times, they'll even ask for an advance. The best way to avoid these scams is to insist on the same driver till the destination and do NOT pay in advance even if it means creating a big row & walking out of the deal.



4 out of 5 stars Have used for uzbekistan and found it useful   October 8, 2006
  3 out of 4 found this review helpful

I used this guide when traveling in Uzbekistani cities in 2003. I found it very helpful ESPECIALLY THE MAPS.
There were a few comments/inaccuracies that I noted and I called those to the Lonely Planet's attention. Despite this, this is probably the most useful reference for the English speaker -- at least for Uzbekistan. (If traveling in Almaty, I would first recommend the "Almaty Guide Millenium Edition" written by the Almaty International Women's Club.)



Powered by Associate-O-Matic