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 Location:  Home » America Travel » RVs » Frommer's Exploring America by RV (Frommer's Exploring America By Rv)December 2, 2008  


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Frommer's Exploring America by RV (Frommer's Exploring America By Rv)
Frommer's Exploring America by RV (Frommer's Exploring America By Rv)
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Authors: Shirley Slater, Harry Basch
Publisher: Frommers
Category: Book

List Price: $17.99
Buy New: $9.62
You Save: $8.37 (47%)
Buy New/Used from $9.62

Avg. Customer Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars(7 reviews)
Sales Rank: 105673

Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Paperback
Edition: 5
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 430
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 5.1 x 0.9

ISBN: 0470184043
Dewey Decimal Number: 917.304931
EAN: 9780470184042
ASIN: 0470184043

Publication Date: March 31, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
In this guide, renowned travel writing teamHarry Basch and Shirley Slater offers updates ontheir favorite RV trips around the U.S., including scenic routes along Virginia's Skyline Drive and the New England coast, plus jaunts through the Heart of the Heartlands (Indiana, Iowa and Illinois) and to Alaska via Canada. On each trip you'll get all the famous, infamous, and off-the-wall attractions; campgrounds along each route, from luxurious private RV parks with heated swimming pools and golf courses to quiet, forested campgrounds in state and national parks; tips for making life on the road easier and more comfortable; and a complete guide to buying or renting an RV, with tips on how to decide which type is right for you. All this, plus information on wildlife watching and scenic views, the best parks and beaches, quick-and-easy recipes, packing suggestions, info on road etiquette and safety, and more. Head off the beaten path with Frommer's, to discover the real life lurking around the bend.

Free companion podcast available!

Amazon.com Review
Award-winning travel writers Shirley Slater and Harry Basch had tried just about every mode of transportation known to humans in their travels through 186 countries, but it wasn't until they drove an RV in 1991 that they found their passion. In the decade that followed they racked up 120,000 miles, avoided freeways whenever possible, and focused on discovering the offbeat and the best of the United States, Canada, and Mexico. While Exploring America by RV is aimed particularly at novices--with detailed advice on buying and renting RVs as well as RV'ing tips and hints on such things as what to look for in campsites, the miracle of bubble wrap, and "how to give backing-up directions without destroying your marriage"--it also outlines 10 excursions through the U.S., Canada, and Baja with enough unusual stops along the way that the book is a veritable gold mine. To get an idea of the sort of travel Slater and Basch prefer, here are some of the highlights of the California Desert & Las Vegas excursion: the Hullabaloo World Tobacco Spitting Championships, endangered desert pupfishes in Anza-Borrego State Park, and sand sailing in a dry lake at 70 mph with no brakes. Off-the-wall attractions in Alaska include the world's largest chopstick manufacturing plant, a collection of 3,600 billed caps, and the town of North Pole (where Santa gets his mail). Slater and Basch are fond of lists with names like: Ten Terrific Spots Where History Comes Alive (in the Blue Ridge Mountains); Ten Terribly Texas Things To Do; and Seven Swell Side Roads to Explore (in Baja). For each trip you'll find tips for keeping costs down, as well as suggestions for splurging (say, a helicopter ride around Mt. Rushmore or a stay on little Palm Island), a list of campground oases, and where to find some incredible-sounding treats (like bumbleberry pie at Zion National Park and the best lobster in Maine). Slater and Basch have had a good time demolishing the myth of RV'ers as national park lemmings who never leave their rigs: these guys know where the fun is. --Lesley Reed


Customer Reviews:   Read 2 more reviews...

3 out of 5 stars Not much new here, but nice for beginners like me...   February 22, 2008
I was a little surprised at the poor reviews this book got after spending a couple hours with it myself. I read the first 4 or 5 chapters yesterday at the bookstore but then came here to buy it. The opening chapters are not chock full of facts and great information, but they do offer some firsthand insights on beginning an RV adventure. If not purely informative, it was at least interesting, with some good info mixed in. For instance, the list of names and addresses where you can get reviews and lists of campgrounds in various locales, or the info about the Bureau of Land Management lands in the southwest.

I glanced at some of the trips listed in the middle chapters, and I think I could do about as well on my own with the internet and some other resources.

Overall, I'd say this is a fine book - not the best, but not awful - on RVing for beginners. If you're only getting one book, I'd recommend the Idiot Guide, but if there's room for more than one choice, this book has something to say too.



1 out of 5 stars Misnomer   April 16, 2006
It's a lie - This book does NOT cover America. It covers 7 areas the include parts of a dozen states. It does not cover the Northwest, Arizona, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, the Southern states, or Florida north of Miami.
I found the book useless for my needs. I should have read the other reviews here on Amazon.com, but for some reason I missed doing that. Oh well, live & learn.



3 out of 5 stars Identical book to RV Vacations for Dummies   May 25, 2005
  4 out of 6 found this review helpful

FYI: This book and the RV Vacations for Dummies are identical books.


2 out of 5 stars If you want detailed trips in the U.S., this is a good book.   November 22, 2001
  9 out of 12 found this review helpful

The book opens with a couple of good chapters on the basics of RB'ing and gives an excellent diary of their first trip which made me feel better. However, chapters 4 through 13 are detailed examples of trips in the U.S. which i will not be takin any time soon. Chp 14-16 review RV types and manufacturers.


1 out of 5 stars a lot of wasted ink   August 4, 2001
  10 out of 16 found this review helpful

The book wastes a lot of ink describing tourists sites in well-trodden parts of the US, ink that could have been spent carefully reviewing campgrounds.


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