Lonely Planet INDIA 13th Edition / September 2009 ( latest issue )

eshaan

I got a latest issue of Lonely Planet INDIA; must say it is a must have for Backpacking in India. Its 13th Edition / September 2009 issue.

It has also come up with a 5th Edition of Lonely Planet SOUTH INDIA as well

I guess the latest edition is still not easily available in the market; they say 12th Edition is the latest; so beware.

I got one on Ebay.in

machadinha

Maybe on the streets; not on their website.

Be advised that to my best knowledge (last time I checked they stated so themselves on their website) their regional editions contain the exact same information as the all-India one. So may be handy if you want to carry just that info; otherwise doesn't matter much.

As far as I know and again last I checked, they're about the same size (more photos, one presumes) and price too, so in that respect too it doesn't seem to matter much. One can download just relevant chapters from their site nowadays for what seems to be a reasonable fee btw. (Although one hates to think of all those who it may inspire to skip their general info chapters, which in fact they may most need to read.)

Must agree and in that sense, too, that:

it's amazing (if perhaps not very surprising) how many of very basic and eternally recurring questions here are already covered in it, and quite adequately if not extensively so. I'm sure this goes for many of the major guidebook titles.

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irishapples!

Hi there,

Glad to hear your view on the book. I've invested in it as I'm embarking on my very first trip to India, this November. I hope it's worth carrying around, the weight of it! Not exactly 'light reading'... But it certainly seems to have a lot of basic, need-to-know info. I'm not overly enthused by the 'flowery' language at the beginning of each regional chapter. Too many adjectives! 'Spectacular' this, 'stunning' that, 'amazing' whatever. They could have cut down on the paper and ink (thus, the weight) by just getting to the point! It's like they're literally selling each region to the reader. Why? I'll find out for myself how fantastic, mind-blowing, or whatever, a place is. Not too big of an issue though. I'm sure it'll become a so-called 'bible' on my journey!

machadinha

Well, yes. With any guidebook, it's a good thing to take your nose out of it sometimes.

Going to places you don't know about can naturally be a tricky proposition (how would you know to go there? Do keep your ears peeled for tips on the ground though. Have a notebook always at the ready, I'm not kidding. Some directions are swiftly jotted down. In fact that's how the original LP must have, and is rumored to have, originated anyway); but picking some that receive just half a mention can be worthwhile.

But being prepared on some of both the practical and the cultural basics and backgrounds never hurt no one, I am quite convinced. I find and I'm far from alone in this that having half an idea of what I'm looking at can greatly enhance the experience.

My friend Goo

I like Lonely planet for finding destinations i haven't thought of

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PaoloNL

And the nice people at Lonely Planet should get some love for implementing such a great digital delivery mechanism! After seeing the announcement, I immediately surfed over to http://shop.lonelyplanet.com and two minutes later I had already purchased and downloaded all the chapters I need for my upcoming trip. Amazingly simple, cost-effective and eco-friendly!

The format is also great, in that they give you standard PDF files, which are NOT encumbered with any kind of Digital Rights Management crap. This means that you can freely copy the chapters you want to carry with you to any device capable of reading PDFs (which includes, besides all kinds of laptops and netbooks, also all of the newer PDAs and most of the mid- to high end smartphones).

There are no limits on printing, and you can cut anything you want to copy and paste it right into your own documents. Depending on your needs, you can even convert the whole guide into another format, like HTML. And if by any chance you end up losing all of your copies of the guide files(due to a hard disk crash or some other technical issue), you are even allowed to re-download them from the Lonely Planet website, up to 4 more times.

Isn't that sweet?

unclelach

I'm road testing my copy of edition 13. Have reached Varanasi from Delhi via Khajuraho and Allahabad. This is the third LP India I've used and it's better than ever but does feel very heavy.

irishapples!

unclelach, your route sounds quite similar to the one we will be taking upon arrival in Delhi on 23rd Nov., and we'll be using the LP 13th edition to guide us around too. Glad to hear that it's worth its weight!

Paolo, I wish I'd discovered the digital edition of LP's newest guide, I wouldn't have forked out almost €30 for the paperback, and it would have been lighter given that I sincerely doubt we'll make it to every region detailed in the whole book!
But most importantly of all, it would have been eco-friendly, as you said yourself.. Well, I'll know in future to check first before going out to buy it!

Golden Chapati

Eco-friendly, what about all that energy from the coal power stations to fuel your electronics?

Still though, great idea. Carrying those books around for a year is painful, not to mention they always end up stuck together from the humidity. Hopefully Rough Guide will follow suit because I find LP intolerable.

unclelach

irishapples, If you take a train to Kolkata from Varanasi, avoid 2334 Vibhuti Express, suggested in Lonely Planet. This train has no backup rake(local jargon) in case of delays. My train scheduled for 18:10 left the next morning at about 4:45 and reached Howrah around twenty hours late altogether. There are several other evening trains from Varanasi to Kolkata.

LP's "our pick" budget hotel in Kolkata Sudder St area, Hotel Aafreen, seems to be given the wrong street name and the hotel at the spot marked on the LP map has a slightly different name.
I'm staying at the next cheapie on the LP list, Ashreen Guest House and it is always full.

Do enjoy India!

irishapples!

Thanks for the heads-up unclelach, very much appreciated indeed.
I'll get my pencil out and write in your advice when I find the correct page in LP.

Muchas gracias.