Rating: 
Summary: Great, almost everything you need to know
Review: Between the time the book was published and the time i was in south-america a lot of things changed so some times the book was not very accurate anymore.
Rating: 
Summary: Now in its sixth edition and better than ever.
Review: El Planeta Platica:
- My favorite guidebook to South America, now in its sixth edition and better than ever. The
specific country guides have more details on environmental tourism, but if you're visiting more than
one country, this is your best bet.
Rating: 
Summary: too much missing
Review: having travelled round south america with this book, and i can highly recomend leaving it behind.
its covers too many countries and many of them in much too little detail. although fine for sketching out a route prior to departure, having individual guide books for each country is unbeatable. if carrying a comprehensive guide i found the footprints guide more condesed and informative, and found myself borrowing it often to fill in the many gaps left in the lonely planets coverage. argentina is particuliarly badly covered. many of my favourite locations in chile do not even warrant a mention in the lonely planet.
useful for overall planning but too big and incomprehensive to make the grade.
Rating:
Summary: You can never go wrong with a Lonely Planet guide..
Review: I have just returned to Norway after a year backpacking around in Latin America (of course accompanied by the Lonely Planet books). I do not claim to be an expert, but I know what I look for in a travel guide! This edition of the LP South America did not disappoint me. (Please note that I used it only for Colombia, Ecuador and Perú). It is up to date on the information, and as with all the other LP books it is easy to find your way around with it. It includes maps over the big cities, good information about the hotels, restaurants, places worth visiting, and time schedules for bus, train etc. You have to take into account that this is a guide that is meant to cover the whole South America so naturally it is not as detailed as the guides for each country separate. It is good as an overall guide if you plan to go to more than one or two countries, as you would try to cut down on the baggage you would have to carry around. As for the prices for hotels and food, the book is not accurate.. But you cannot expect that. It is hard to keep up with all the changes, especially in the Latin American economy, where the inflation is "somewhat" higher than in the rest of the world. So, for prices, do your own research, or at least be prepared for changes! (We usually doubled the prices in the book and that gave us a good indicator of what to expect). You will find that if you are walking around with the LP book under your arm, many of the local people will approach you and ask you if you need help. Say yes - even if you don't need help! It is a great opportunity to get in contact with the local people! This book is a must on your travel!
Rating:
Summary: Know where to go from Darien`s Hole to Puta Arena
Review: I won't us a 1000 words to give my comment on this book. If you travel a lot like I do,this L.P.-guide is a must despite the changebility of some information. Thanks a lot and i`m looking forward to the next edition. Ernie, Groningen, Holanda
Rating: 
Summary: A nice guide, but hampered by the region's magnitude
Review: It is hard to concentrate so much information in a single book, covering all of South America from Colombia to Chile. Lonely Planet have tried and have done a good job, but the target was too ambitious... If you are literally running through South America with little time, and perhaps you don't want to carry the weight of too many guides, then do get this book. It is of some use, and offers interesting reading. Yet, if you plan to get to know each country more thoroughfully, you are much better off with Lonely Planet's (or other publishers') single guides on each individual country, and there are lots to choose from.
Rating:
Summary: A nice guide, but hampered by the region's magnitude
Review: It is hard to concentrate so much information in a single book, covering all of South America from Colombia to Chile. Lonely Planet have tried and have done a good job, but the target was too ambitious... If you are literally running through South America with little time, and perhaps you don't want to carry the weight of too many guides, then do get this book. It is of some use, and offers interesting reading. Yet, if you plan to get to know each country more thoroughfully, you are much better off with Lonely Planet's (or other publishers') single guides on each individual country, and there are lots to choose from.
Rating:
Summary: Hit and Miss
Review: Just got back from 3 months with this book in SA... Plusses:
Great Maps...LP maps are the best guidebook maps
Lots of Choices for Hostels/Restaurants...they aren't too detailed but do typically offer a lot of places, while Let's Go will offer 4 or 5 per city.
Everyone has got it, you'll find a lot of people to hang out with when going to their recos. Minuses:
Everyone has got it, perhaps you don't want to run into a lot of gringos.
Doesn't cover lots of small towns which are great to visit...yes of course this is a book that tries to cover a CONTINENT so it's not going to have everything, but I found Footprints SA book to be significantly more comprehensive.
A bit out of date...new one is forthcoming, I believe. Overall I would recommend Footprint's SA Handbook instead, although the maps do leave a bit to be desired.
Rating:
Summary: Backpacker's bible
Review: Lonely Planet is everywhere you go. If you left yours in your hotel room you can probably borrow one from the person at the next table in the café. And the reason is, they are good. My main complaint with this... South America is just too big to fit in one book. I only went to three countries so although it was the economical way to go for a fairly short trip, I would have appreciated having along the individual guides for Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia. This is for the backpacker on a budget and only the bare bones hotels and hostels were in here, so if you want to go a little higher the food chain, you may want to pick up guides for the individual countries. Still, this has good maps and transportation information.
Rating:
Summary: Better Than the Rest
Review: The 7th edition of South America on a shoestring is the best South America "all in one" travel book out there. Having literally used or throughly inspected the competition, this book earns the right to be called the best.
Now, despite that, there are some problems with the book. First, it needs to be updated again. When traveling with it I noticed omissions and mistakes. Second, the maps and hostel section need to be more abundant. Third, the method of travel section (bus, train, etc..) really needs to expand, it is way too narrow. In some countries, they even fail to provide you with the best form of transportation that is cheap.
The purpose of buying this book is to see is much as you can for the least amount of money. Considering this, the book should not even bother with upper or middle accomondations, or other "luxuries".
Otehrwise, I liked the book. It gave you enough so as not to spoon feed the entire trip to you, but enough so you did not end up sleeping in the bus station.........wellllll except in Asuncion, Paraguay :)
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