Lonely Planet Istanbul to Cairo on a Shoestring (Lonely Planet on a Shoestring)

Rating:
Summary: Travelling from Istanbul to Cairo
Review: I have backpacked in this area extensively. Most of the guides I have used in the past weren't really that useful. I was therefore really surprised by this guide. I found it useful in Turkey, Jordan and Eygpt - detailing all the major sites (relatively in depth for a guide this length) and finding cheap guesthouses. It wasn't, however, very helpful in getting around - for example - the "travel agencies" recommended in Istanbul beyond being run by westerners for backpackers were much more expensive than any of the other local agencies. However, as I've never lived in any of those countries I can't really give a proper opinion beyond saying I personally found the guide helpful. On Israel it's a different matter - and I can only say well done to the writers - I didn't know you could find such cheap guesthouses in Israel, and I've travelled around the country quite a bit. I still use this guide when I travel here which says alot - especially seeing as I only bought the guide for its coverage of the neighbouring countries. All in all I recommend this guide and the route it contains.

Rating:
Summary: not bad
Review: I used this book for Israel and Jordan. I liked the layout and found it useful. The entries for each country are basically abbreviated versions of Lonely Planet's single-country books. Instead of giving it five starts, I'm giving it only four because I usually found the city maps to be deplorable. These maps are more like sketches than real maps. The main problem is that all the city streets are not on the maps, and the steets that are there often don't have their names. This makes it impossible to orient oneself when lost, and it is very difficult to find something marked on a steet that has no name on the map and located amidst other streets that aren't on the map. I realized I was not alone in this appraisal when I went to the tourist information office in Eilat, Israel. I asked where a bicycle shop was and asked the man to show me where it was on Lonely Planet's map. He glanced at the map and had obviously seen it before because he gave a disgusted grunt and brushed the book aside saying, "That's not a map," and proceeded to give me verbal directions.

Rating:
Summary: New Guide Follows Classic Middle Eastern Overland Route
Review: Istanbul to Cairo is a classic overland route, offering an extraordinary range of travel experiences in six of the Middle East's most fascinating countries: Egypt, Israel & the Palestinian Territories, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and Turkey. Going from north to south, "Istanbul to Cairo on a shoestring" takes travelers from the bustling city of Istanbul to the gorgeous Mediterranean coastline and through the desert, finishing in another fascinating metropolis of the Middle East, Cairo.

This new and unique guide smooths the way for travelers with indispensible information on visas and border crossings, as well as exciting highlights and important cultural customs and taboos for each region.

• wander through some of the 400 rooms of the harem in Istanbul's Topkapi Palace • explore the fine Roman-era ruins and palm-fringed oasis at Palmyra • retrace the steps of Lawrence of Arabia among the rockscapes of Wadi Rum • dance the night away in Beirut, home to the Middle East's best nightclubs • bob about like a cork on the Dead Sea • be awestruck by the Pyramids of Giza or the Great Temple of Karnak

Rating:
Summary: Very good, if...
Review: This book outlines an excellent journey from Istanbul to Cairo, with all the detail and information we expect from Lonely Planet. The only problem emerges if you want to take a different route than the one they've outlined. They make hardly any allowance for this possibility, and this is the book's fatal flaw. Use it as a suggestion book, as a guide; but consider buying a guide to the Middle East instead, and thus providing yourself with much more information on the places between Istanbul and Cairo, places you may want to visit even though they're "off the beaten track."

For instance, with more information I chose to go south through Jordan, ferry to Egypt, and then go back north into Israel, ending in Jerusalem. This made sites such as Petra in Jordan and St. Anthony's Monastery in Egypt fit nicely on the itinerary, and for me ending in Jerusalem provided a more fitting climax. No one trip can fit everyone. Whatever your desires, consider a guidebook that presents more options.

----UPDATE: I didn't take that trip actually; but I think the principle is still valid! Design your own trip! Lonely Planet's general guide to the Middle East is not bad.

Rating:
Summary: Great Guide...
Review: This is a great and detailed guide to the classic land route, covers the area and the trip in outstanding detail, but at the same time does not try to force you to stay on a certain itenerary. Highly reccomended.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Guidebook
Review: Wandering through the bustling Istanbul Grand Bazaar, exploring the Syrian desert oasis ruins of Palmyra, feeling like Indiana Jones in front of the amazing rock temples and treasuries of Petra, floating along the Nile, and swimming with schools of the most remarkable exotic fish in the Red Sea are just a fraction of the adventures to be had while exploring the 'cradle of civilizaion.' Lonely Planet once again scores big with a very accurate and informative guidebook that is ESSENTIAL for navigating through this region of the world. I used this book as my primary guide along the Istanbul-Cairo route and found its maps, hotel and restaurant suggestions, itinerary suggestions, and even bus/train timetables to be right on cue with reality and far more informative than its rival guidebook companies. The Istanbul to Cairo overland route is an amazing experience, and this book has a great abundance of information about travelling through there. Still, however, I suggest as always purchasing LP's individual country books as well, in that they go more into depth. If you are interested primarily in travelling though this book's countries (Turkey, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, and Egypt) then I would suggest this book over LP's general Middle East book and DEFINITELY over the Let's Go Middle East book, for this edition has more maps, accurate info, and details than either of its two rivals. Good luck and safe travels!