Review: Lonely Planet Cambodia

My copy of Lonely Planet Cambodia came in the mail today. It said it arrived yesterday but I couldn't find it anywhere. For a second I was worried about mail snatchers, but, seriously, who would go around doing such a thing in Boulder? Anyway, the book appeared today by our door in the usual Amazon order drop-off location, so maybe the tracker just couldn't tell what day it was.

The guidebook is everything that you would expect from a Lonely Planet. It's got travel by region since it covers an entire country rather than just a city, and it includes overviews on what to do, where to stay, where to shop and eat, and even some information about leisure activities. Everything from large chains to small, expat-run businesses make the cut, and it's well-researched by people who know Cambodia, inside and out. However, the culture, history, and information sections in this LP go above and beyond; there's a full overview of Cambodian history and a lot of cultural information that goes beyond Dos and Donts. I was very impressed (and LP is my go-to for guidebooks) by how thorough this guide was. However, that does make it quite heavy; at over three-hundred pages, it's also very bulky for a travel guide.

Since sections are organized by content, it's easy to find whatever you're looking for; I read the book cover-to-cover to get a feel for the entire guide. In my review of Responsible Travel Guide Cambodia, I noted that the book failed as both a travel guide and a comprehensive overview of Cambodia. Now, choosing between a book that's put on by a nonprofit and a LP series book is like choosing between shopping at your local mom-and-pop or at Walmart in some ways, but I can't recommend the former after having read the latter. The writers are well-aware of the special problems a traveler faces in Cambodia, and they have passed their knowledge on to a ignorant tourist in many ways that I found commendable:

• Ways that tourists get ripped off in various circumstances (border crossings especially; taxi fares, etc) and how to avoid them
• Knowledge that the sex trade in Cambodia runs rampant, and tips on how to avoid dicey establishments including massage parlors that offer 'special' services
• Reminders about pedophilia/illegal drugs/all the other things irresponsible and reprehensible tourists go to Asia to do
• Many, many, MANY warnings about landmines and how to avoid them, including very helpful tips on what to do if you find yourself or someone else stuck in a potential landmine-containing area. If you read this guide before you go to Cambodia and you blow yourself up anyway, you probably deserve it
• How to deal with children who are begging or selling items, and how to 'help' the people you see around you (some of this is general stuff, like, give food rather than money, but some is Cambodia-specific)
• A long list of nonprofits that take volunteers and/or help with further research on volunteer organizations, and a list of responsible shops and restaurants. The guide even proclaims its desire to list organizations that help disadvantaged Cambodians, which means it has the same goals as Responsible Travel Guide, but its execution and comprehensiveness are tons better
• Ways to interact with everyday Cambodians, such as homestays in remote areas, rare or dying crafts that you could purchase, and other tips to help direct money to honest, hard-working people rather than exploitative or underhanded ones

In short, if you are travelling to Cambodia, you need this guide. I don't care if you'll be staying in the luxury of Phnom Penh and never leaving the city--in fact, since Phnom Penh is known as a tourist destination, your chances of getting ripped off, stolen from, or encountering some unsavory people/practices is high. If you're coming to volunteer, I can't think of a better reference. And it does all the things a guidebook should.

One final note: the guidebook contains far more phrases than Responsible Travel Guide Cambodia, including some 'make it yourself' constructions, and a pronunciation guide to Khmer, making it an excellent resource for beginning Khmer students (there is a decided lack of textbooks and phrasebooks). Even Lonely Planet's phrasebook is for Southeast Asia, not just Cambodia itself. However, if you just need a bit of Khmer in a pinch to be understood or to be polite and learn a couple phrases, the guidebook is all you need.

Pros:

Excellent information, goes above and beyond a travel guide. Good detail about Cambodia's history, culture, people, and current problems; great compilation of activities, suggestions for what to do, and responsible travel hotels/stores/restaurants/tips.

Cons:

Very bulky and long, especially for an LP. Some people may not want to read so much in depth. Sometimes esoteric organization. Still not enough of a cuisine guide, more highlighting exotics than what you might eat every day. It may terrify 'ordinary' tourists with its frank admissions about Cambodia's sex trade, drug trade, awful state of the roads, child exploitation, etc (although I think an ordinary tourist might prefer to go somewhere else). If you're a worrywart, remember that it's better to know the possible worst than to travel in ignorance, and try not to lose sight of the phrase 'the possible worst.'

Final Verdict:

I'll be starting to make travel arrangements soon; I've heard from the school about some details of my teaching practicum and they're just waiting on me to set dates! I will also be planning my itinerary using my new guidebook and thinking about possible side trips and other fun stuff for this blog. I'm going to use the phrasebook section to kickstart my Khmer learning efforts, though I haven't decided on a definitive course of study yet.

The future seems wide open with possibilities! I'll be keeping the blog updated as I go along.