Not trying to be a jerk but doesn't anyone check out guidebooks before or while they are planning a trip? Seems like so many people come here and ask questions that could easily be answered by checking out a guidebook. Or when asking for ideas on where to go...do some research and narrow it down!! Are folks that lazy or just that uncertain about their travel skills?

Yes - I still buy guidebooks as I like it on my travel shelf when I get back -also it is a good reference point when I am there.<BR><BR>I think its great to come onto a forum like this to get tips and recommendations but the what to see when I am there generally comes from a guide book.

Yes, I still buy as many guidebooks as I ever did and that's a lot. Have about 20 feet of shelves of them with another 15 to 20 or so in use at all times. Generally start with the basics--Fodors, Frommers then branch off into more detailed guides like DK and Cadogan. Have lately discovered Cooks which I've become rather fond of. After checking out a destination in the guidebooks I do searches here and then ask questions. Sometimes you get conflicting views or even seemingly conflicting info from guidebooks, so you ask for personal experience. For instance, my daughter will be in Paris on her honeymoon. The recent thread on the least crowded time to ascend the Eiffel Tower was very helpful and something I've not found in guidebooks.

<BR><BR>Yes, I still buy them. Some would argue I buy TOO many. I like books; I like the ease of acces<BR><BR>To me the benefit of this site is when you think you've honed down your itinerary and specific destinations and you run it past the Fodors' crowd.<BR>I've actually made some adjustments on some trips based upon that additional "first hand" info. And I've been pleased each time.

I buy them for myself, for friends and family when they are planning trips! There is still nothing like curling up with a book full of lovely pictures and reading about the place you are going to travel to!<BR>And it is so much easier to take the book with me than to find a computer and look something up!

I'm one who buys too many travel books. It's just that although you can read all the books that you can, you still would like another person's opinion from this board. As usual, the guidebooks may praise a certain hotel or restaurant, but when you ask people who have actually been to these places, you get a more honest opinion. Guidebooks are just that-guides that give you a general idea of what you may want.

Of course. But sometimes I'm thinking of several different places and it's nice to get some opinions and basic info to help narrow it down. I travel A LOT and have loads of travel books and don't want to buy one every time a location crosses my mind.

Fodors is an excellent place to do research. If you don't want to help people out, don't. It's not a matter of being lazy or uncertain about one's travel skills, as you stated. Another thing, guidebooks don't always have complete and up to date information.

I still buy, but I first check them out at the library. My favorite travel books are the Unofficial Guides. I've bought them for Vegas, London, Maui and Kauai. Sorry Fodors.

I still buy guidebooks but this forum is invaluable. For example, Miriam kept us up to date on the Lufthansa strike, Frances is one wonderful person with her insight into Wales, Mike and his help with the Devon/Cornwall input is appreciated so much. You can't get that kind of info from a guidebook. There are some wonderful people who use this website.

Yes! I love driving or walking around a new city and having a guide book to give me background info on what I'm seeing. We buys several and usually take the best one or two with us.

I have only a few guidebooks. I admit it, I'm cheap (or perhaps frugal is a better word). I'm a big fan of the public libraries. Sure the books may not be the most up-to-date (although sometimes they are the most recent versions), but I like the books to get an idea of what to see, where to go. I will often photocopy pages that interest me for later reference. For information on where to stay, current bus schedules, etc., I go to the internet. I did buy Lonely Planet's guide to Turkey. It's since been updated, but I'm still glad I bought it - I can pick it up at any time and try to decide where I'll go next time.

I definitely consult guidebooks for the bulk of my travel research. <BR><BR>This forum is most valuable for obtaining insider tips, personal anecdotes, and human experience that is sometimes difficult to assess by reading even the best guidebooks.<BR><BR>I agree that too many people START their research here, but believe that a guidebook used in tandem with carefully crafted questions here can be a great way to plan a trip.

Let's face it--some people just don't like to do the research, while, for others, (including me), it's a big part of the fun of travel. Our little travel group has some of both types, and it seems to work out nicely. We've had lots of trips, domestic and foreign, and we're still friends, and the marriages are still intact. <BR><BR>

Yes, but there is nothing like the personal touch! I have many travel guides but the "kind" people on this site have been very helpful to answer specific questions and concerns. If you are too busy for that then maybe you should be spending your "valuable time" somewhere else!

WRONG! aj, what lets your point down is that people on this board ask the most banal, obvious things - NOT specific concerns. True, your guidebook may not tell you what shoes to wear for Paris but it also will fail to tell you what magazine to read in the airport. <BR><BR>People these days want to be mothered and then complain when something isn't just as they wanted or expected. 'Nobody told me it would rain in Amsterdam!!!' etc ...

I'm apparently very distrustful, because no matter what endeavor I undertake, I read everything I can from a variety of sources to learn as much as I can (I'm a big fan of the public library, too). From there, if I have questions, I have background information to judge the accuracy/dependability of the answers. I also have very specific questions that, hopefully, elicit concise responses. <BR><BR>I also try to not do to others what's done to me in my job - ask an opinion, then argue with the opinion giver. A lot of folks formulate an idea, then want to know if it's a good one. Rather than asking that directly, they ask a blind question. When the opinions don't match their idea, they question the opinions, or continue to solicit more opinions until one matches their original idea. Everyone ends up frustrated and cranky. Sometimes the hotel questions are clearly in this category; the inquirer has booked a tour, or had a travel agent arrange hotels, and now s/he wants to know if the hotel is good. Too late to change the reservations, so the request is really "did I make a mistake?". Responders, not knowing the hotel is a done deal, offer alternatives; sometimes, there are no responses because the hotel's not on the independent traveler's radar. The poster now is frustrated because the hidden question "did I make a mistake" is not being answered.<BR><BR>People are so, well, darn interesting, aren't they?

Even if they didn't buy guidebooks, they obviously have access to the internet and often they clearly haven't checked the web sites of specific places they're asking about.