travel books or travel blogs?

[mameejhy]

when you plan your travels here and abroad, do you read travel books (Lonely Planet, Frommers etc) or do you visit travel blogs? If you use either or both (books/blogs) can you please suggest which ones to use?

thanks! 

[neeners]

I have travel guidebooks and I like rocky, I also like this forum for research. Travel blogs are also great for travel planning because it's more personal than the guidebooks, and often it's more up to date (depending on when the post was made though).

What's good about travel guidebooks is that even when you don't have internet, you can read it (handy when traveling). But I still rely more on information that I get online.

For traveling in Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia, I like travelfish.org. For train travel, I go to seat61.com.

[Vera]

I like travel books since they are well-researched and ever green and tell you the facts only. But if you want opinionated posts, travel blogs are a must to read.

[jamie_0117]

^Don't they have biases too? Kunyari yung mga endorsement of certain establishments, diba binabayaran din ng establishment ang publishers?

[rocky]

^yong iba sis bias. pero may mga blog din na very helpful lalo na pag DIY.

[jamie_0117]

^I mean the books. Feeling ko kase ginagawa yung mga itinerary dun based on advertisers.

[mooncake and leaves]

travel blogs all the way. and GT din. same as rocky-this board ang inuuna ko. nakaka-amaze yung level of awareness ng mga repapips sa mga masasayang puntahan.

i also like watching travel shows. visual kasi ako eh so i really enjoy those

[mama squeak!]

I love DIYing my trips. I gather and consolidate all my information from travel books, blogs, reviews/forums and travel shows. After I've gotten all the info I can get my hands on, I then filter them according to what I want to do based on my budget and alloted time. So, it's both travel books and blogs for me.

 

[mameejhy]

For traveling in Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia, I like travelfish.org. For train travel, I go to seat61.com.

Thanks for the tip!

[mameejhy]

^I mean the books. Feeling ko kase ginagawa yung mga itinerary dun based on advertisers.

kapag yata lonely planet, they pay for their travelers' expenses.

[jaded1025]

Travel blogs..
-dahil mas updated at personal experience talaga. At may blogs din na nakapost mga expenses kaya may idea ka na kung how much kelangan na budget.

[cutiepie]

travel blogs and travel forums 

-- mas personalized 

[orangepulp]

Travel books if i'm going to a place na walang internet or if di siya reliable at least i get the info i need asap. Ex. if I plan to go to different places in a certain country lalo na if sa medyo remote areas Travel blogs and forums I always consult before going on a trip esp. if it's my first time to visit a place.

[loveavenue]

Travel blog, kasi it's more updated. Mas personalized pa ang experience, u can actually feel the writer's feelings, and opinions about the place while reading blog.  You can also read other people's comments and therefore, gather more ideas from other readers' concerns and opinions regarding that place. Pwede mo pa ma-contact ang writer kung may questions ka, just leave a message or send her an email, it's so convenient. Also, sa blog, andun yung "raw" info about the places, walang biases unlike books na puro positive description lang about the place.  Andun yung mga do's and donts, yung mga things to avoid, based on the traveller's experience, along with the highly recommended places to visit.  The tone of writing pa is usually written in a friendly manner, not too formal, kaya mae-encourage ka talaga mag-visit din dun sa place. 

[riandrew]

blogs and forums!
aside from it's more updated than published books, i got to read different views of other people. it may be ordinary for some but it's a must-see for others.

[barefoot_taka]

blogs!
then forums.
very informative.
i also love watching travel shows. pag nagustuhan ko then search ako sa mga blogs. rarely do i buy/read travel books.

[mameejhy]

Share ko lang, for our recent trip to Istanbul, Turkey, I used the following for research:

Lonely Planet guidebook
Trip Advisor forum
http://www.turkeytravelplanner.com/

[cescilay]

Blogs! Bloggers are usually responsive to queries and often give suggestions based on your itinerary/situation. And besides, why pay (for the book) if you can get information for free?