Peru

Eyewitness Travel Guides

by Maryanne Blacker

This illustrated guide shows you where to start looking for the real Peru with cutaways and floorplans of all the major sites, and special features on the ancient Caral and the Colonial splendour of the Spanish conquistadores.

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction

352 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2008

About the author

An editor of cookbooks for The Australian Women's Weekly.

For a listing of Australian Women's Weekly cookbooks that have not be categorised into editors see: The Australian Women's Weekly. The biography of this author also includes links to other food editors for the Australian Women's Weekly.

Reviews

[Krista · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book before going on a guided tour of Peru, and when I first started the tour, I thought that perhaps I had chosen my travel guide poorly: this would be an excellent book to have for someone backpacking across the country; someone who needed information on how to organise his time if he only had a week or two; someone who needed advice on hotels and buses and cheap restaurants; not the advice I needed when most of these details were arranged for me. But, as we went along, I found invaluable information in this guide on the different regions we visited, and in the end, I was satisfied. Bottom line: this is an excellent guide book and any disappointment I may have felt is due solely to my own carelessness in choosing which guide book to buy; this wasn't exactly what I needed, but that's not the book's fault.

[Elizabeth Higginbotham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great guide book. I really saw only Lima, Cusco, Sacred Valley, and of course Machu Picchu, which was amazing and very busy. The book was a great introduction, so I could make decisions about how to spend time. The history is amazing, but I was also very interested in the people, who have embraced their mixed heritage. Of course, there is colonialism, but their indigenous roots are also being discovered and embraced. There is a genuine appreciation of nature, what is part of the culture.

The Huaca Pucllana is amazing and speaks to the long history of civilization. Yet, this archaeological structure is surrounding by residences and businesses. There are many stories and I had a great guide who shared much. I got to the the Lugar de la Memoria about the 20 years of internal conflict, so I am ready to read more about that era.

I am ready for more Peru. People are very friendly and they are very serious about their cooking. The guide helped me make decision for this trip and future trips.

[Jdetrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't love the DK line of travel guides....they are undeniably beautiful to look at, but the pictures seem digitally altered (and to be clear, they may not be....if not, they have some of the most talented photographers working today) and often the information seems a little surface. I like a guide that lets me feel like I really know the place discussed, and I do not feel like that after reading one of these guides.

[Jim Blessing · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very good guide to Peru. The color pictures and text were very detailed.

[Maryann Burrows · Rating 4 out of 5]

Useful during planning pre trip and also after creating photo album. Lots of information, history and beautiful pictures. Was too big and heavy to take with us though.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stunning pictures. Great travel guides and tips.

[AHeld · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good short overview with beautiful pictures and some fun historical information

[Codrin]

Let this lavishly illustrated guide whet your appetite and show you where to start looking for the real Peru - with cutaways and floor plans of all the major sites, and special features on the ancient Caral and the Colonial splendor of the Spanish conquistadors.

Sample the flavor of the country region by region, with new full-color detailed maps of towns and regions and comprehensive listings of hotels and restaurants.

Find out all you need for sights, beaches, markets and festivals listed town by town, from a home stay in the floating village of Lake Titicaca to a morning flight over the magical Nazca Lines. And with the absorbing in-depth section on the Inca heartland and a step-by-step route of the Inca trail, this is a guide not to be missed.

**

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fantastic travel guide from the Eyewitness Travel series. These glossy travel guides are laid out beautifully and are the most user friendly I've ever found. They are separated by geographical region and are full of photos, maps, interesting tidbits about history and culture, festival dates, floor plans of tourist destinations, hotel info, restaurant info, shopping info, and outdoor activity info. In addition, they include practical travel info regarding visas/customs, health precautions, currency, and in-country transportation. The only drawback is that they are heavy--backpackers, read up before you go!

[ChroniclesofTania · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I like about the DK and Insight series are the pictures that reinforce the history. Lonely Planet and Rough Guide have more facts, but without the colour pictures, they can get boring to read when you are travelling...especially if you are lost and want to identify where you are. A picture says a thousand words...
I used this book to research Peru for a story I'm writing. This is the best book on Peru I've read so far.

[Sivaram Velauthapillai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good travel guide that covers all of Peru. Unlike other travel guides, Eyewitness guides contain less detailed information (text) but more pictures, rendering of buildings, and suggested walking guides. If you are travelling to Peru, you might want to pick this up, along with a book on Macchu Picchu.

[Karen! · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great travel book from DK, be sure to copy the maps of Machu Picchu, as the site itself has no such aides. There are signs there directing you to certain places, but they are inconsistent at best.

The sections on Lima and Cuzco helped me choose a hotel location, which would have been impossible without this book!

[Amanda McLellan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointed with the quality of this book. I have a DK Travel book for every international trip I have taken, so I picked up the Peru book before I left. The paper is a lesser quality than the ones I have from years ago and the information is okay but not overly useful. It still looks nice next to my other travel books, so for that, it serves its purpose.

[Monica · Rating 4 out of 5]

An attractive guide, many pictures, handsome layout.

[Linda Tran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good for pictures, hence where to go. Lodging and other things were out of my budget range.

[Juan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tiene mapas, vistas en 3d y recomendaciones bastante utiles para cualquier viajero, mucho más si la idea es caminar.

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best travel guide for Peru. Been there, done that! Survived to tell the tale...

[Micahlibris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful, but not terribly useful. Occasional minor errors passim.

[Linda Harkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! I can always trust anything published by DK. Peru is my next travel destination.

[Raul · Rating 3 out of 5]

The excellent illustrations make this an indispensable guide for planning the sights to see when taking a trip. I always use it in combination with another guide.

[Robert Stevenson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Helpful for our Lima trip, good summaries and highlights on geographical to do but limited on events, restaurants and bar to do.

[Diane Coon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Went there. Loved

[Ericka]

Great way for a Introduction. I like the version of Lonely Planet a lot but this one is a great guide too.