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Lonely Planet Unpacked: An Anthology of Lonely Planet Disaster Stories
Sometimes travel doesn't go according to plan - but that's what gives you the best stories! Around the world, these Lonely Planet writers encounter hurricanes, road accidents, secret police and nasty parasites - among other aspects of life on the dark side of the road.
Important The digital edition of this book may not contain all of the images found in the physical edition.
Important The digital edition of this book may not contain all of the images found in the physical edition.
- GenresTravel
260 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 1, 2011
3 people are currently reading
33 people want to read
About the author
Lonely Planet
3,686 books888 followersOUR STORY
A beat-up old car, a few dollars in the pocket and a sense of adventure. In 1972 that’s all Tony and Maureen Wheeler needed for the trip of a lifetime – across Europe and Asia overland to Australia. It took several months, and at the end – broke but inspired – they sat at their kitchen table writing and stapling together their first travel guide, Across Asia on the Cheap. Within a week they’d sold 1500 copies and Lonely Planet was born. One hundred million guidebooks later, Lonely Planet is the world’s leading travel guide publisher with content to almost every destination on the planet.
A beat-up old car, a few dollars in the pocket and a sense of adventure. In 1972 that’s all Tony and Maureen Wheeler needed for the trip of a lifetime – across Europe and Asia overland to Australia. It took several months, and at the end – broke but inspired – they sat at their kitchen table writing and stapling together their first travel guide, Across Asia on the Cheap. Within a week they’d sold 1500 copies and Lonely Planet was born. One hundred million guidebooks later, Lonely Planet is the world’s leading travel guide publisher with content to almost every destination on the planet.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 29, 2022
Looking forward to getting some traveling in post-Covid lockdowns, I happened upon this book, and it’s chocked full of “I-barely-survived-this-disaster-and-it-was-mostly-luck-not-intelligence” stories of warning, of how we can unknowingly almost get ourselves killed while innocently traveling, especially in countries and locations we should have seriously reconsidered before embarking on a trip of near-death. I too can heavily relate to being somewhere you wish you desperately weren’t! But these writers of Lonely Planet have obviously (sometimes barely) survived their ordeal and now, from the very comfort of our luxurious couches with a cup of comforting green tea we can learn a great deal of survival from these stories of woe. Makes me grateful I didn’t have to survive their particular stories and I feel all the richer knowing maybe someday a story or two’s now-revealed know-how will shield me too. Many thanks to these writers for sharing. Great read.
October 16, 2022
Travel disaster stories were promised but the only disaster were the stories…
DNF at 72%.
Ever since I stumbled upon “Kamikaze Kangaroos!: A trip around Oz in a van called Rusty” by Tony James Slater several years ago, I sometimes like to read travel memoirs - especially when there’s disaster involved!
By now, I’ve read all of Tony’s books (and those of many other travellers!) and it seemed a logical next step to take a famous travel guide’s collection of supposedly funny travel stories…
Sadly, the promised “disaster stories” here are mostly of the following variety...
“Look, I did this and this is why: (long-winded explanations)”
“I could have died from that long walk, the road traffic, my inability to overcome inertia, (blah blah)!”
“And, lo and behold, I dangerously sprained my ankle!”
This is neither very entertaining nor does it make for a good read which is why I’m abandoning this for good.
One star out of five.
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Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam
DNF at 72%.
Ever since I stumbled upon “Kamikaze Kangaroos!: A trip around Oz in a van called Rusty” by Tony James Slater several years ago, I sometimes like to read travel memoirs - especially when there’s disaster involved!
By now, I’ve read all of Tony’s books (and those of many other travellers!) and it seemed a logical next step to take a famous travel guide’s collection of supposedly funny travel stories…
Sadly, the promised “disaster stories” here are mostly of the following variety...
“Look, I did this and this is why: (long-winded explanations)”
“I could have died from that long walk, the road traffic, my inability to overcome inertia, (blah blah)!”
“And, lo and behold, I dangerously sprained my ankle!”
This is neither very entertaining nor does it make for a good read which is why I’m abandoning this for good.
One star out of five.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Medium | Matrix | Tumblr
Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam
July 2, 2025
I liked seeing all the different styles of writing, some of them be wildin. Aquired in Koh Tao
January 3, 2024
This book was bloody brilliant
March 11, 2023
This series of Lonely Planet is really wonderful. Short stories that heat up your travel urge, or, if you are a seasoned backpacker, bring you back the memory line of your own adventures.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews