LITTLE ROCK — Yes, it makes your suitcase heavier. Yes, it takes up more space.
But all the travel e-books and mobile app guides in the world put together are still less handy than a sturdy little guidebook you can hold in your hand.
Among the various brands — Frommer’s, Fodor’s, Lonely Planet, Moon, DK, Rick Steves and more — there are likely enough volumes to pave China.
Many of them publish in e-book form too, spinning travel advice through the digital realm.
I am partial to print, but times are not good for the print travel guidebook. Their sales fell 28 percent in the last six years in the United States, says Stephen Mesquita, editor of the Nielsen BookScan Travel Publishing Year Book.
Between 2008 and 2011, travel book publishers’ print revenues plunged from $190.3 million to $149 million, according to Albert Greco, marketing professor at Fordham University, who monitors the book publishing industry. In March, publisher John Wiley & Sons put its Frommer’s brand up for sale.
While some travel-watchers have predicted the demise of printed travel guides, using words like “extinction,” and “redundant,” that probably is too strong, Greco says. Although travel books are migrating to digital formats, real books continue to have a place in a traveler’s backpack. They can be toted where there is no electricity. Printed maps beat apps, especially for older eyes. Books don’t scream “rich tourist” like an e-reader does. Sometimes, flipping through a book is just easier.
Last year, 4,221 print books and 711 e-books about travel were published or distributed in the United States, according to preliminary data from Bowker Books in Print.
“Print continues to sag, but it continues to exist,” Greco says.
That is lucky for those who prefer to travel by the book.
Like shoes, a travel book’s appeal is in the eye of the beholder. But among the recent crop of books, here are 10 justpublished or about-to-be-published volumes that are useful and worthwhile for your summer travel planning. E-book versions are noted when available.
The London Mapguide (7th Edition) — Capsule version of London highlights is complemented by extraordinarily detailed street maps. This is the map to use when visiting London as a student, tourist or while attending the Olympics. The $12 cost of the book is a bargain compared with the major roaming charges you’d rack up searching map apps on your mobile phone. (Penguin, $12)
The Milepost 2012 — Alaska Travel Planner (64th Edition) — New version of the bible of Alaska travel offers tips from the Klondike Loop to the Denali Highway. It has mile-by-mile descriptions of highways and attractions in the 49th state. Having this hefty guide on your passenger seat while driving 847 miles between Anchorage and Prudhoe Bay is pretty reassuring. (Morris Communications, $29.95)
PassPorter’s Walt Disney World 2012 by Jennifer, Dave and Allison Marx — Disney is so popular that most books on the subject are updated every year. I like this family-friendly guide that has organizing folders in back and clear maps, ratings, reviews and updates. Worth its weight in good advice. Later this year, the guidebook series will expand to Disney cruises. (PassPorter, $24.95)
Top 10 Iceland — This new tome in a popular series focuses on a mysterious yet trendy destination that’s now easy to reach from the United States — thanks to more airlines flying the route. Misty steam-vent pools! (DK Travel, $14)
Travel Guide to Italy — For
travelers roaming far from Rome, this color guidebook has a more elegant presentation than usual, but keeps the gritty Lonely Planet voice. Available in Kindle and Nook formats. (Lonely Planet, $25.99)
Family Guide Washington, D.C.
— Chunkier than the slim “Top 10” series, but it’s more complete. DK invented a simplified layout for travel guides that is rich with photographs, illustrations and small boxes on each page. Some of the type is tiny, so get the kids with jet-pilot vision to eyeball it for you. Available in Kindle and Nook formats. (DK Travel, $25)
Explorer’s Guide Maine by Christina Tree and Nancy English (16th Edition) — A series best for people who seek calm, peaceful trips to beautiful, scenic spots, it offers intelligent guidance to the quirky state. Available in book stores June 4; Kindle and Nook formats available. (Countryman Press, $22.95)
Frommer’s Exploring America by RV by Harry Basch and Shirley Slater — It’s the latest edition of this RV advice book by a traveling power couple who constantly point themselves down the road and beyond the next curve. (Frommer’s, $19.99)
Fodor’s Nova Scotia & Atlantic Canada (12th Edition) — Most Americans know approximately nothing about Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland, so pack this book while rambling through the land of Anne of Green Gables. (Fodor’s, $16.99)
Guide to National Parks of the United States (7th Edition) — Stunning photos on every page. No sugary prose, just clear information about visiting, lodging and hiking excursions. You barely notice the type. (National Geographic, $26)
Travel, Pages 51 on 05/27/2012