2006-04-23 Does the job, but there are better

Travel guide purchasing often comes down to a choice between Lonely Planet and Rough Guide, and the case of Poland, Lonely Planet is in second place.

On a week long visit to Poland in April 2006, carrying a copy of the Lonely Planet guide and accompanied by a friend who had the equivalent Rough Guide, we found the Rough Guide to be the superior volume.

Lonely Planet has the basic information on eating, drinking and sleeping, and there is little to choose between the two popular guides for those, but for history, culture and background information we found the Rough Guide to be far better. As well as being more readable, the Rough Guide also seemed to include more of the smaller but no less interesting towns where we ended up spending an hour or two between trains. A good few English- speaking visitors are likely to be in search of the steam trains of Wolsztyn, a town which doesn't get a mention in the Lonely Planet.

If there are two of you, take both books, but if you are just taking one book, then the Rough Guide is the one to go for.