Product Description

Discover a land of exotic beauty and inspiring culture with The Rough Guide to India, the most comprehensive guide to India on the market. The 36 page full-colour introduction with stunning photography will whet your appetite for the country’s many highlights, from fast-paced Delhi and the sacred sites of the Ganges plain to the Moghul splendour of Agra and the shell-sand beaches of the south. The guide features three new colour sections on Sacred India, Handicrafts and Bollywood, as well as expert background information on everything from temple architecture to Indian classical music. Easy-to-use maps and extensive accommodation and restaurant listings, plus all the practical grittiness you’d expect from a Rough Guide make this your must-have item for the trip of a lifetime. Make the most your time with The Rough Guide to India.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6183 in Books
• Published on: 2008-10-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 1440 pages

About the Author
David Abram is an India specialist -- author of The Rough Guide to India, South India and Goa

Customer Reviews

Better than Lonley
My friends and I spent 3 months in India with both the Lonely Planet and the Rough Guide and 9 times out of 10 we referred to the Rough Guide. Fewer people carry the Rough Guide which means that the 'unspoilt' stuff remains less spoiled. The information is more reliable, the accomodation reviews are more accurate, and it's lighter to carry.

a rough guide ....
Despite the inferior quality of the photo reproduction I've always thought that Rough Guide is better value than Lonely Planet. It is generally more informative, more erudite, and the style is arguably geared to a wider readership, while LP leans more towards backpackers and gap-year students. I also think LP is more prone to hyperbole while Rough Guide is normally unflinchingly honest about places. It's perceived negativity is for me a bonus as it is often better to travel with lower or at least realistic expectations. As it says in the opening gambit, many travellers head for India expecting to 'encounter a timeless ascetic wonderland and are surprised to find one of the most materialistic societies on the planet'. I think this is pretty spot-on. There is no point in going to India and not being prepared for the filth, pollution, traffic chaos and inequality otherwise you will quickly need to reevaluate your trip on arrival.

A couple of criticisms: Rough Guide hotel information can be a little out of date by the time of your visit. Research on updating hotel email addresses and websites should be more thorough, although the publishing schedules for books of this sort make it almost impossible to keep up with the rate of change in a country like India. Also, I think that Rough Guide would benefit more from a Le Routard-style rating system for monuments and cities. Although travelling is highly subjective, more editorial guidance would be helpful for the traveller to distinguish between cities like, for instance, Jodphur and Jaipur. Empirically, there is a massive difference, Jodphur is a much calmer, better-maintained, less-polluted and more hassle-free destination, but you can't really predict this from the guide. Furthermore, this guide describes the lakes at Updaipur as "half-full" and a "trash-strewn puddle". At the time of writing the lakes had been fully replenished by monsoon rains and are certainly an essential stop on any Rajasthan itinerary. Nevertheless, this is still the best product of its kind on the market and a must for all visitors.

The Essential Guide
I travel in India every year and pick a new one up every time. I usually leave the old one for Indian relatives who say they're an excellent read ;)

Even if you're not travelling in India, this book is fascinating and 'unputdownable'. It covers every aspect of this complex and ancient country in informative, readable sections ranging from history, culture, language, politics through to food, bribes, sex, drugs and Bollywood movies. From personal knowledge I can confirm that this edition has been updated to reflect recent changes (a must since India is currently one of the most rapidly transforming nations on earth) and the intelligent coverage even includes analysis of the effects of the IT and BioMedical science booms on Indian society.

There are others, but this is the essential one. I'd recommend it to anyone, from those horrid chavs one sees gurning it up at Goa nowadays to actual Indian people. Its a great one to keep on the lav and keep dipping into too!