This was published 13 years ago
Lonely Planet: the best thing to happen to travel, or the worst?
End of an era ... Tony and Maureen Wheeler have sold their remaining stake in Lonely Planet.Credit: Luis Enrique Ascui
Call it what you like – "The Book", "the LP", "the Bible", "the Lonely Lies" – but there's one more thing you'd have to call the Lonely Planet: everywhere.
It's on everyone's bookshelves; it's in every traveller's hands. It's on mobile phones. It's on the internet. It's everywhere, and it's telling entire generations of people how to travel the world.
Everyone's come to appreciate the irony of the words "lonely planet". Thanks in no small part to Tony and Maureen Wheeler's little guidebook, the planet is now anything but.
It's encouraged people to go places they normally wouldn't, thanks to the comfort of their little blue safety net. Once adventurous destinations seem pretty tame when you've got a map of the city and a full list of do's and don'ts.
Now, however, it's the end of an era. Tony and Maureen Wheeler, who penned their first modest little guidebook in 1973, have agreed to sell their last shares in the company, and Lonely Planet will soon be turned over entirely to the BBC.
It makes this a good time to ask: is Lonely Planet the best thing to happen to travel, or the worst?
Early days ... Tony and Maureen Wheeler with their book Across Asia on the Cheap in 1973.Credit: Ted Golding
There's no doubt travel has changed thanks to "the book". There's no doubt it has been homogenised, too.
Want proof? Look no further than the restaurants in any given city that have been recommended by the Lonely Planet. They'll be full of guidebook-toting westerners, and that's about it. Locals will have long given up on the place.
Same goes for any hostel or hotel mentioned. Ask around and see how everyone found out about it: the LP.
Travel by book has become little different to travel by tour. People that abide by their bible, stick to the same beaten paths, drink in the same beaten bars. That you continually bump into the same people over and over on a trip is no co-incidence.
This, however, is good news for both the fans and the haters of the "Lonely Planet generation".
For those who just want a tried and tested place to go, a relaxing holiday that's not going to throw up too many surprises, you need only open the guidebook and let it tell you where to go.
For those looking for something more adventurous, and trying to get away from the drones they see as a blight on the tourism world, the process is pretty much the same: open the guidebook and let it tell you where not to go.
That's a bit glib, admittedly, and it skirts around a few issues. The biggest one of which is: Does the Lonely Planet "ruin" destinations?
Yeah, it does. If by "ruin" you mean contribute to changing the things you once loved about a place.
Check out any of the "secret" beaches and "untouched" villages mentioned in the LP. Sure, they might have been secret and untouched when the author visited, but after a couple of years in the book they'll be crawling with tourists.
Vang Vieng in Laos is probably a good example. Not so long ago it was a quiet, unassuming village in a picture-perfect setting of river and mountains. Now, with a few mentions in the LP coupled with the word-of-mouth of travellers, it's become something like alcoholic Disney, its restaurants filled with zombie-eyed backpackers watching Family Guy DVDs, its river choked by drunks floating around on inner tubes.
For those arriving for the first time hoping for a bit of fun, it's paradise. For those who visited 10 years ago it must be like having to sit through an M. Night Shyamalan film.
The Lonely Planet's not entirely to blame, of course. If they hadn't done it, someone else would have, and there are plenty of others trying. And the only reason the company sells so many books and phone apps is because so many people want to buy them.
It's pointless sitting around grumbling about the ills the book might have done to the world – it's the age of information, it was going to happen regardless.
And you know what the inconvenient truth about the Lonely Planet is? That the book is actually pretty convenient.
Sure, they might get their facts wrong every now and then. And some of the advice might be a bit off the mark (like, say, nightclub recommendations from a middle-aged author).
But I've been travelling pretty much my whole life, been to almost 70 countries, and I still buy the Lonely Planet if I'm going somewhere new. It gives you the lie of the land, tells you a few things to expect so you don't go in completely blind.
The secret, and even Lonely Planet themselves would agree, is this: it might be nicknamed "the Bible", but don't treat it as gospel.
What do you think: Is Lonely Planet the best or worst thing to happen to travel? Or is it somewhere in between?
Hope you're enjoying the Backpacker blog – there will be a new one published every Tuesday and Wednesday on the Fairfax Media websites. To contact me with any topic suggestions or personal abuse, visit my website, follow me on Twitter, or email me at bengroundwater@gmail.com.
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