If you buy a travel guide as a PDF or another ebook format, it's not going to be too expensive. It's certainly going to be cheaper than a traditional, paper guidebook. An online travel guide -- even an iPhone app -- is probably going to be cheaper. In the event of the more expensive online guide books and iPhone apps, you can expect more up-to-date information and useful added features that make up for the cost.
Print guidebooks tend to be out of date before they hit the shelves. The traditional publishers' research, writing, fact-checking, typesetting, printing, binding, shipping, retailing cycle is very long ... sometimes more than 12 months between someone walking out of a cafe and the information hitting the bookshelves. Online travel guides tend to be more-up-to-date, as a the production costs of an online guide book are quite low, changes can be made more easily.
A connected web of information is vitally important for online travel guides. Because we all have particular areas of interest, a good online travel guide will point you towards trusted information sources and allow you to dig deeper with one click. As more new media publishers connect with services like Augmented Reality, curated video libraries and photo pools, there will be plenty of expert and crowd-sourced advice readily available.
Online guidebooks are much lighter and, in many cases, smaller than their offline counterparts. A traditional paper guidebook is both heavy and large, while an online guide is the same size as your reading device ... which you're probably already using to communicate with, take photos with, and surf the internet with. Staring at a mobile screen is unlikely to make you look like a tourist ... unlike pulling out your guidebook at every street corner.
The need for online travel guides is growing as rapidly as wifi and mobile internet connections are. Many independent publishers are launching and providing great quality information, while larger monolithic companies are struggling to transition -- in many cases because they're afraid of cannibalising their existing book sales. As more big companies move online and more niche publishers spring up, you'll find that there are guidebooks that suit your need better and are better for your wallet. - 31515
Print guidebooks tend to be out of date before they hit the shelves. The traditional publishers' research, writing, fact-checking, typesetting, printing, binding, shipping, retailing cycle is very long ... sometimes more than 12 months between someone walking out of a cafe and the information hitting the bookshelves. Online travel guides tend to be more-up-to-date, as a the production costs of an online guide book are quite low, changes can be made more easily.
A connected web of information is vitally important for online travel guides. Because we all have particular areas of interest, a good online travel guide will point you towards trusted information sources and allow you to dig deeper with one click. As more new media publishers connect with services like Augmented Reality, curated video libraries and photo pools, there will be plenty of expert and crowd-sourced advice readily available.
Online guidebooks are much lighter and, in many cases, smaller than their offline counterparts. A traditional paper guidebook is both heavy and large, while an online guide is the same size as your reading device ... which you're probably already using to communicate with, take photos with, and surf the internet with. Staring at a mobile screen is unlikely to make you look like a tourist ... unlike pulling out your guidebook at every street corner.
The need for online travel guides is growing as rapidly as wifi and mobile internet connections are. Many independent publishers are launching and providing great quality information, while larger monolithic companies are struggling to transition -- in many cases because they're afraid of cannibalising their existing book sales. As more big companies move online and more niche publishers spring up, you'll find that there are guidebooks that suit your need better and are better for your wallet. - 31515
About the Author:
Learn more about online travel guides and stop by http://indietravelpodcast.com to get your free audio vacation travel guide.
