Frommers Vs. Fodors

[cruisinlady]

Is there a preference as to which to use or is there even another book to read up on the whole Alaska experience, restaurants, things to do and see, etc.?

 

Thanx for your input.

[TamaLee]

I just got the new 2006 Frommers Alaska Port of Call book. For an experienced cruiser I felt it wasn't a very good book. About 90% of the book is about the cruise lines themselves and what it's like to cruise and about 10% is on the ports and Alaska. I really expected a lot more information on the ports for the size of the book.

 

I would really recommend going to the book store and looking at what's available before buying. I made the mistake and bought mine on Amazon.

 

A lot of people on these boards have recommended Anne Vipond's Alaska by Cruise Ship.

[Cruisechick82]

I just got the new 2006 Frommers Alaska Port of Call book. For an experienced cruiser I felt it wasn't a very good book. About 90% of the book is about the cruise lines themselves and what it's like to cruise and about 10% is on the ports and Alaska. I really expected a lot more information on the ports for the size of the book.

 

I would really recommend going to the book store and looking at what's available before buying. I made the mistake and bought mine on Amazon.

 

A lot of people on these boards have recommended Anne Vipond's Alaska by Cruise Ship.

 

I have the Alaska by Cruise Ship book and I think it's great. It has wonderful photos and details about each of the ports. It also has pull-out maps of each port which I think will be very helpful. Check out the different books on Amazon, most of the Alaska ones let you look inside part of the books to get an idea on what they have.

[OldCodger73]

What's the copyright date for Anne Vipond's Alaska by Cruise Ship? I'm curious how up-to-date it is.

[tangerinebunny]

Vipond's book is in its fifth edition - 2005. I find it the least helpful of the three guides we bought, rather general.

 

So the suggestion to go to the bookstore and look before you buy is good one. We all seem to have different requirements.

[dderm]

I have a small collection of books purchased while researching our upcoming cruise. IMHO, of the books, I like the Alaska by Cruise Ship and The Milepost the best. Here's a breakdown of some of the books I like.

 

Alaska – the Cruise Lover’s Guide (Paul & Audrey Grescoc) - good general book, smaller than most.

 

Alaska by Cruise Ship –(Anne Vipond) - I like this best for overall info, the port maps AND the maps of the Inside Passage Islands that you pass.

 

Alaska Ports of Call – Fodor’s - typical Fodor

 

Alaska for Dummies (Charles Wohlforth) - fun, fast, easy read

 

Best Places – Alaska (kate ripley) - basic book covers all of Alaska, not just SE cruise area

 

Cruises & Port of Call 2005 – Frommer’s - typical Frommer's

 

The Milepost - REALLY detailed, great for land based info

 

And of course, write to each of your ports and get the Visitor's guide for that area (example: Vancouver, Seattle, Ketchican, Junea, Skagway, etc.)

 

Hope this helps.

[NancyIL]

I have Frommer's Alaska by Charles Wohlforth, and it is excellent. The 2006 edition came out in December. It contains a chapter specifically about cruising by the authors of Frommer's Alaska Cruises and Ports of Call - so don't buy both. I also have Alaska By Cruise Ship (Anne Vipond)...haven't read much yet but the photos and maps are beautiful.

[Coral]

I actually found Alaska by Cruise Ship (Anne Vipond) better then Frommers and Fodors. It has been 3 or 4 years since I have looked at any of them.

[djacobson]

I just got the new 2006 Frommers Alaska Port of Call book. For an experienced cruiser I felt it wasn't a very good book. About 90% of the book is about the cruise lines themselves and what it's like to cruise and about 10% is on the ports and Alaska. I really expected a lot more information on the ports for the size of the book.

 

I would really recommend going to the book store and looking at what's available before buying. I made the mistake and bought mine on Amazon.

 

A lot of people on these boards have recommended Anne Vipond's Alaska by Cruise Ship.

 

I agree with TamaLee. The Alaska Port of Call book was a disappointment. I think the Frommer's Alaska book is better. I like to use it to get web site information to further explore the ports. I really like Anne Vipond's book because it includes history and has great pictures of the ports of call.

[Keith1010]

I think that all these books have pluses and minuses. I happen to prefer Frommers over Fodors but that is just because I like the layout better.

 

Here's what I would do. There is so much information available on line that I would start there so that I could get information from a variety of resources without having to buy one book over the other. I would go to the Frommers and Fodors web sites and read all about Alaska and print off pages of those areas that were of interest. Then I would go over to the nearest book store such as a Borders or Barnes and Noble and flip through the books on the shelves under Alaska to see what if any books spark an interest where I feel that the book would supplement the information that I got on line. But, I would start on line.

 

Keith

[1950harriet]

I just found a book called Inside Passage Activity Guide by Nancy Thalia Reynolds which I think is the best of all the ones listed. It has lots of activities to do in each port, restaurants, shopping, etc. and at the end of each chapter it lists all the outfitters and tour operators with phone numbers and websites. It also has the history and map of each town.

[Gingee]

Thanks for the information. I just ordered Alaska by Cruise from Anne also. Not sure what edition it is though.

[JohnQ]

Frpmmers Alaska is very good. Their port book is not as widespread or helpful and has different authors. I have had both.

[brunolvr]

Why not check out your local library to see if they have any of the Alaska cruise books you might be interested in? It won't cost you a thing to read them, and if you find one you particularly like, then you can buy it.

[cruisinlady]

Thanx to everyone for your experiences with books on Alaska. As usual, CC always comes thru.