Xa1 Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 (edited) I heard this from a reliable hotel owner in Chiang Mai. LP wanted 100 USD to list the guest house in their next edition. I add this to my own experience that the 2014 edition was still using 2009 price info about Phnom Penh. Edited November 17, 2014 by Xa1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yermanee Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 No real surprise there Yermanee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angsta Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 Really? I find this difficult to believe. Joe Cumnings would be turning in his grave...if he were dead of course. As for the 'my guidebook isn't 100% accurate' argument. It's a guide and the clue is in the name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Razzler1973 Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 The out of date prices isn't a surprise, I think it's easier sometimes to go with the info you have rather than trounce around looking at each and every place Better to say 'such and such looked nice but more expensive' rather than go in and check. I haven't seen one of their books for years and years now though. One aspect that was very useful were their maps of each town They'd write something nice about a small restaurant and you'd walk past and it'd be full of foreigners all eating in there. I always wondered about them getting money Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Razzler1973 Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 Really? I find this difficult to believe. Joe Cumnings would be turning in his grave...if he were dead of course. As for the 'my guidebook isn't 100% accurate' argument. It's a guide and the clue is in the name. Haha, Joe Cummings, that's the guy. He's like the 'traveller' god of thailand I remember some old books with insets saying 'hey, don't give the hill tribe people t-shirts, it's ruining the culture, etc etc' ... yeah, alright, Joe, I'll save Thailand mate. Not sure if you noticed but the markets even in small towns are full of Man United shirts and all sorts It was all part of this 'let's keep it the way it is' mentality, i.e. cheap. These backpackers wanted to go to some deserted paradise but they also wanted to be able to catch the bus from Khao San Road! They want to drink in a cheap bar near the sea but if that bar made money they didn't want it expanding so they could make more money .. no, stay poor, so when I come for a couple of weeks it's exactly how I want!! *tsk* 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phuketrichard Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 I love lonely planets an trip advisor, i can read up on where NOT to go to avoid the backpackers and trendy people Raz, you forgot they ONLY go places that have wifi so they can post that they are there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dddave Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 (edited) The out of date prices isn't a surprise, I think it's easier sometimes to go with the info you have rather than trounce around looking at each and every place Better to say 'such and such looked nice but more expensive' rather than go in and check. I haven't seen one of their books for years and years now though. One aspect that was very useful were their maps of each town They'd write something nice about a small restaurant and you'd walk past and it'd be full of foreigners all eating in there. I always wondered about them getting money Fast operators would always try to get advance notice of which restaurants and accommodations were about to be well reviewed in an oncoming issue and either buy them out or get control somehow and then milk the hoard of tourists who would follow. Now, with the plethora of websites providing up to date info, not so widespread. I don't think LP charges for listings per se, but do charge for listing enhancement such as bolder type or maybe even page placement. Considering publishing layout, printing and distribution lead time, most guidebooks are two years out of date the day they hit the shelves. Edited November 17, 2014 by dddave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surangw Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 sounds like a scam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kudel Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 100 usd to get a listing?LP works with regional managers en they do not sleep in cheap hotels in khoa san but in rather five star luxery resorts and they rely heavely on feedback from travelers,so i call bs on youre friend from Chiang Mai. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul888 Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 You complain about a listing fee and then in the next sentence complain that their data is out of date. Have a think for a while about how those two things could be related. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keestha Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 I am a hotel owner and I would pay Lonely Planet US $100 to be listed. But in their books it is very clearly stated that listings are not for sale. People researching for Lonely Planet by the way are paid barely enough to finance their traveling. A few years back there was a scandal about a writer researching a South American country, and later they found out he didn't go there at all. OP, did your hotel owner friend verify that this person really worked for LP? Anyway he should report this matter to LP. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChaangNoi Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 I know someone who did bribe a LP guy to get a very good listing that was clearly full of lies in order to help sell the business. The bar owner in this case offered up the money, not LP demanded it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pomchop Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 http://www.amazon.com/Travel-Writers-Hell-Swashbuckling-Questionable/dp/0307394654 written by an ex lonely planet writer....tells the story of the low paid writer who finally figures out the "perks" and shortcuts to get it done... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harrry Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 LP never used to charge. Sometimes hotels would upgrade you and forget the bill for known reviewers when you left or restauraunts not charge you but no fees. Problem with LP is that when the place went in the review was ok. A year later more people come so they think they are good and up the charges and drop the food quality as they must be too cheap as they are getting lots of people. Places rarely come out so in many cases if the place had been in for a while it was a sign that it may be a good one to stay away from. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChaangNoi Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 I just bought a book Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roamer Posted November 20, 2014 Share Posted November 20, 2014 Chiang Mai hotels and guest houses were regularly targeted by scammer's years ago in this manner. Looks like it's the same story again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NightRider70 Posted November 21, 2014 Share Posted November 21, 2014 I am a hotel owner and I would pay Lonely Planet US $100 to be listed. Add your place to openstreetmap.org, costs nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keestha Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 I am a hotel owner and I would pay Lonely Planet US $100 to be listed. Add your place to openstreetmap.org, costs nothing. Sure, and tx for the link. But even now, a listing in a popular guide book still brings far more customers than any online listing. My place is listed in a very popular guide book in German, it brings a steady stream of customers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MobileContent Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 (edited) I am a hotel owner and I would pay Lonely Planet US $100 to be listed. But in their books it is very clearly stated that listings are not for sale. People researching for Lonely Planet by the way are paid barely enough to finance their traveling. A few years back there was a scandal about a writer researching a South American country, and later they found out he didn't go there at all. OP, did your hotel owner friend verify that this person really worked for LP? Anyway he should report this matter to LP. LP has lost a lot of money over the past few years. LP is plainly a commercial business in Thailand and they give awards out and certainly not for free: https://www.facebook.com/LonelyPlanetThailand?pnref=story BTW I know the founder of LP: Tony Wheeler and he is happy he washed his hands on LP dumping it off to BBC who sold it off to an American group Edited November 22, 2014 by MobileContent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Christmas13 Posted November 22, 2014 Share Posted November 22, 2014 I am a hotel owner and I would pay Lonely Planet US $100 to be listed. Add your place to openstreetmap.org, costs nothing. Sure, and tx for the link. But even now, a listing in a popular guide book still brings far more customers than any online listing. My place is listed in a very popular guide book in German, it brings a steady stream of customers. But only German ones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuurman Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 I think the Lonely Planet guides have been replaced by the Tripadvisor app on phone or tablet. The Wheelers missed that boat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NanLaew Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 (edited) I think Lonely Planet, Tripadvisor and things of that ilk are being rapidly bypassed by the young, tech-savvy millennials that harvest information and advice from a much broader source than a company that still prints books, hosts dated and irrelevant reviews and the newer ones that buy up any travel-related website just to add to their stable and look more worldly. Younger people these days people use social media, blogs and even some pretty nifty smartphone applications for real-time information from fellow travelers. A couple of backpackers on Khaosan have a sudden urge to go see pagodas in Burma use Facebook and blogs to get fast, accurate and even 'live' advice.They don't browse digital pages on old fashioned travel guides looking for someone else's irrelevant experience or something that fits. Edited November 24, 2014 by NanLaew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokie36 Posted November 24, 2014 Share Posted November 24, 2014 Nan Laew is on the button. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keestha Posted November 25, 2014 Share Posted November 25, 2014 True there are young travelers (generation X?) who have never heard of lonely planet, getting all their info online. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piggsy Posted November 28, 2014 Share Posted November 28, 2014 Book .....er what's that??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
h90 Posted November 28, 2014 Share Posted November 28, 2014 I am a hotel owner and I would pay Lonely Planet US $100 to be listed. But in their books it is very clearly stated that listings are not for sale. People researching for Lonely Planet by the way are paid barely enough to finance their traveling. A few years back there was a scandal about a writer researching a South American country, and later they found out he didn't go there at all. OP, did your hotel owner friend verify that this person really worked for LP? Anyway he should report this matter to LP. I know from another popular travel book that they collect every year a fee from at least some resorts. Friend of mine was scuba dive instructor at the resort and knew both the hotel owner and the book writer and was there when the exchange of money happened. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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