Rating: 
Summary: Packed with Great Info
Review: The author says it all with the quote, "Too many vacations consist of lying down, dressing up, and paying someone else a lot of money." As anyone who has traveled for months or years on end will tell you, traveling can be downright cheap (and quite fulfilling and eye-opening) if you do it right. This book will tell you how to do it right, from choosing destinations to preparations, to packing. He even completes the circle with a section on the process of returning home. Some may find this book overkill; if you're the type who thinks uncertainty is half the adventure, pick up Vagabonding instead. But if you like to have your bases covered before departing, this will answer hundreds of questions--even the ones you hadn't thought to ask!
- Tim Leffel, author, The World's Cheapest Destinations: 21 Countries Where Your Dollars are Worth a Fortune
Rating:
Summary: Packed with wisdom and an extremely great value
Review: The Traveler's Tool Kit by Rob Sangster is an all-encompassing volume of how-to travel knowledge from a reliable source. The author has traveled extensively all over the world for many years and also for very extended periods per trip. The first half of the book is split between two sections, Part One: Planning Your Trip and Part Two: Getting Ready. The remaining half of the book focuses on actual "On the road" wisdom.
While the early chapters cover topics like "choosing a guidebook" and "choosing luggage" are very long-winded, especially for those with even the most basic travel experience, they are perfect for scared-stiff first-time travelers. Those not scared stiff and sweating with travel fever certainly will after reading Chapter 8, Keeping Healthy, as the author covers all the various fungal infections and parasites that you may join you during your adventure. Even though the author is very verbose, all of the text is filled with travel gems of knowledge like this one from the scary Keeping Healthy chapter:
"If your feet will be constantly wet, as they might be during an extended trek in Amazonia, coat them with Vaseline to ward off jungle rot. Sounds messy but it works."
There are more "uplifting" gems as well, like this one from "Traveling By Bus":
"Some trips combine spectacular scenery with luxury. The air-conditioned Scania superbus that cruises 1,200 miles from Santiago to Arica, Chile, has a bar, a bathroom, three movie screens, and a smiling hostess. As the sleek bus hums across the moonscape of the Atacama Desert, you spy huge boulders balanced on barren mountainsides... As heat waves shimmer outside the window, cool air breezes across your face and the hostess set an ice-cold beer at your elbow. At night, your seat reclines to nearly horizontal, a leg rest pops out, and you're in bed. All that for about $40."
Other travel gems provide advice for avoiding travel rip-offs and scams. The Traveler's Took Kit is an EXTREMLEY great value packed with sage travel advice.
Rating:
Summary: Traveler's Tool Kit
Review: Traveler's Tool Kit is engaging, informative, and easy to read. The book provides the reader with relevant travel information on a multitude of topics. Much more than a "how to" book about travel, this book is also a delightful personal account to read! When I first purchased the book, my goal was to change travel habits through Mr. Sangster's impressive suggestions regarding planning trips more effectively and efficiently using his checklists and recommendations. I also hoped to discover information about traveling alone to countries that I have not yet visited. The book is much more than I expected! In addition to the wealth of information, recommendations, and contacts, I found myself engaged in his stories to the point of laughing aloud as I read. Whether you have traveled before or intend to travel in the future, this book is a "must read" for anyone exploring the world.
Rating:
Summary: Traveler's Tool Kit
Review: Traveler's Tool Kit is engaging, informative, and easy to read. The book provides the reader with relevant travel information on a multitude of topics. Much more than a "how to" book about travel, this book is also a delightful personal account to read! When I first purchased the book, my goal was to change travel habits through Mr. Sangster's impressive suggestions regarding planning trips more effectively and efficiently using his checklists and recommendations. I also hoped to discover information about traveling alone to countries that I have not yet visited. The book is much more than I expected! In addition to the wealth of information, recommendations, and contacts, I found myself engaged in his stories to the point of laughing aloud as I read. Whether you have traveled before or intend to travel in the future, this book is a "must read" for anyone exploring the world.
Rating:
Summary: The Wonderful World of Travel
Review: Until 1998, I had only dreamed of foreign travel. Then one day, thinking about a trip to Southeast Asia, I skimmed through stacks of travel books in the nook of a quiet bookstore. There I came upon Traveler's Tool Kit which instantly propelled me into the wonderful world of travel. The wealth of information in Rob Sangster's book gave me the confidence to travel to Malaysia, Thailand, Sri Lanka and India for three weeks. Traveler's Tool Kit (I think of it as "TTK") showed me what to expect overall and enabled me to be open to customs and behaviors different from my own. Most important to me, however, was the "voice" of TTK; a voice I carried with me throughout that first trip. Sangster fully appreciates the needs of the novice traveler. He identifies common apprehensions, validates them, and then alleviates them. Although TTK it is a relatively thick book, I toted it with me throughout my journey. Each evening, following a long day of exploration, I would soothe myself by "listening" to Sangster's voice again. Rereading sections of TTK I had highlighted helped me fully absorb what I had experienced and prepared me for the next day's outing. I felt as if I were exchanging anecdotes with Sangster. Traveler's Tool Kit helped me get in touch with my real reasons for traveling and enhanced my capacity to build terrific memories.
Rating:
Summary: The Wonderful World of Travel
Review: Until 1998, I had only dreamed of foreign travel. Then one day, thinking about a trip to Southeast Asia, I skimmed through stacks of travel books in the nook of a quiet bookstore. There I came upon Traveler's Tool Kit which instantly propelled me into the wonderful world of travel. The wealth of information in Rob Sangster's book gave me the confidence to travel to Malaysia, Thailand, Sri Lanka and India for three weeks. Traveler's Tool Kit (I think of it as "TTK") showed me what to expect overall and enabled me to be open to customs and behaviors different from my own. Most important to me, however, was the "voice" of TTK; a voice I carried with me throughout that first trip. Sangster fully appreciates the needs of the novice traveler. He identifies common apprehensions, validates them, and then alleviates them. Although TTK it is a relatively thick book, I toted it with me throughout my journey. Each evening, following a long day of exploration, I would soothe myself by "listening" to Sangster's voice again. Rereading sections of TTK I had highlighted helped me fully absorb what I had experienced and prepared me for the next day's outing. I felt as if I were exchanging anecdotes with Sangster. Traveler's Tool Kit helped me get in touch with my real reasons for traveling and enhanced my capacity to build terrific memories.
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