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Summary: One word that best fits this book is exhaustive.
Review: About the best desciption for this 900+ page guidebook is exhaustive. I felt exhausted after going through all 900+ pages. And I am sure David Stanley was exhausted after visiting all these remote islands and compiling all this information. Being something of a seasoned island-hopper myself, I can appreciate the nature of what he has achieved with this book. Stanley has covered the vast South Pacific about as well as it could be covered. His coverage is candid, comprehensive and detailed. There probably aren't too many things that he's left out. The contents and arrangement of subjects make for a very usable book with tons of information on most any question a traveler would have about the South Pacific islands. The Introduction background material is both informative and essential for the first-time South Pacific traveler. The On the Road section provides important detail on getting there and getting around within the islands. Each island nation has its own section divided by main islands and/or groups. Each island section then has detail on the nuts and bolts of accommodations, food, transportation services, activities, tours, entertainment, events, etc. all the things a traveler needs to know. This pattern is followed for each island country and provides a perceptive and insightful view of each area. First-time South Pacific travelers will appreciate this book for its simple completeness. It has about everything one needs to know about this fascinating world of islands. Experienced island hoppers will also appreciate the fact that Stanley covers so much in so much depth. It is a credit to his resilience and work ethic as a writer and reporter. The last section of the book is Resources. This section has an extensive bibliography of South Pacific travel-related information plus a lengthy list of Internet resources. Like his companion guidebooks on Tahiti, Fiji and Tonga-Samoa, Stanley brings a sense of candid observation and perception to his task. This allows him to produce a book that is valuable and very user-friendly. If you're looking for a book that covers all the South Pacific islands in all its colorful diversity, look no further. This book will serve you well for either real island trekking and island-hopping or just serious arm-chair travel.
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Summary: An Excellent Guide
Review: Brilliant. Over the last couple of years I have become a huge fan of David Stanley guides to the South Pacific. His books have been travelling companions to Fiji and the Cook Islands and this latest edition is informative, entertaining, affectionate and honest. David has an uncanny eye for detail as well as doing 'the hard yards' for in-depth research. I lived in Vanuatu for several years and I even found that section enlightening. I plan to travel to Samoa shortly and know that I will enjoy the in-flight reading because, on my essentials to pack list, the Moon Handbook South Pacific is up there with 'toothbrush' and 'sunscreen'.
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Summary: It Can't Get Any Better
Review: Everything you need to know about travelling around the South Pacific is in the 8th edition of the Moon guide to the South Pacific, yet another informative and comprehensive guidebook from the number one South Pacific expert. This edition covers all the islands of your dreams, from well-known holiday destinations such as French Polynesia to lesser-known places such as Pitcairn Island and Niue. It is full of thoroughly researched and practical information on travelling to and around the Pacific, covers everything from where to stay to where to eat, from background history to contemporary culture and traditions, and is a delight to read regardless of whether you are planning a trip to the South Pacific or not. It is the definitive guide for everyone, from the luxury traveller to the backpacker to the adventurer to the armchair dreamer.Even though I travel often to the South Pacific, I can always rely on David Stanley's guidebooks to introduce me to some new area of interest, a different place to hang out, or an idea for an activity or excursion I hadn't previously thought about. It gives a whole new meaning to "don't leave home without it."
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Summary: Excellent info on the Cook Islands
Review: Hi--- I live on Rarotonga, in the Cook Islands. I think David Stanley's chapter on the Cooks is excellent. If you are planning to visit here, I suggest you get his guidebook.
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Summary: Excellent Publiction!
Review: I am a Professor of Anthropology at California State University, Chico (using my wife's AMAZON account to submit this review). David Stanley has written another definitive masterpiece on the Pacific! We were in Tahiti last month (for 24 days) and used his TAHITI (& COOK ISLANDS) HANDBOOK extensively: it was current and as up-to-date as one could get in a published item.
I have used a previous version of the SOUTH PACIFIC HANDBOOK as a required text for an anthropology class at my university and it was well-received by the students. While this latest handbook is LARGER than your average paperback it is well-worth the extra weight to carry with you as you go through the South Pacific: with information on anthropology, biology, culture and history, as well as Internet access and a host of other valuable information for the intelligent traveller, the latest Stanley publication is in keeping with his other works: an excellent publication!
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Summary: recommended
Review: I sailed the South Pacific in '99. Stanley gets a little deeper into the heart of the islands than the L.P. books, and he's not so timid when dealing with the grittier issues. Always compared the two, and always thought he was a step up.
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Summary: Moon Publications "South Pacific"
Review: I used this book recently in my travels to the South Pacific. Although alot of the prices are outdated(which is difficult to keep up with as travel books are concerned , 4 stars insted of 5)it still makes an excellent REFERENCE. I recommend this travel book over the Lonely Planet version.
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Summary: South Pacific Handbook
Review: In the late 1970s, on my first trip to the South Pacific, someone showed me a copy of an early edition of the South Pacific Handbook. I fell in love with it and have purchased every edition since. This is not just a travel book: it is an adventure in itself. It's a challenge to find adequate words to describe this book. It seems to me to be a scholarly or encyclopedic work because of its depth and scope, but the information is so well organized and clearly presented that everything falls comfortably in place. You can quickly find what you want to know. I am writing this comment with the 7th edition of the South Pacific Handbook next to me. The first part of the book, through page 123, provides an extensive background to the South Pacific. Subjects covered include the formation of coral reefs, flora and fauna, the history of discovery, exploration, settlement, colonization by Europe and The Pacific today, government, economy, the people of the South Pacific, conduct and customs, health, food and drink, and much, much more. David Stanley (the author) devotes the next 800 pages to the islands of Tahiti-Polynesia, the Pitcairn Islands, Easter Island, the Cook Islands, Niue, the Kingdom of Tonga, American Samoa, Samoa, Tokelau, Wallis and Futuna, Tuvalu, Melanesia (Fiji), New Caledonia, Vanuatu, and the Solomon Islands. Reading these pages, you will feel as though you are there. I don't think anything has been left out. At the end of the book, under the general heading of Resources, is a list of all the information offices (including web sites and e-mail addresses) for all the island groups discussed in the book. There is an extensive Bibliography, including guidebooks, geography, natural science, history, Pacific issues, social science, literature, the arts, reference books, booksellers and publishers, map publishers, and periodicals. A Discography section listing noncommercial recordings of Pacific music follows. A section on the South Pacific on the internet - websites and e-mail addresses for everything you can imagine - is next. Finally, there is a Glossary section and an extensive Index. In the 1980s, I went to Aitutaki (an atoll in the Cook Islands) after reading a seven-sentence description in the first edition of the South Pacific Handbook. Aitutaki was exactly as Mr.Stanley describes it and I owe my exciting experience there to him. The next time you are in a bookstore, I suggest that you at least browse through this book. If you buy it, you might try reading it in bed at night. If you're like me, you may start to dream about Bora Bora (French Polynesia), Aitutaki, or some other jewel in the South Pacific. Steve Schlein
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Summary: The traveler?s encyclopaedia to the South Pacific
Review: It was this book that triggered my Pacific Island madness. I got it to read more about Fiji, but I ended up with a fascination for the entire region. I should never have opened this eighth edition of South Pacific Handbook. Immediately my head was filled again with plans for my next trip: French Polynesia maybe, back to Fiji? That Oceania is a fascinating part of the world might be obvious to many, but you need a good writer to bring this message across in a down-to-earth and readable manner - David Stanley did it. In South Pacific Handbook you get the ups and downs of "paradise". While reading you notice the diversity of the islands and sense the adventure you can have. It would cost you years to visit all the places included in this book. Not only the main islands, but also those without tourist facilities are described. There are excellent chapters on history (including recent developments), people, environment and more. All this, combined with good maps and many resources, makes South Pacific Handbook a fine piece of reference. From the practical chapters, you will understand that the Pacific can be affordable. I carried earlier editions on my two backpacking trips to the islands. Stanley gives helpful advise on arriving at strange airports and harbours, about staying with local people and he names cheap hostels (often with critical commentary). When my family came over to Fiji for two weeks, we were able to find good middle class accommodation thanks to South Pacific Handbook. For those who can afford it, even thousand-dollar-a-night resorts are described. David Stanley has more than 25 years of experience travelling in, and writing about these islands. For every new edition he makes new research trips. He tries to check tourist facilities anonymously to experience places as any other traveller would. Despite Stanley's hard work, you cannot expect everything to be correct - things change. If anything is wrong or missing from his guide, you can write Stanley and he will seriously look at your comments. I recommend South Pacific Handbook above other Pacific Island guidebooks, including the Lonely Planet. In South Pacific Handbook you get the most useful background and travel information, all from Stanley's years of experience and presented in a readable manner. With this guide it is also easier to avoid the backpacking hordes, if you wish. For those who are only going to Fiji, French Polynesia or the Cook Islands, I recommend Stanley's Fiji Handbook or Tahiti & Cooks Handbook. These guides are more detailed with more maps. Although I doubt you will be much safer from catching the Pacific Island madness.
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Summary: The original travel guide to the South Pacific islands.
Review: Since July 1979 the South Pacific Handbook has gone through seven editions, incorporating the experience of numerous visits. During the first 20 years of its life my book was the only standard guide to Pitcairn, Niue, Wallis and Futuna, Tokelau, and Tuvalu, hidden areas only now being "discovered" by other publishers. South Pacific Handbook offers comprehensive coverage of everything from Easter Island to the Solomons, with major chapters on Tahiti, Cook Islands, Tonga, the Samoas, Fiji, New Caledonia, and Vanuatu - fifteen countries and territories in one portable volume. It's a practical travel guide which describes the whole range of accommodations options from beachside campgrounds to smart designer resorts. Getting around by bus and boat is examined in depth, and information abounds on sporting activities such as scuba diving, kayaking, sailing, hiking, and riding. No freebies or favors were involved in the research, thus ensuring consistent, independent reporting. South Pacific Handbook also serves as a primary reference work with 129 two-color maps and 28 charts. This edition we've added hundreds of e-mail and website addresses, allowing readers instant electronic access to the South Seas. I hope you find my book a valuable tool.
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