Rating: 
Summary: Recommended!
Review: (Planeta.com Journal) - This fifth edition provides readers essential information for planning your trip to Puerto Rico. The book covers archaeological cites, the island's history as well as birdwatching and golf. The coverage of environmental issues is first-rate and it is Planeta.com's top choice of a Puerto Rico country guide.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent travel guide
Review: A reader Explore Puerto Rico is a typically excellent travel guide of the Caribbean area by this author, who has won an award for his travel writing. As usual, he emphasizes the environmental aspects of the subject region. It is filled with neat factoids of where to get things and what to see. The author crams an incredible amount of useful information into his guides, and this is no exception. We rated it four hearts. -- Heartland Reviews
Rating: 
Summary: Big Disappointment
Review: Having used 3 guides on our most recent trip to Puerto Rico, Mr.Pariser's is weak in many aspects. Many of his phone numbers are wrong or have a digit missing. You can guess at which places he writes about and probably never saw in person. A lot of his writing needs proofreading as it looks sloppy and unedited. He doesn't describe restaurants in very helpful ways and seems pretty clueless understanding the culture. In fact, he didn't seem to care very much about what underlies today's Puerto Rico- the history, politics, cultural traditions. This book seems more like a journalistic assignment and less like a meaningful undertaking for the author. Pariser brings no passion to the subject.
Rating: 
Summary: Not accurately updated, not complete
Review: I agree with the previous reviewer. There is a lot of inaccurate information (phone numbers, prices) and there is much that is not included, as compared with other guides. It does seem that the author has "heard" about, rather than experienced first hand, some of the things he includes. For the independent, budget traveller, I would not recommend this book. I just returned from Puerto Rico and used Lonely planet and Let's go PR. Let's go was the best one of the bunch! LP was next best. If you have to choose one, Let's Go would be it. On the other hand, if $$ is not the primary concern, Explore Puerto Rico does include more complete and interesting historical review and details of the environment and makes for a good read for a day at the beach.
Rating: 
Summary: Living the vida musica
Review: I am Puerto Rican and visit the island as often as I can. Besides seeing family, my favorite thing to do is catch live music. I noticed in this guide by Mr.Pariser that he says bomba is an obscure music that only lower class Puerto Ricans listen to. I like bomba, and I know that bomba, which is African-influenced, is pretty popular these days and getting more serious attention because Puerto Ricans are learning their history and are proud of their roots. A lot of jazz musicians are now using bomba in their work. Hopefully it won't require Ricky Martin to bring it to the attention of a so-called expert on the island like Mr.Pariser.
Rating:
Summary: Pariser has a winner
Review: I had the opportunity to acquire Harry Pariser's 5th edition to his guidebook, Explore Puerto Rico, recently.This book is a remarkable piece of assistance to any visitor to Puerto Rico. The single most important fact is his attention to detail. He has packed this volume with more useful information than any other similar book - and it is good helpful information to assist the new or veteran travel to Puerto Rico. I have a friend who was at one time in his life was the station manager for the South Pole Station in Antarctica. One of his views of life is that you cannot have too many maps. So what does this have to do with Pariser's guidebook to Puerto Rico? Mr. Pariser's maps are without question the clearest most accurate contained in any guidebook. Sometimes it is a challenge to correctly navigate the back roads of the island. The maps in the Pariser book will clearly be of assistance in this endeavor. In additions to his maps, Pariser has a superior guide and evaluation to the many beaches of Puerto Rico. The desirability of a given beach is in the eye of the beholder and varies with what one wants. Mr. Pariser gives you the information you need to start your search for your perfect Puerto Rican Beach. For example, he discussed the handicapped access to the ocean at Luquillo; other guidebooks seem to overlook this information that is essential to those with disabilities. Mr. Pariser also discusses what you can do to make you beach visit a little more "friendly" for the sea turtles that lay their eggs on the same beach at night. It is truly a pity that other guidebooks don't demonstrate a similar concern for those with whom we share the beach. The book also contains really first rate discussions of culture, history, environmental concerns, restaurants and hotels. (I do think he was a little too hard on Coors beer thought - read his book to find out why; but remember this is a guidebook to Puerto Rico, not beers of the world. I drink Medallia beer when I am in Puerto Rico; and recommend it over both Coors and Bud!) If I had my choice at the moment, I would be on one of Harry's beaches reading his book to find tomorrow's beach. If you are in the market for a guidebook to Puerto Rico, I heartily recommend you get Harry Pariser's Explore Puerto Rico.
Rating:
Summary: Refreshing, Helpful, and Comprehensive
Review: I used this book on a recent trip to Puerto Rico along with the Lonely Planet guide. Explore Puerto Rico was more comprehensive and up to date. I found museums, beaches, snorkeling spots, rock art, restaurants and out of the way hotels that I otherwise would not have found. I compared the two books thoroughly, as I was both in the interior mountainous regions, as well as the beaches. The detailed maps are extremely helpful, as are the tips and charts, and Harry's photography is again: incomparable (I own his other books, as well) He often digs down and gives a lot more information about the culture, and background which I always find refreshing, and his sense of humor is low key. I recommend this book, and his others, as well. Great revised edition!
Rating:
Summary: Pariser's Puerto Rico Excellent Guide
Review: My husband and I recently returned from a trip to Puerto Rico. We used three other books, but we thought that this was the best. We found the information (including the phone numbers) to be accurate. We found a few good restaurants with the help of this guide, though we didn't find Puerto Rico to be a culinary paradise by any means. However, we enjoyed the local ice cream place we found in Lares and the Hare Krishna vegetarian restaurant in Old San Juan, both of which and local places which we would have missed if we had not had this book. Also, the inclusion of so many websites and emails, which helped us determine our itinerary prior to our trip, was a big help. (the publisher has helpful information on its website). We particulary enjoyed reading about the rainforest, the tropical dry forest, and other ecological topics. The background information seemed fair and balanced and helped us understand the history of Puerto Rico. If you really want to travel around and explore the island, this is a sound choice.
Rating:
Summary: Complete with hundreds of Puerto Rico oriented websites
Review: Now in a fully updated and revised fifth edition, Harry Pariser's Explore Puerto Rico covers all of the geographic areas of this island nation in 360 information-paced pages which are enhanced with 29 maps, hundreds of sidebars, tips, and charts, as well as 30 color and 60 black-and-white photographs. All types of accommodations (including campgrounds) are identified, along with information on horseback riding, bridwatching, hiking, diving, surfing, snorkeling, and more. Complete and accurate information is provided on Puerto Rico's history, culture, hotels, and resorts. The traveler is also provided with transportation details on car rentals, buses, plane travel, and ferries. Complete with hundreds of Puerto Rico oriented websites, email addresses, phone and fax numbers, Explore Puerto Rico is the complete and indispensable guide for planning (and getting the most out of) any Puerto Rican vacation or business trip.
Rating:
Summary: Mixed feelings about "Explore Puerto Rico"
Review: This book helped us find lots of great things to do and places to stay in Puerto Rico, and gave us a good overall plan of action for our vacation. However, the writing and editing nearly drove us crazy because of all the errors. Not just the typographical errors and poor grammar in parts (my husband and I both take these things pretty seriously), but the vague and misleadingly simplistic directions through Fajardo to the Hotel Delicias got us lost in a rough part of town at night; the name and descriptions of the Holiday Inn-Ponce and the Howard Johnson near Ponce were mixed up....we called the Holiday Inn to reserve a room, but due to the errors in the book, drove to the wrong side of town to the HoJo. There were wrong phone numbers (and missing digits) for some places, and some of his maps were just plain wrong. As long as you're in full "adventure mode" and willing to be flexible in all respects, this book will be just fine. Just bear in mind that any details (schedules/phone numbers/directions/descriptions) may or may not be accurate. (In all fairness, we did not check the author's website, as listed in the book, to look for updates/corrections prior to our trip....some of these errors may be addressed there.)
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