The oldest one I have is a Rough Guide to Europe, which is around 10 years old.
Reply to this I recently read a book called 'On the Shores of the Mediterranean' by Eric Newby. He drags his wife round the med in the early 1980's and seems to only have old guidebooks - form the war, or even before! He keeps coimg up to places that have dissappeared or is searching for old hotels and roads.
He doesn't seem to think about getting up-date ones, so it makes me think that the guide books weren't as big then as they are now.
Reply to this I also have a guide book from the turn of the century for the Malaysia (think its called the Straits Settlements at the time) area, describing life for people posted there for work or visiting their partners or relatives.
It describes places to go, how to get around and what people do there - locals and westeners.
I'll dig it out....
Reply to this I still have fliers from the Black Hills of SD from when I was in Junior High - that would have been about 1976.
Reply to this Under my bed is a bin where I keep all my travel books, maps, even my Atlas. I kept them all! Some are over 20 years old.
Reply to this have you ever re-visited places with the old guide books? Have they changed? Ever found a place that wasn't in the guide book?
Reply to this I revisit a lot of places in Europe with my 10 year old guide book. Of course prices have changed and a restaurant or hotel may have changed or not exist anymore, but castles, ancient ruins, mountains, rivers, beaches.... were all exactly where the guide book promised they would be.
Yeah, I go to places that are not in the guidebook. That can be as easy as wandering down any side street in a city or hanging out with somebody who lives in a particular place(then I see how they live and socialise day to day, and sometimes see what their house, family and friends are like and they also tend to not always go to the same bars etc as the tourists frequent).
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