Russia, Belarus & Ukraine (Insight Guides)

Book is OK. Nothing that exciting. I prefer the Lonely Planet or Bradt Guides. Some INSIGHT GUIDES A are interesting like the one for Pakistan and the one for India but this one is boring.

This book gives ou a nice overview of the region, and incredible specific tips for visiting Russia.

As usual for the Insight series, this book provides a great deal of practical information on the history, cultures, life, and tourism, especially for the visitor to the great cities of the Russian Federation, along many spectacular photographs. However, I thought the chapter on Lake Baikal was disproportionately long at the expense of other parts of rural Russia. Perhaps the book's greatest deficiency is the skimpy treatment of Ukraine (and Belarus, for that matter), which should now appear in their own full guides. Less than 60 pages of photos and text just doesn't cut it for these two countries combined. A charming photograph of a bunch of Ukrainian schoolkids posing for the camera more or less seems to ask the reader, "What about us?" Simply put, they should have an Insight Guide book of their own next time around.

Insight Guide Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine covers a goegraphically vast expanse of the three countries. It offers a comprehensive history of the regions, and an overview guide to slavic and eurasian culture; including music, art, theater, literature, and food. The large section dedicated to cities and towns of the three countries is excellent for a tourist who wants a brief overview of the architectural and cultural highlights of each location. The street, country, and metro maps are excellent. The small list of lodging and restaurants in each city is adequate, but not spectacular, and most listings are on the pricey side. This book did have one deficiency; while it listed the locations of each city and landmark on maps, the writers did provided limited insight as to how to reach these locations from a central point such as the larger cities in each region. There is no mention of specific bus or train routes connecting the cities, and little information about reaching outlying monasteries and resorts, other than a goegraphical direction. I recommend this book as an aid to a tourist on a an organized trip of Russia. It is also an excellent source for the independent traveller who speaks Russian well enough to arrange their own travel between cities by inquiring at train stations or tourist centers. Other useful tools are the language guide, tips on local customs, and the communication information pages, which offer telephone, mail, internet, and wiring information.