I have enjoyed this book and have used it on several trips to the Yucatan, but I must agree about the shortcomings mentioned by other reviewers. I consider the book a classic--at the time it was written, it provided much needed and hard-to-find information--which today is much more readily available in guidebooks. I find the book most useful in trip planning--especially in highlighting interesting, lesser-known sites to visit. (Also, do not overlook the excellent inexpensive pamphlets on various sites sold... more info
a good read:
I think the book is wonderful. Having written that, what the other readers said of its failings are true, and it should not be taken literally when planning a trip. To show an example, a friend of mine did not realize that there is now a paved road to Calakmul and did not go there.
The book also failed to mention that there was a hotel at the time of publication, the Mirador Maya. Now there is another, the Calakmul. Both are basic, but the area is not the wasteland one would expect from guide books.
Not quite as good as the reviews suggest:
This is a worthy and thoroughly researched book, but it has a number of weaknesses as a practical field guide. It is too large to fit in a pocket, making it inconvenient to carry when stumbling about in the humid mosquito-ridden Mayan jungle. The maps are not particularly good, and the text tends to offer little more than a description of what one can see with one's own eyes. What is needed is more explanation and less exposition, if one is to understand the significance of Mayan carvings and architecture.... more info
Needs updating; somewhat incomplete.:
Having spent the better part of a month touring archeological sites in the Yucatan this summer (1998) attempting to use this book as a guide, it became apparent that the book covers very little of the southeast Yucatan penninsula (which should include Belize, but doesn't) and the recently opened ruins at Dzibanche and Kinichna (1996). These are some important areas well worth a look, but are not covered. Also Mayapan differed significantly from the description in the book owing to some fairly recent work... more info
