Frommer's Cancun and the Yucatan Day by Day (Frommer's Day by Day - Pocket) [Paperback]

Not all guide books can be all things to all people. This slim (184 pages), well thought out volume, concentrates on being really useful without weighing the traveler down. The cover promises "22 Smart Ways to See the Region" and it delivers most of the 22.

If this is your first trip to the Yucatan and you are an archaeology/history/sociology buff you need to read up on the Maya before you travel. A good place to start is The Ancient Maya, 6th Edition and/or The Maya (Eighth Edition) (Ancient Peoples and Places).

Some guide books have fairly decent but short descriptions of Mayan culture and sites that at least provide better information than what you are going to get from your average tour guide at the site. Unlike the thick, standard guide, this particular guide by Frommer provides only outlines and brief descriptions because that is what it sets out to do. It tells you what's important and how to get there and what to do along the way.

The Yucatan is not just archaeology sites. It has amazing beaches and reefs and underground lake-filled caves, jungles and ecotourism sites. There is something to interest almost everybody. I was traveling with a fairly diverse and opinionated small group who had all visited the Yucatan before. One liked beaches, another scuba, another eco-sites. We all used this guide and were easily able to strategize what we were going to do each day without getting bogged down in confusing details and we never got lost. The Yucatan is broken down into three day, one and two week car tours to pick and choose from. All sensible and manageable and worthwhile.

This guide has excellent maps. Additionally, there is a fold out map on the front cover and a removable larger map in a plastic pocket at the back.

Nothing appears to be left out. There are chapters on ecotourism, underwater and extreme sports, traveling with families, golf, spas, pre-Colombian sites and culture, regional touring, cities and towns and where to stay and dine in each area. The dining suggestions were good to excellent. Nothing too touristy nor too dangerously "native" either.

My favorite part of this guide is that it starts with "16 Favorite Moments", a list of the the author's favorite things to do. Yes, I can enthusiastically say that "#1 Standing above the azure sea at the ruins of Tulum" is one of my favorite moments as well. While I didn't accomplish all 16, I found what I did experience on the list almost entirely worthwhile. The last suggestion, #16, to eat at Oscar y Lalo's at Playa Soliman was an excellent dining suggestion even though the restaurant had moved to a less awe inspiring spot evidently after the guide had gone to press. This explains the four instead of five star rating.

Save your money. This is a digest of Cancun and the Yucatan and poor one at that. For only a dollar more you can get "Frommer's Cancun and the Yucatan 2011" which is a vastly superior guide. I took four guides for my time in Cancun and the Yucatan and hands down this is the worst of the group. Though it has pretty photos and informative maps it is deficient in its accommodation & restaurant recommendations. It has scant information about the history, culture or what to see in the area. Best advise: Upgrade to a full guide.