The usefulness of travel guides

I feel as though I haven't traveled much in the past few years, but whenever I do some serious travel or really intend to make the most of my time at some destination, I research endlessly online about my destination. And then once I'm there, especially if I'm somewhere where I don't have full access to the internet, I wish I had brought along a guide book. Or that I'd taken better notes while researching on the internet.

I went to Bermuda on a cruise a few weeks ago. We were going to have from Wednesday morning to Friday afternoon in Bermuda and I wanted to make the most of my time.

Rather than researching on my computer and taking notes, I did my research on my iPad and took screen captures of anything that I thought I might want once I was away from the internet. I also, for the very first time, checked out an e-book travel guide from the library that I had on my iPad. I was surprised at how easy it was to find Fodor's Bermuda guide at one of my libraries. I didn't think it would really matter that the edition was two years old. I don't think I was aware that a more current edition had just come out, but even if I had been, I wasn't prepared to spend money on the guide so what I had was going to do.

I started reading the guide before we left home. I compared what I was reading in the guide to some of the research I'd done online. I made mental notes of things I'd want to do once I got to Bermuda. Truthfully, though, all that information became a jumble in my brain that I hoped would make sense once I was there.

The research I'd done on sites like TripAdvisor or the Bermuda Tourist Board proved a little more useful than reading the guide book. Even though the guide book had a section for tourists arriving in Bermuda by a cruise, most of the book just didn't apply.

After spending a full day on a guided tour of Bermuda, I went back and reviewed some of the historical information that the fellow who led my tour had mentioned. It was a nice reinforcement and helped me remember a lot of what I'd seen.

In this day and age, I'm wondering if a print version of a guide book makes sense. But it was a nice addition to my iPad and didn't take up any extra room in my suitcase.I'll be sure to search for an e-book edition of a destination guide book the next time I go wandering.

To answer your unspoken question, I really enjoyed Bermuda. I loved the cruise as well as I expected but I ended up liking Bermuda much more than I expected. We had lots and lots of rain, both at sea and while in port, so I'm thinking another visit to Bermuda is definitely in order! The history geek in me still needs to explore St. George's.