His guide books were aimed at adventurous young travellers with limited budgets, expanding their horizons beyond traditional destinations. Since then Lonely Planet has become a lead publisher of guide books.
Lonely Planet guidebooks were founded 50 years ago by Tony Wheeler and his Irish born wife, Maureen, and have since covered 221 countries and 150m guidebooks sold.
The Wheelers sold their publishing company in 2011, but they still embody the spirit of the “backpacker’s bible.”
Tony emphasises some important traveller tips:
- Carry only carry-on luggage to avoid mishaps like lost baggage.
- While safety is crucial, Tony believes in
- Research a destination in advance
- Trust your instincts. “Once you get to a place and are out in the streets, you will feel if it is okay or not.”
- Go two streets over from the main drag for shopping, dining and lodging.
- Explore lesser-known areas to avoid overcrowding in popular destinations.
His instanced Ravenna, which he described as the opposite of Venice. “It almost felt like it was undertouristed.”
Of Ireland, he said he and Maureen travelled from the Aran Islands and to Belfast to see Van Morrison perform Cyprus Avenue on Cyprus Avenue.
From Tony’s reminiscences he picked his top fifty destinations:
- Five utterly weird destinations: Ashgabat in Turkmenistan, Chernobyl in Ukraine, Dubai, Pyongyang in North Korea, Ravenna in Italy
- Five complete surprises: Aeolian Islands in Italy, Afghanistan, Chad, Congo DRC, Dirk Hartog Island in Western Australia
- Five “I’m not going there” places: Bangladesh, Colombia, Iran, Pakistan, Transylvania.
- Five great journeys: Melbourne across northern Australia with Kirkhope Aviation’s Beechcraft King Air , Melbourne to London by train, Route 66 in the US, Silk Road from Bangkok to London, South Pacific on the Aranui,
- Five great experiences: Africa’s big five, Bagan in Myanmar, London bicycle club signature bike ride, Solomon Islands., Tasmanian Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair overland track.
- Five places I keep returning to: Antarctica, Kolkata, Nepal, New York, Singapore
- Five pricy places: Amari Airport Hotel in Bangkok, Kimberley Coastal Camp in Australia, Mandarin Oriental in Bangkok, Poppies at Kuta Beach in Bali, Raffles in Singapore, The Peninsula in Hong Kong,
- Five of the greatest opera sites: Bayreuth in Germany, St Petersburg in Russia, Summer in England, Teatro Amazonas on the Amazon, Verona in Italy
- Five more I couldn’t leave out: Albania, Cuba, Ireland, Outer Space, Tibet
- Five places still on my bucket list: Algeria, Nigeria, Orkney Islands, Paraguay, Yemen.
