Six Guidebook Publishers and Their Policies on Freebies

Sunday, April 27, 2008

Publisher: Lonely Planet (BBC recently acquired a majority stake)

Located: Melbourne, Australia

Titles in print: 500

Number of books sold per year: 7 million in English, 9 million total

Freebie policy: Freebies not allowed "in exchange for positive coverage."

What they say: Although the policy may sound as if it allows for loopholes, publisher Piers Pickard emphatically states that the company's policy is "no freebies -- period."

Publisher: Fodor's (Random House)

Located: New York

Titles in print: 350

Number of books sold per year: not available

Freebie policy: Allowed if restaurants and hotels are notified that providing complimentary meals or lodging will not influence whether the property is recommended.

What they say: "Our writers are able to stay at and eat in many of the places we cover, making their reviews more accurate," according to a company statement.

Publisher: Frommer's (John Wiley & Sons)

Located: Hoboken, N.J.

Titles in print: 350

Number of books sold per year: 7 million

Freebie policy: Allowed if no quid pro quo

What they say: "Writers are held accountable for all the information in their books," says spokeswoman Susan Spilka. "Wiley does not publish fiction; that holds true for our travel program as well."

Publisher: Rough Guides

Located: London

Titles in print: 250

Number of books sold per year: not available

Freebie policy: Allowed if no quid pro quo

What they say: "No guidebook is perfect and probably no author goes to every single place in the book, whatever they might say, though most guidebook authors cover places more diligently than Thomas [Kohnstamm] appears to have done" for Lonely Planet, says Rough Guides executive editor Andrew Rosenberg.

Publisher: Rick Steves (Avalon Travel)

Located: Edmonds, Wash., and Berkeley, Calif.

Titles in print: 30

Number of books sold per year: 800,000

Freebie policy: Allowed if no quid pro quo

What they say: "My understanding is that guidebook researchers and writers are generally no longer getting royalties," Rick Steves says. "This demoralizes a hard worker."

Publisher: Moon (Avalon Travel)

Located: Berkeley, Calif.

Titles in print: 180

Number of books sold per year: 800,000

Freebie policy: Allowed if no quid pro quo

What they say: "For the Moon series, we're very rigorous in selecting authors. We commission one author per destination, not a research team," says publisher Bill Newlin. "Moon authors own the copyright to their work."

Note: Avalon is an imprint of Perseus Books.