Happy 25th Anniversary Rough Guides
Travel Blog • Michael Yessis • 05.07.07 | 7:50 AM ET
They’re half the age of Arthur Frommer’s guides, and not quite as old as Lonely Planet, but for many travelers Rough Guides are equally influential and loved. Mark Ellingham started the company 25 years ago with a volume on Greece, and several British papers have put together packages celebrating his vision and his travels. The Times compiles a list of 25 wonders of the world, the Independent spends a day with Ellingham and the Guardian asks him and his long-time colleague, Martin Dunford, for their 25 all-time favorite travel experiences.
Ellingham’s first choice? Greek island hopping.
I got an office job for a few months after leaving university and it was the persistent thought of hopping on Greek ferries, and exploring the islands, that made me chuck it in and head to Greece, without a contract, to write the first Rough Guide. There are few things in life so romantic and pleasurable as sitting with a Greek coffee on the quayside, waiting for a boat to edge into harbour and transport you to a new island, with all the promise of a fresh microcosm of life. This is what made me fall in love with travel in the first place and it still hits the button.
Rough Guides is celebrating its own anniversary with a series of 25 books chronicling 25 “ultimate experiences” around the world.