Lonely Planet

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Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet.svg
Parent company Lonely Planet Global, Inc.
Founded1973 [1]
Founders
Country of origin Australia
Headquarters location Fort Mill, South Carolina, U.S.
Distribution
Key people Philippe von Borries (President; November 2020 – May 2023)
Publication types Books
Mobile apps
Video
Magazine
Nonfiction topics Travel guides (Worldwide)
Owner(s) Red Ventures
No. of employees400 staff, 200 authors [3]
Official website lonelyplanet.com

Lonely Planet is a travel guide book publisher. [4] Founded in Australia in 1973, [1] the company has printed over 150 million books. [5]

Contents

History

Maureen Wheeler and Tony Wheeler, the two co-founders of Lonely Planet, in 2008 2008TIBE Day4 Hall1 AustraliaPavilion TheWheelers.jpg
Maureen Wheeler and Tony Wheeler, the two co-founders of Lonely Planet, in 2008

20th century

Lonely Planet was founded by married couple Maureen and Tony Wheeler. In 1972, they embarked on an overland trip through Europe and Asia to Australia, following the route of the Oxford and Cambridge Far Eastern Expedition. [6] [7]

The company name originates from the misheard "lovely planet" in a song written by Matthew Moore. [8] Lonely Planet's first book, Across Asia on the Cheap, [9] had 94 pages; it was written by the couple in their home. [10] The original 1973 print run consisted of stapled booklets [11] with pale blue cardboard covers. [12]

Wheeler returned to Asia to write Across Asia on the Cheap: A Complete Guide to Making the Overland Trip, published in 1975. [13]

The Lonely Planet guide book series initially expanded to cover other countries in Asia, with the India guide book in 1981, [14] and expanded to rest of the world later on. [15] Geoff Crowther was renowned for frequently inserting his opinions into the text of the guides he wrote. His writing was instrumental to the rise of Lonely Planet. The journalist used the term "Geoffness", in tribute to Crowther,[ clarification needed ] to describe a quality that has been lost in travel guides. [10]

By 1999, Lonely Planet had sold 30 million copies of its travel guides. The company's authors consequently benefited from profit-sharing and expensive events were held at the Melbourne office, at which Lonely Planet authors would arrive in limousines. [15]

21st century

The 16th edition of Lonely Planet's Australia guide, published in 2011 Lonely Planet Australia travel guide 16th Edition.png
The 16th edition of Lonely Planet's Australia guide, published in 2011

In 2007, the Wheelers and John Singleton sold a 75% stake in the company to BBC Worldwide, worth an estimated £63 million at the time. [10] The company was publishing 500 titles and ventured into television production. BBC Worldwide struggled following the acquisition, registering a £3.2 million loss in the year to the end of March 2009. By the end of March 2010, profits of £1.9 million had been generated, as digital revenues had risen 37% year-on-year over the preceding 12 months, a Lonely Planet magazine had grown and non-print revenues increased from 9% in 2007 to 22%.

Lonely Planet's digital presence included 140 apps and 8.5 million unique users for lonelyplanet.com, which hosted the Thorn Tree travel forum. [16] In 2011, BBC Worldwide acquired the remaining 25% of the company for £42.1 million (A$67.2 million) from the Wheelers. [17]

BBC's sale to NC2

Lonely Planet's former headquarters in Footscray, Victoria, in 2006 LonelyPlanetBuildingFootscray.jpg
Lonely Planet's former headquarters in Footscray, Victoria, in 2006

By 2012, BBC wanted to divest itself of the company and in March 2013 confirmed the sale of Lonely Planet to Brad Kelley's NC2 Media for US$77.8 million (£51.5 million), at nearly an £80 million (US$118.89 million) loss. [18]

Red Ventures

In December 2020, NC2 Media sold Lonely Planet to Red Ventures for an undisclosed amount. [19] Lonely Planet offices continue to operate in Dublin, Nashville and New Delhi. Phillippe von Borries, a former co-founder and CEO of Refinery29, was named head of the company. [20]

In 2022, Lonely Planet bought Elsewhere, a website that links travellers directly with experts who assist in designing trips. [21]

In 2024, Lonely Planet announced that it withdrew from the market in China and ceased publishing travel guides in simplified Chinese. [22]

Products

Lonely Planet's online community, the Thorn Tree, [23] was created in 1996. It is named for a Naivasha thorn tree ( Acacia xanthophloea ) that has been used as a message board for the city of Nairobi, Kenya since 1902. [24] The tree still exists in the Stanley Hotel, Nairobi. In April 2020, the forum was locked and left in read-only mode as part of Lonely Planet temporarily halting business in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In September 2021, the Thorn Tree was shut down. [25]

In 2009, Lonely Planet began publishing a monthly travel magazine called Lonely Planet Traveller. It is available in digital versions for a number of countries. [26]

Lonely Planet also had its own television production company, which has produced series, such as Globe Trekker , Lonely Planet Six Degrees, and Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled. [27] Toby Amies and Asha Gill (both British TV presenters) took part in Lonely Planet Six Degrees.[ citation needed ]

Controversies

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hippie trail</span> Overland journey from Europe to Asia

Hippie trail is the name given to an overland journey taken by members of the hippie subculture and others from the mid-1950s to the late 1970s travelling from Europe and West Asia through South Asia via countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh to Thailand. The hippie trail was a form of alternative tourism, and one of the key elements was travelling as cheaply as possible, mainly to extend the length of time away from home. The term "hippie" became current in the mid-to-late 1960s; "beatnik" was the previous term from the later 1950s.

<i>Hitch-hikers Guide to Europe</i> 1971 English-language travel guide book by Ken Welsh

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Founded in 1982, Rough Guides Ltd is a British publisher of print and digital guide book, phrasebooks and inspirational travel reference books, and a provider of personalised trips. Since November 2017, Rough Guides has been owned by APA Publications UK Ltd, the parent company of Insight Guides.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guide book</span> Book about a place for visitors or tourists

A guide book or travel guide is "a book of information about a place designed for the use of visitors or tourists". It will usually include information about sights, accommodation, restaurants, transportation, and activities. Maps of varying detail and historical and cultural information are often included. Different kinds of guide books exist, focusing on different aspects of travel, from adventure travel to relaxation, or aimed at travelers with different incomes, or focusing on sexual orientation or types of diet.

Tripadvisor, Inc. is an American company that operates online travel agencies, comparison shopping websites, and mobile apps with user-generated content.

Frommer's is a travel guide book series created by Arthur Frommer in 1957. Frommer's has since expanded to include more than 350 guidebooks in 14 series, as well as other media including an eponymous radio show and a website. In 2017, the company celebrated its 60th anniversary. Frommer has maintained a travel-related blog on the company's website since 2007.

Mark Elliott is an English travel writer best known for books on Azerbaijan, and for unusual map-based route guides for Asia.

Thomas Kohnstamm is an American author from Seattle, Washington.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Wheeler</span> English-Australian publishing entrepreneur (born 1946)

Tony Wheeler is an English-born Australian publishing entrepreneur, businessman and travel writer, co-founder of the Lonely Planet guidebook company with his wife, Maureen Wheeler.

<i>Asia Overland</i> Travel book by Mark Elliott and Wil Klass

Asia Overland by Mark Elliott and Wil Klass was an idiosyncratic book of the 1990s which developed a minor cult following amongst backpackers in Asia and the former Soviet Union. Although it has been out of print since 2002, the book remains a talking point amongst older travellers. Its unique feature was that practical information was displayed in a set of schematic 'treasure maps' rather than in run-on text, a style later replicated in certain other books by Trailblazer.

Christopher P. Baker is a professional travel writer and photographer, adventure motorcyclist, tour leader, and Cuba expert, and the 2008 Lowell Thomas Award 'Travel Journalist of the Year.' He is a contributor to magazines and other publications worldwide, and is the author of travel guidebooks for publishers such as Dorling Kindersley, Lonely Planet, Moon Publications, and National Geographic.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maureen Wheeler</span> Northern Irish-Australian publishing entrepreneur

Maureen Wheeler is a Northern Irish and Australian businesswoman, who co-founded the travel publisher Lonely Planet with her husband, Tony Wheeler.

Do Travel Writers Go to Hell? is a memoir and gonzo travelogue written by Thomas Kohnstamm and published by Three Rivers Press.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli</span> American photographer

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli is a professional photographer, television host and world traveler. Dominic spent several months on assignment co-hosting the travel TV series Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled, Lonely Planet: Stressbuster, and photographing every country in Europe for Rick Steves since 1996.

Brad Maurice Kelley is an American businessman who is the 9th largest landowner in the U.S., with an estimated net worth of US$2.2 billion in 2018. He founded the Commonwealth Brands tobacco company in 1991 and sold the company in 2001 to Houchens Industries for US$1 billion. As of 2014, Kelley's business interests include Calumet Farm, NC2 Media and the Center for Innovation and Technology business park.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geoff Crowther</span> British travel writer (1944–2021)

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References

  1. 1 2 "Lonely Planet co-founder: 'The first book was an accident'". the Guardian. 24 February 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  2. ↑ "Trade". Lonely Planet.
  3. ↑ "About Us". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
  4. ↑ Fildes, Nic (2 October 2007). "BBC gives Lonely Planet guides a home in first major acquisition". The Independent . Retrieved 5 March 2011.
  5. ↑ "The Points Guy Owner Red Ventures Buys Lonely Planet". Skift. 1 December 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  6. ↑ "Asia's overland route". LiveJournal. 20 July 2006. Archived from the original on 24 February 2012. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
  7. ↑ MacLean, Rory (2007). Magic bus: on the hippie trail from Istanbul to India. Penguin Books. ISBN   978-0-14-101595-8.
  8. ↑ Wheeler, Tony; Wheeler, Maureen (2007). Unlikely Destinations: The Lonely Planet Story . Periplus Editions. ISBN   978-0-7946-0523-0.
  9. ↑ "Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd". fundinguniverse.com. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
  10. 1 2 3 Carole Cadwalladr (7 October 2007). "Journey's end for the guidebook gurus?". The Observer. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  11. ↑ Emily Brennan (7 June 2013). "A Lonely Planet Founder Looks Back". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  12. ↑ Lonely Planet Guides – Book Series List, publishinghistory.com. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  13. ↑ Tony Wheeler (1975). Across Asia on the Cheap: A Complete Guide to Making the Overland Trip. Lonely Planet Publications. ISBN   978-0-9598080-2-5.
  14. ↑ Steves, Rick (24 November 2007). "Tony Wheeler's "Lonely Planet"". ricksteves.com. Retrieved 24 November 2007.
  15. 1 2 Charles Bethea (27 March 2014). "The 25-Year-Old at the Helm of Lonely Planet". Outside Magazine. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  16. ↑ Mark Sweney (18 February 2011). "BBC to buy out Lonely Planet". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  17. ↑ "BBC takes last slice of Planet". The Sydney Morning Herald . 20 February 2011. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
  18. ↑ Eric Pfanner (19 March 2013). "U.S. Buyer for BBC's Book Unit on Travel". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  19. ↑ "Red Ventures Acquires Lonely Planet". December 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  20. ↑ "Lonely Planet Buys Local Experts Site Elsewhere for Trip Planning". Skift. 15 February 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  21. ↑ Rashaad, Jorden (15 February 2022). "Lonely Planet Buys Local Experts Site Elsewhere for Trip Planning". Refinery29 . Retrieved 13 November 2022.
  22. ↑ Lonely Planet Reaches the End of the Road in China
  23. ↑ "Thorn Tree Travel Forum". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
  24. ↑ Mary Fitzpatrick; Tim Bewer; Matthew Firestone (2009). East Africa. Lonely Planet. p. 290. ISBN   978-1-74104-769-1.
  25. ↑ Kevin May (27 September 2021). "LONELY PLANET AXES LEGENDARY THORN TREE TRAVEL COMMUNITY". PhocusWire. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  26. ↑ Jason (3 November 2014). "Skift Forum Video: Lonely Planet's CEO on the Future of Travel Content". skift.com.
  27. ↑ "Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled". National Geographic Channel Australia and New Zealand. Archived from the original on 6 November 2009. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  28. 1 2 Ben Doherty (30 May 2011). "Suu Kyi's party ends opposition to tourism". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 2 June 2011.
  29. ↑ "Unions call to boycott Lonely Planet". 22 February 2008. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  30. ↑ Wheeler, Tony; Wheeler, Maureen. "Responsible travel". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  31. ↑ Todhunter, Colin. "Madras and The Lonely Planet People". hackwriters.com. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  32. ↑ Priestley, Harry (July 2008). "Pictures courtesy of Lonely Planet Publications". chiangmainews.com. Archived from the original on 15 February 2009. Retrieved 10 August 2010.
  33. ↑ "Lonely Planet corrects 'misleading' post on Banaue Rice Terraces". cnn. Archived from the original on 24 January 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  34. ↑ Mercado, Neil Arwin (2 April 2019). "Lonely Planet admits error in Banaue Rice Terraces video 'misleading'". newsinfo.inquirer.net.
  35. 1 2 "Lonely Planet's bad trip ", The Sunday Telegraph (Sydney), 13 April 2008. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  36. ↑ Angela Myer; Elena Gomez (13 October 2009). "Guest review: Elena Gomez on Mic Looby's Paradise Updated". Crikey Blog. Private Media Pty Ltd. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
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