UP: Eyewitness accounts in travel guides

Lucknow, Nov 25: Now tourist guides at the historical monuments have got real competition.

Dorling Kindersley (India) in collaboration with Penguin has come out with travel guide books based on eyewitness accounts, taking the reader on an extraordinary virtual tour of the sites.

Packed with authentic information and vibrant pictures, the first six guides on the Qutub Minar, Red Fort, Taj Mahal, Fatehpur Sikri, Humayun's Tomb, and Amber Fort were released yesterday, coinciding with DK's tenth anniversary in India.

''These monument guides showcase India's diverse architectural heritage that spans thousands of years, and each book is a practical guide to a historical monument,'' says Aparna Sharma, Head of Publishing, DK India.

The guides are first available in English, and there are plans to follow with German, French, and Japanese versions.

They will be easily available to tourists at the entry points to the monuments and sites in focus, the bookshops in the cities or towns where these are located, hotels, airports, bona fide railway bookstores and travel agencies.

Other guides in the pipeline will highlight select important historical and archaeological sites-- Sanchi Stupa, Khajuraho, Konark, Ajanta and Ellora Caves, Hampi and Mahabalipuram.

UNI