Some travel guides are for tourists, some for travelers. I don't want to get controversial, but Bradt's guides are for travelers, I'm sure.
I don't want to start a tourist vs traveler debate here: I know I'm often guilty myself of saying "oh, look at all the tourists here" and somehow considering myself exempt of this label. But there's clearly a difference between someone who lands in a country with a backpack and no bookings and someone who lands with a tour company and knows the itinerary for each day in advance. Depending on the situation, both are acceptable forms of traveling and tourism: but if you're in the former category and you're traveling somewhere relatively unknown, then I'm a big fan of Bradt travel guides.
The company philosophy at Bradt publishing is summed up by their motto: "Take the road less travelled". It's a British company that's around 30 years old now, and they restrict their guidebooks to covering less traveled destinations, especially in Africa, South America and Eastern Europe. They often find experts with a really in-depth knowledge of a country or region to author their guides, and the result shows. Sometimes that produces a guide that's more like a history book - but some people like that (me too, sometimes!). See for yourself with some more information in my review this week of Bradt's Baltic Capitals guidebook.
