Taking the less expensive route

We are visiting 14 countries on this trip. That is a hell of a lot of guide books, which seem absolutely essential in navigating our way through Latin America. We'll need road maps, camp sites, hostels, historical attractions, what to do and not do, must see, must avoid, practical information so we don't go in totally blind. There is so much to know and plan for, unless you truly want to go vagabond style and do no prep work. Sounds a little dumb to me.

Anyway, giving the number of countries, we are going to have to buy a lot of travel books.... Lonely Planet, Let's GO, Frommer's, Fodor's, etc...it seems endless. But because I am cheap...and maybe smart, I've decided instead to research, research and research free guides and information on the internet. There are sites such as Drive the Americas, BootsnAll, forums in Portuguese, Thorn Tree forum, they are everywhere and they are free. We are writing every consulate and asking for information.

OK, so I am going to waste ink on the printing but I think if I can pick and choose what information we want as opposed the ton of additional information we don't need in the book, won't that also save money and trees? At the end of the day, we will have a totally tailored informational guide.

Today I am working on Belize cause it is the first in the alphabet and the smallest country. It is still a lot of work but you also run the risk of finding much more interesting information this way. Just look at this amazing photo I found online and NOT in a quidebook. I am DEFINITELY going here.

Aerial of Blue Hole in Belize

I am copying, pasting, and printing to my little wanderlust hearts content. It may be burdensome but the fun is in the journey. And it is cheap.

Anybody have suggestions of internet sites to visit or books they would like to loan, let us know.