How to download
What devices can I download the ebook to?
Troubleshooting tips
Where are the files I downloaded - I can't find them?!
Make sure you have the latest version of Adobe Reader
Strange symbols or font not available
Error: Corrupt or Damaged File
For the full terms and conditions that apply to your purchases from the Lonely Planet Shop, please click here.
Where is my download link?
We provide you with links to your downloads at the time of purchase (on the order confirmation page), and also send them through via email so you can download your ebooks and chapters on the go. You will receive two emails if you have purchased digital products. One will be your order confirmation email and the other will have the subject line "Your Lonely Planet content" and will have a button to take you to your downloads.
Can't find the emails? Check your spam or junk folder (or even the deleted items folder) as you should find your confirmation email has been filed here. This is a common query that we receive from customers who have Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail and similar POP email accounts. Why? Because these email accounts often have an automatic spam filter that hides emails sent from any retail website.
If you have checked these folders and still cannot locate them, please contact us and we will be happy to help.
If your order was placed before we transitioned to our new shop site (2023), please contact us.
What devices can I download the ebook to?
You can download the ebook on any desktop, smartphone, tablet, even a Kindle device.
Here is a quick overview on formats and devices:
PDF: All devices (including desktop, Android, Apple. and Kindle)
ePub: Optimized for Apple products
Mobi: Only for Kindle devices
(Some ebooks may not have all formats for download)
We know technical errors, computer crashes and download limits can make life hard, so we have given you five downloads to each of your purchased digital files. Please note that some chapters may be up to 10MB in size, and some single-file PDF guidebooks can be 100+ MB, so if you have a slow internet connection you might like to fix yourself a cup of tea...
If you need a reset just let us know! Send an inquiry here.
How to download PDF files
Desktop
We recommend Adobe Reader for desktop downloads because it is free, easy to download, useful for loads of websites and won’t harm your computer software or files. To download or update for free, visit the Official Adobe website.
As with most downloads, you can open the PDF and view it immediately, and we recommend you save it to a specific location on your desktop computer straight away. Can't find it? Check your Downloads folder.
Note: PDFs may not display properly on small-screen eReaders as it is a fixed layout file. PDFs are a better option if you want to print chapters.
Apple devices (iPad, iPhone, etc)
Choose the PDF option. Click the upload icon near the bottom of your screen: Then, choose the Books icon.
Kindle App (if using an Apple device and sending to your Kindle app)
Choose the PDF option. Click the upload icon near the bottom of your screen: Then, choose the Kindle icon. When the Send to Kindle screen appears, scroll down and click Send.
Kindle device (if using a desktop)
Transferring Your Files by Email
1. First, download a copy of the ebook PDF file and save to your device
2. Then, go to the settings menu in your Kindle and select "Your Account"
3. Near the bottom you will see a "Send to Kindle Email" section with an email address that ends in kindle.com
4. Now, open your preferred email account, attach the ebook file, and send to your Kindle email address (if the attachment is too large, you will need to transfer your PDF file via USB. See instructions below.)
5. If you are connected to WIFI the file should appear shortly on your Kindle
Transferring Your Files by USB
1. Download PDF file to PC/Mac.
2. Save to desktop.
3. Connect Kindle to computer using USB cord.
4. While Kindle is plugged in, open "File Explorer" on PC or "Finder" on Mac.
5. The Kindle should show as an external memory device.
6. Click on the Kindle option and open to show the Documents folder.
7. Drag the PDF file icon of the book from your computer’s desktop (or wherever you saved the file to) to the Kindle Documents folder.
8. Disconnect the Kindle from the computer.
9. The books should now be on the Kindle in the Carousel and easily usable.
How to download ePub files
Our ePub files are designed for Apple devices, NOOK and Kobo, but there are also apps like Aldiko you can now use to open ePub files on Android.
Apple devices (iPad, iPhone, etc)
When downloading directly to your iPad or iPhone, make sure you have an ePub reader installed - we recommend the free iBooks app. From the download page, simply download the file and open it in your reader (you may be prompted to "open in Books").
If your iPad is synced to your computer, you can pull it across using iTunes.
NOOK
Download the file to your computer, then connect the Nook with the USB cable. Nook will then show where hard drives and other USB drives show (under My Computer on Windows or on the desktop on Mac). Double-click on the NOOK drive to open it. You can then drag and drop the downloaded ebook from your computer to the "my documents" folder or to the root of the NOOK.
For more information about how to use this device, visit the Barnes & Noble website.
Kobo
We recommend using Adobe Digital Editions to add ePub files to your Kobo. Connect your eReader to your computer using the included USB cable. A prompt will appear on the eReader screen - tap Connect. Then right-click the book file and click Open With. Click Adobe Digital Editions. Adobe Digital Editions should start automatically and open the book. In Adobe Digital Editions, click the Library icon. Select your new book and drag it to the Kobo eReader bookshelf (listed on the left side under Bookshelves).
For more information about how to use this device, visit the Official Kobo website.
Android devices
For Android users we recommend downloading the epub format and using the following free ebook reader apps to view your ebook file:
Aldiko
Moon+Reader
PocketBook Reader (this app allows you to zoom in on maps, a feature not available in other apps for Androids)
How to download Mobi files
Mobi files are for use on Kindle devices. You will have to "sideload" these files to your Kindle device.
Here are a couple of methods to do so:
Transferring Your Files by Email
1. First, download a copy of the ebook Mobi file and save to your device
2. Then, go to the settings menu in your Kindle and select "Your Account"
3. Near the bottom you will see a "Send to Kindle Email" section with an email address that ends in kindle.com
4. Now, open your preferred email account, attach the ebook Mobi file, and send to your Kindle email address (if the attachment is too large, you will need to transfer your PDF file via USB. See instructions below.)
5. If you are connected to WIFI the file should appear shortly on your Kindle
Transferring Your Files by USB
1. Download Mobi file to PC/Mac.
2. Save to desktop.
3. Connect Kindle to computer using USB cord.
4. While Kindle is plugged in, open "File Explorer" on PC or "Finder" on Mac.
5. The Kindle should show as an external memory device.
6. Click on the Kindle option and open to show the Documents folder.
7. Drag the Mobi file icon of the book from your computer’s desktop (or wherever you saved the file to) to the Kindle Documents folder.
8. Disconnect the Kindle from the computer.
9. The books should now be on the Kindle in the Carousel and easily usable.
Where are the files I downloaded - I can't find them?!
If you were not asked to specify a folder (usually on your desktop) when downloading your files, then your digital purchases have been saved to a default “downloads” folder. If you don’t know where this lives in on your hard drive, you can do one of two things – do a search using a keyword from one of the file names, or download the ebook again using the link we sent you (each ebook or chapter can be downloaded up to 5 times). This time when you click on the download link, select the 'Save to disk' option and save the chapter to a folder on your desktop.
If you have run out of downloads or are still experiencing difficulties, please let us know.
Make sure you have the latest version of your PDF reader
If your PDF file downloads but does not open, it is likely that your PDF reader needs updating. Our files are best suited to Adobe Reader 9.x (or higher) – if you are not sure which version you have, you can download the latest for free here: http://get.adobe.com/reader/
Note that you can download each eBook or chapter up to 5 times, so please refer back to your order confirmation email to access the download link if needed. If you are unable to find this email, please be sure to check your spam/junk folder before contacting us.
Strange symbols or font not available
Our recent files have been created using the latest version of Adobe, and older versions do not have the fonts we used to create our files. To fix the problem, you need to download the latest version of the Adobe Reader from the Official Adobe website for free.
Error: Corrupt or Damaged File
We'd like to reassure you that files purchased from lonelyplanet.com are not corrupt, and if you are presented with this error message it just means something went wrong in the download process. This might mean that your internet signal was too weak, or it went down for a moment. To rectify this and open your file, you'll need to download it again (note that you can download each file up to 5 times). Once downloaded, be sure to open the file using Adobe Reader, NOT within your web browser (like Firefox, Safari, Internet Explorer etc).