ApproachGuides.com guides cover cultural and historical topics

What started as one couple’s travel notes aimed at filling in the gaps in guidebooks has become ApproachGuides.com -- a menu of downloadable travel guides that cover cultural and historical topics of interest to thoughtful travelers.

What’s hot: Bite-sized travel guides that specialize in topics ranging from 29 pages on the foods of Italy to one that helps you explore the historical and architectural significance of Angkor’s famous temple structures in Cambodia. But you don’t have to buy a guide to get value from the site. Check out its Travel Tips page for recommended tour operators and local guides, or its blog for weekly travel tips. I was especially drawn to its foodie advice and a post on “The Best Parks to See Tigers in India.”

What’s not: It’s good to support fellow travelers, and I commend their hard work in putting the guides together in a pretty package, but the prices are sometimes a bit unreasonable. Ten dollars is too much for a 10-page download (“Last Supper Frescoes of Florence”) or a 16-page PDF on Buddhism. That said, you do get to preview several pages before you buy, which makes it easier to eliminate topics you’re on the fence about.