Category: News from Stanfords

Catch up on the latest news from our world of travel, maps and books.

Stanfords Specialist Mapping Services

As well as stores in London and Bristol, we also have a Stanfords For Business map team in Manchester who specialise in mapping for Planning Applications, Land Registry enquiries and much more.

Some customer orders we have worked on include aerial maps of places of worship for a community project, A-Z mapping for a college to help new students familiarise themselves with the local area, historical mapping for a sports club celebrating an anniversary, OS planning application mapping for a farmhouse wanting to add an outbuilding and an OS 1:25k site centred map showing the location of an engagement to give as a wedding gift.

Stanfords is one of the UK’s leading suppliers of mapping and geographic data.

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Stanfords Bestselling Travel Guides of 2024

Wow, what a year it has been. Our customers have certainly covered some ground and we’ve loved hearing about your travel plans. If you are looking for some travel inspiration, here are the Stanfords bestselling Travel Guides of 2024

1. Lonely Planet Japan

£19.99

Summit Mount Fuji, pay your respects at Buddhist temples in Kyoto, and have your fill of sushi and sake; all with your trusted travel companion. Covers Tokyo, Mt Fuji, The Japan Alps, Honshu, Kyoto, Kansai, Hiroshima, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Shiko-ku, Kyushu and Okinawa

2. Bradt Uzbekistan

£17.99

This new, fully updated third edition of Bradt”s Uzbekistan remains the definitive and only standalone practical travel guide to this increasingly liberal destination – central Asia’s most populous country and the heart of the Silk Road. Offering more detail for independent travellers than any other guidebook, it includes first-hand descriptions of everything from UNESCO world heritage sites and the world’s best collection of Russian avant-garde art, to riding across deserts by camel and cooking plov.

3. Lonely Planet Costa Rica

£16.99

Trek through dense jungles in Parque Nacional Corcovado, swim under Montezuma Waterfalls and catch waves on Santa Teresa; all with your trusted travel companion. Covers San Jose, Central Valley, Highlands, Caribbean Coast, Northwestern Costa Rica, Arenal, Northern Lowlands, Peninsula de Nicoya, Central Pacific Coast, Southern Costa Rica, Peninsula de Osa, and more

4. The mini Rough Guide to Puglia

£7.99

From top tourist attractions like the Tremiti islands, the Gargano peninsula and Otranto, to cultural gems, including Alberobello – the centre of Puglia’s famous trulli, the quaint, conical-shaped houses – Castel del Monte, a unique medieval masterpiece, and Lecce, Puglia”s Baroque gem, packed with lavish architecture and fanciful facades, plan your perfect trip with this practical, all-in-one compact travel guide.

5. Bradt Albania

£17.99

This new, fully revised seventh edition of Bradt’s Albania remains the most authoritative standalone guide to what is still a relatively little known part of Europe. Coverage is comprehensive, starting in the capital, Tirana, then moving through central, northern and southern Albania to provide all the information needed for a successful trip. Included are knowledgeable and rigorously researched historical and archaeological background, detailed notes on popular and less well-known hiking routes and other outdoor activities, and specialist contributions on wildlife, military history and other topics.

6. Rough Guide Japan

£22.99

This Japan guidebook is perfect for independent travellers planning a longer trip. It features all of the must-see sights and a wide range of off-the-beaten-track places. It also provides detailed practical information on preparing for a trip and what to do on the ground. This Japan guidebook covers: Tokyo (and around); Northern Honshu; Hokkaido; Central Honshu; Kyoto and Nara; Kansai; Western Honshu; Shikoku; Kyushu; Okinawa.

7. The Mini Rough Guide to Athens

£7.99

This mini pocket Athens travel guidebook is perfect for travellers seeking basic information about Athens. It covers key places, main attractions and a short hotel and restaurant recommendations list. This Athens travel book covers: The Acropolis, Around the Acropolis, Monastiraki and Psyrri, Omonia and environs, From Omonia to Syndagma, Syndagma Square and around.

8. Europe by Train by DK

£14.99

Compiled by a team of travel experts, 50 hand-picked itineraries will kickstart your plans, showing you how to join the dots between Europe’s must-see destinations and introducing you to plenty of lesser-visited stops along the way. Featuring a mix of short trips and epic adventures, cross-continent and region-specific itineraries, this book provides endless inspiration, whether you’re looking to hop between Europe’s capitals, explore Scandinavia or experience the best of Italy.

9. The Mini Rough Guide to Bologna

£7.99

This pocket-sized guide is a convenient, quick-reference companion to discovering what to do, what to see and how to get around Bologna. It covers top attractions like Santo Stefano, le Duo Torri and San Luca, to cultural gems, including the show-stopping Neptune’s Fountain in the heart of the city, the Palazzo dell’Archignnasio, a former university building with anatomical theatre where human corpses were dissected, and the monumental Basilica di San Petronio, one of Italy’s most imposing Gothic churches. This will save you time, and enhance your exploration of this fascinating Bologna

10. Europe By Rail – The Definitive Guide

£18.99

Written by two highly experienced travellers, Europe by Rail describes 50 key routes spanning Europe including the British Isles. Classic rides and scenic adventures. Penned by two avid travellers, the book gives useful tips on how to plan your journey, what tickets to buy and where to stop off along the way. The perfect guide for holders of rail passes, including Interrail and Eurail.Each route can be followed in its entirety or used as a building block in a longer itinerary. Beyond the main routes you will find worthwhile excursions well off the beaten track. Now in its 17th edition.

Dom Joly talks to André Rostant about The Muffin Man

Stanfords x Big Issue Event: The Muffin Man: A conversation with André Rostant and Dom Joly

Date and time: Thursday 9th January 2025. 19:00 – 20:30

Location: Stanfords London, 7 Mercer Walk, Covent Garden, WC2H 9FA

As Stanfords has been a well-known name in London since 1853 we’ve managed to build a real network of friends in the community from other local businesses to friendly faces of people working and living in the area. One of those faces that many of you may well know is André Rostant, the Big Issue vendor who is a published author and poet. 

To celebrate André’s book The Muffin Man, published earlier this year, he will be in conversation here at Stanfords, Covent Garden with the author and comedian Dom Joly. Join us for a brilliant and insightful evening talking about André’s book and raising awareness and support for the Big Issue.

Continue reading Dom Joly talks to André Rostant about The Muffin Man

Orbital by Samantha Harvey wins the Booker Prize 2024

Orbital by Samantha Harvey was last night, Tuesday, 12 November, named the winner of the Booker Prize 2024.

Orbital, which is Harvey’s fifth novel and sixth book, takes place over a single day in the life of six astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station. During those 24 hours they observe 16 sunrises and 16 sunsets over their silent blue planet, spinning past continents and cycling past seasons, taking in glaciers and deserts, the peaks of mountains and the swells of oceans. This compact yet beautifully expansive novel invites us to observe Earth’s splendour, whilst reflecting on the individual and collective value of every human life. 

We knew it was a great book as we’ve had it centre stage in our Map of the Month window since the beginning of the month.

Orbital is available now in paperback for £9.99

2024 Wainwright Prize Winners Announced

The winners of the 2024 Wainwright Prize were announced on Wednesday evening at Camley Street Natural Park, an urban nature reserve in the heart of London, with the event live streamed by The Wildlife Trusts.

The Wainwright Prize is awarded annually to books which most successfully inspire readers to embrace nature and the outdoors and develop a respect for the environment. This year’s winning books highlight the exploration of nature on a global scale through journeys of migration, finding beauty in the everyday, and celebrate the deep connections between humanity and nature through powerful storytelling.

THE 2024 WAINWRIGHT PRIZE WINNERS ARE:

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An Opinionated Guide to London Bookshops

We are honoured to be featured in the new book from Hoxton Mini Press. In An Opinionated Guide to London Bookshops with text by Sonya Barber and James Manning and photography by Ellen Christina Hancock, you will find a double page spread on Stanfords and 63 other places, including many of our fellow indie bookshop friends. It also contains an introduction and a ‘best for….’.

We think this is a perfect book to arrange a bookshop tour with. If you start at Stanfords you can also buy one of our London maps and plot your bookshop route around London.

London Bookshops is available now from Stanfords for £10.95

Stanford’s New Two Inch Map of London and its Environs. 1913

We are about to celebrate the 111th birthday of our Stanford’s New Two Inch Map of London and its Environs, 1913.

Published by Edward Stanford Ltd, 12,13 & 14 Long Acre . W.C . 1st July 1913.

This map from our Edward Stanford Cartographic Collection archive shows the capital the year before WW1 broke out at a scale of two inches to one mile. 

Richmond Park and Wimbledon Common sitting just outside the thick red line showing the Boundary of the Administrative Country of London

A thick red line shows the Boundary of the Administrative Country of London while a thinner red line shows the Boundary of the City of London.

Edwardian London saw a great deal of new building development which was halted by WW1 so not too many major changes would have occurred to this map for a few years.

Continue reading Stanford’s New Two Inch Map of London and its Environs. 1913

Independent Bookshop Week

Independent Bookshop Week 2024 was last week: Saturday 15 – Saturday 22 June and our owner Vivien Godfrey has written a few words of thanks to all our wonderful customers:

-by Vivien Godfrey

Launched in 2006 Independent Bookshop Week (IBW) is a celebration of independent bookshops across the UK and Ireland. Here at Stanfords IBW is very important to us because it highlights the vital role independent bookshops like us play in their communities, it also gives us a chance to thank all our customers for choosing us.

Since 1853, explorers, adventurers and authors have relied on the expert knowledge of our staff to help them plan expeditions and write books. As an independent bookshop with rent, taxes and expert staff (many of whom have worked for Stanfords for over 30 years) we have expenses that web only businesses do not have.

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Ways to spot a lost path

Guest Blog Post by Jack Cornish

In my recently published book, The Lost Paths, I explore the paths which reach into – and connect – communities across England and Wales. A network of paths which reveal how our ancestors have interacted with and shaped their surroundings over millennia. On the paths I discovered hundreds of stories – tales of love, commerce, death, graft and communication.

There are over 140,000 miles of recorded public rights of way in England and Wales, which started to be proactively and legally recorded from the early 1950s onwards. But tens of thousands more are missing from the maps, lying unclaimed and unprotected. So, as well as a celebration of an ancient network, I hope The Lost Paths will serve as a call to arms to reclaim and save our old paths – to preserve our history on foot. Below are some of my top tips for finding lost paths along with some of the paths that captivated me when writing The Lost Paths.

Look out for old stiles, bridges and fords – Often paths leave an impression, they are physical objects in the landscape. They are perhaps at their most tangible when they cross boundaries, natural and manmade. In The Lost Paths, I write about a lost path I walked in Lancashire, well used but not recorded as a public right of way. A wide track, with grass banks which merge into the surrounding hedges, with trees standing alongside as sentinels which mark the gentle drifts and curves of the lane. At its southern end, the path crosses a river – a quietly enchanting, almost hidden spot. In the riverbed can be seen the cobbles of an old ford and above the water, a beautiful, hunched packhorse bridge. These are tell-tale signs that the public have been coming this way for hundreds of years. Just some of the physical clues, alongside objects like old worn stiles buried in a hedge, that you may be looking at a lost public path.

Packhorse bridge on a lost path

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Happy Nepalese New Year

Happy 2081

Did you know that the official calendar used in Nepal is the Bikram Sambat or Vikram Samvat calendar, which is 56 years and 8 months ahead of the western calendar. Each year begins on the first day of the month Baisakh, which usually falls on April 13th or 14th in the western calendar.

To convert a Nepali date to a Gregorian date:

Subtract – 56 Years – 8 Months – 17 Days. There are 12 months, but the number of days in each month changes each year and can go up to 32. This means there is no need for a leap year.

Visiting Nepal soon? Discover our full range of books, guides, maps, maritime charts in store or at Stanfords.co.uk.

Here are some ideas:

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