Lonely Planet's famous travel series was written by Tony and Maureen Wheeler in 1972 in the western suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The book was created by Tony and Maureen Wheeler in 1972 in Footscray, a western suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The series has been published in a total of 650 topics, sold in 200 countries and regions around the world, accounting for about a quarter of the world's English travel guide sales, known as the "Bible" for backpackers. 2006 debuted in the Chinese market.