Best Travel Guide Book?
 

Hi all, <BR> <BR>I'm looking for a travel guide book of Europe. Can anybody suggest one which you think is the best? <BR> <BR>Cheers! <BR>

If I only got one for the whole of Europe, I'd probably take the Rough Guide.

No single guide to Europe is good enough for really intelligent trip planning. It's and area almost as large as the US and with a heck of a lot more history. It's far more sensible to purchase guides specific to the areas you'll be visiting. <BR> <BR>Objectively, and ignoring the identity of the operator of this site, I think the Fodor series is probably the best all around. I can find books that are better in this aspect or better in that aspect. <BR> <BR>In fact that's the reason that we don't use just one publication. The answer also depends on your budget, among other things. Rough Guide, Let's Go or Lonely Planet might be better for the traveler on a budget. <BR> <BR>All that said, if you're looking for a single book to cover the continent, Fodor's would be my choice. For most countries and destinations Fodor's specific guide would be my first choice as well, though there are exceptions. <BR> <BR>Ed

Damien, <BR>You will make a serious mistake if you limit yourself to just one guidebook. Some guides will emphasize historic, scenic and cultural attractions with no information on accommodations and dining, Michelin guides for example; others will place equal emphasis on highlights of interest to the tourists and on accommodations and dining; Fodor's and Frommer's are examples. Some guides are geared to the young traveler or the budget minded, Rick Steves guides and the Let's Go Guides as examples. I'd suggest you check a number of guides at your library or bookstore to see which has the most appeal to you and your interests and with which you are most comfortable, then invest in a good map and determine where you want to go and what you hope to experience within time, distance and monetary constraints. Once that is done, look for specific country and city guides that address your interests and needs. <BR> <BR>

I agree fully with the others: no one book is the best; nor is only one book going to be enough. Also, the area to which you plan on travelling has a lot to do with the decision. For example, I found the Lets Go Paris book to be excellent, but I was not as impressed with the Lets Go book on Austria. <BR>The Michelin Green Guide for Paris is great for history and architecture, but not as good on the general picture. <BR>So, you pays your money and you takes your choice! <BR>I would visit a major store like Borders or Barnes and Noble and skim through a few issues on the shelf and then take the ones that seem best suited to your needs.

I agree with the others about using more than one guide. I have found the Eyewitness Travel Guides to be a good source of info along with the standard Fodors,Michelin etc. guides.

damien <BR>one of the huge guide books for all of Europe is much too general as others have mentioned. <BR>My most valuable guidebook for Venice was a Frommer's publication Walking Tours: Venice but it seems to be a very difficult book to find. It was perfect because not only did it guide me step by unfamiliar step through the various neighborhoods but it also gave historical and cultural detail on my surroundings, even on individual art works. If you can't find it, the Fodor's guide is good. Another truly outstanding book is called Venice for Pleasure by J.G. Links. It is available from the Common Reader catalog www.acommonreader.com <BR>This book has walking itineraries including places to stop for rest and refreshment, and wonderful details on things to look at while you are walking and even while you are sitting down. <BR>I did not like the Eyewitness book for Florence and Tuscany. In general, I find the Eyewitness books beautiful to look at and informative for advance research and reading, but too heavy and too awkward to actually use on the trip, I was always flipping pages and scanning the index. <BR> I love the Fodor's guides for Paris and London.

Hi, Damien. I agree with the sentiments and recommendations of the previous posters. I might add two: Knopf guides are beautifully done, comprehensive re: culture and pricey (worth it). And Cadogan guides are great too, in my opinion. These would be nice additions to a more general guidebook of your choice. <BR> <BR>I recommend your local library to start out. Major sites change little over time (even centuries!) and you could get a good basic overview (and impression of publishers) from books that are "dated." THEN head out in pursuit of your purchases. I agree that you will need more than one! Enjoy!

Guidebooks on Europe are too big, too broad and too general. Guides for individual countries, regions and cities are far more comprehensive and useful. As others have stated, no one guide can give you everything you need, and as Bob Brown pointed out, just because one series is good for one place doesn't mean it's good for another. <BR> <BR>Ok here's an archaic idea - take a Saturday, go to your public library, and go through the guidebooks. If you've ever written a thesis or research paper, you know the drill. Once you've gotten the information from all the guidebooks (index cards, remember?), then you'll know which book(s) you'll want to buy (if any at all).

Funny that no one has mentioned the Time Out city guides. I have read and used many of the guides mentioned here, and not one of them compares to Time Out. They are extremely thorough, completely updated, very opinionated, and at times very funny. Unfortunately, selection is a bit limited. <BR> <BR>I've found that complementing TimeOut with Eyewitness works very well...

Hi! Everyone has the right idea. about books. Before I buy a book. I'll go to a bookstore and browse through their selection. Currently I have a rough guide european guide and an lp and fodors eastern and central eur. guides. I also have specific guides for each country. <BR> A question that I have is what type of travel are you planning? I currently use books that are not strong in restaurants and hotels thought they are listed. An example is a lonely planet guide or a Cadogan. I am more interested in the history and sights as well as maybe a walking or driving tour. <BR> I hope that I am not confusing the issues for you but I have been traveling for about 15 yrs. and the type of guidebook I use has evolved as my interests and experience has evolved. <BR>alan

I highly recommend Rick Steves' guidebooks. I have found so many travelers with books in hand. Everyone I've met raves about his choices. He covers "on the beaten track" as well as "off." Besides, his books are entertaining and make you feel you really want to go there. Most guide books are very dry; however, I often supplement with others - I do like Fodors.

HI all, <BR>Last year I went to Toronto, Canada and bought several guide books. I found Frommers to be the most informative, but as the other posters have indicated you need more then one book. I am going to Europe in June and have begun reading guide books, and so far I find Rick Steves books the most entertaining and the most informative. <BR>

I spent 4 months in Europe last year and consulted a variety of guide books and Rough Guide was heads above all others. Unbelievable accurate and supplies information I really needed for getting around, i.e. post offices, laundry,etc....

I love the Eyewitness Guides and Rick Steves. I have several Let's Go books and they're full of errors. We bought a bunch of them before we moved to Europe but I wouldn't buy them again. Just my opinion, but they've caused me too many problems along the way.

I think the Time Out Guide I bought for Amsterdam is accurate, complete and fun. Knopf and Eyewitness are pleasures. Michelin has a dry elegance. Most of the guidebooks have their merits and I like to look through a lot at the library or bookstore. <BR> <BR>Let's Go is the exception because of the unexcusable blunders within. I checked one out of the library last year, "Austria and Switzerland". On the cover they boasted, "now includes Budapest and Prague". But whoops! Once the reader opens the pages they will discover that the "Let's Go" hacks just plain forgot to include those little old chapters. I thought that took the cake.

Make those Let's Go guides inexcusable, not "unexcusable" and btw I emailed the Let's Go website and they 'fessed up to their ommision of said chapters, stating that I could, as consolation, read the pages about Budapest and Prauge online. Geez! Glad I didn't buy the book.

For practical advice, you can't beat Rick Steves. His overviews are good, too. I also like Cadogan a lot. I find both entertaining and helpful since I don't want to read my way through Europe.

As other posters have mentioned - get a variety. My background is information design and architecture - thus I lean more towards the Eyewitness Travel books because of the fairly detailed axonometric maps of the particular city I'm visiting - really beautiful. Time Out and Rough Guides are great for current info - but the maps are nothing but a jumble of black & white squares. Knopf guides I find to be more encyclopedic - lots of history, information and images - very nice. Last but not least - Fodors, which I've used numerous times to recommend various restaurants (almost all have been right on target)

I like Fodors for information, and I like Frommers because they list actual prices of hotel stays and restaurant average prices. Fodors and a lot of the other guide books use the $ or $$ or $$$ designations to indicated inexpensive to expensive. However, there is often a wide range in each which does not help me budget very well. The prices listed in Frommers are not always the exact price of a one night hotel stay, but they usually are or are very close to the actual price.