Maribel's Guides - the best

Old Jun 2nd, 2010, 06:11 AM
  #21  
 
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Marija and bob -- why the immature responses? What is wrong with you? Must fodor's be a religion where a few gurus go unquestioned. We ALL offer our advice generously and for free on Fodor's. Some people like Maribel, others have been disappointed by her -- and I am not the only one. Maribel's guides are not a "basic" guide to the regions of Spain. (For one thing, there is not a single paragraph of history in them.)

Marija, as I said in my first point, I DID have other guides with me -- and not Rick Steves, whom I also find clueless about satisfying travel for me. I don't know why you pack a guide but the reason I do is PRECISELY because I want to save money and not waste my time on the road. I would love to get a refund on the gas and time I wasted following Maribell's lead in Catalonia. Maribel's guides were useless to me precisely because of that. Side by side with the Rough Guide, the descriptions of towns in the Rough Guide were much better for making choices about how to spend my time learning about Catalonia. Maribel's guides are mainly about quaint sightseeing.

I also twice used her hotel recommendations and wished I hadn't. They were overpriced 3 stars where you pay for "character" in exchange for comfort. And I fast realized in San Sebastian that going on your own in the pinxtos bars was much more the reason to be there than to head for Michelin restaurants.

If you just want to follow a sheet a paper around, like a bus tour guide without the bus, Maribel's guides might be the right one for you, especially if you like shopping.

But people reading Fodor's who are about to drop a lot of money on a trip to Spain deserve to know -- for free -- that Maribel's guides are not basic guides, they are not going to get you off the beaten track and there are better guides out there -- but yes, you have to pay for them. How contrarian! People having information to make a choice about their own trip!
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Old Jun 2nd, 2010, 07:45 AM
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One more thing about guides and guidebooks:

Some years ago, I purchased a restaurant guide to Italy and the first time I used it for a trip, I discovered that not only did I like the recommended restaurants, I felt the same way about the towns the author recommended as destinations. It fast became my favorite guidebook to Italy as a whole, not just the food.

By contrast, I recently picked up a short restaurant guide to Paris that I ended up ditching after 2 meals. And just the other day I was reading on a different message board a trip report by someone who wrote that they ditched one of my favorite food guides to Rome in their hotel room after a few days.

We don't all have to write "Amen!" on Fodor's or bow to some consensus point of view about Maribel's guides to Spain or anybody's guides or face punishment from the board's bullies.

My criticisms of Maribel's guides are civil and intended to expand on future traveler's knowledge of what's out there other than Maribel.

I have read more than one post on Fodor's about some self-promoting travel guru where somebody essentially writes: "If X says go there, I go there. That's good enough for me." But most people don't travel that way and can't afford to travel that way, and it's a big reason why people come to message boards -- to hear from a spectrum of travel experience and then figure out which direction is most suited to their travel interests.
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Old Jun 2nd, 2010, 08:16 AM
  #23  
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zeppole -- couldn't agree with u more that one of the values of travel boards is the wide range of experiences and opinions. Sometimes the criticisms can be the most valuable posts. Also on your point about the history being included in guide books, I find that generally i need two different books, ones that focus on history don't always have as much info about hotels and restaurants.

And while we all offer our advice on fodors for free, its not quite the same as asembling the information in an organized fashion for people to download. I started this thread because I wanted to publicly thank someone who has offered much on Spain and helped us -- not to say that her way is the only way...certainly didn't mean to generate controversy.
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Old Jun 2nd, 2010, 09:34 AM
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zepploe, when is your "guide book" coming out?
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Old Jun 2nd, 2010, 10:54 AM
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Amen !
Everyone should express their opinions and not agree with every guide book. But when opinions from some people are all negative and contrary there is something wrong.
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Old Jun 2nd, 2010, 06:46 PM
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" We don't all have to write "Amen!" on Fodor's or bow to some consensus point of view about Maribel's guides to Spain or anybody's guides or face punishment from the board's bullies."

We did not say anything of the sort my dear fellow or lady ( as the case may be).

I do hope this does not turn into "tit for tat" because it is spoiling a good thread.

This thread seemed to be simply offering praise. I feel the praise is due.

Maribel and her guides were the single most helpful source of information I have read. Honestly I also enjoy her writing style, and also share her travel style....punto & final.
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