Melanie

For an upcoming trip to Europe, I borrowed quite a few tapes from the local library. Many of them are Rick Steves' tapes, which I've greatly enjoyed. I did notice that in the earlier tapes (or so it seems) Steves is shown with his wife and children. The more recent tapes show him with a male friend. Is Steves gay? (I ask this out of curiosity only, and mean nothing disparaging by it.)<BR><BR>Melanie

xxx

Rick Steves has been a hot topic before & still is now.

g

Some of the more recent episodes do have the wife and kids, just not as often.

xxx

just to fuel the fire, the wife and kids probably got sick of traveling on the cheap and staying at fleabag hotels.

American

Hey xxx<BR><BR>Your a real pain, there's nothing wrong with the way Rick Steves travels, some people like to spend a ton of money and some don't.<BR><BR>Get a life.

Duke

I met a lady in her 70s that owns a shop in Rothenburg. She met Rick years ago before all the books. He still writes her and sends photos of the family on a consistent basis. She had them going back quite a few years. Could not say enough nice things about Rick and family.

Melanie

The questions remains.<BR><BR>M

Amy

What does it matter?

Pennywise

It amazes me how much vitriol the subject of Rick Steves seem to generate on this thread (it’s early, just wait…).<BR><BR>I have a couple of his books and I’ve watched the series Europe THROUGH THE BACK DOOR which ran on our local PBS affiliate a few years back. <BR><BR>Rick is a nerd and a bit of a dink, but there’s little wrong with his information. Personally I’d rather see ol’ Rick on a dead run through Paris or London than to see nothing about Paris or London at all.<BR><BR>I’ve traveled alone, with friends, with my wife and daughter, around England, France, and Scotland. I never spend a great deal of money because I don’t have it to spend, but we ALWAYS have a ball. My friends back home sit in beautiful homes with preposterous mortgage payments, drive their $60,000 Lincoln and Cadillac SUV’s, (which average about 10 or less miles per expensive gallon of gasoline), wear the trendiest clothes (and make sure their kids do too) and marvel how it is that I can go to Europe every year and they can’t afford to go to the next state for the holidays.<BR><BR>I’m sure I’ve never paid more than &pound;50 for a room in London, I don’t “shop” for things in Europe that cost more than at home (just so I can say, “I bought this in a little shop near the Avenue Des Champs-Elysees ). I enjoy good food but I don’t eat like Henry VIII.<BR><BR>I read threads here from time to time from “budget” travelers and I’m amazed at how much more they spend for just about everything than I do. In spite of all that, the people that I travel with have always asked when we can “all” go back, so apparently I’m known as a good guide and a person who enjoys myself and not as a skinflint.<BR><BR>Rick's picks rarely strike me as “cheap”. They might be modest, or frugal, or sometimes considerably more expensive than I would deem necessary.<BR><BR>But I figure if this guy can turn a lifelong travel addiction into a source for considerable revenue, god bless ‘im. I’ll bet that 90% of those who trash him would give their left pinky finger to do the same.<BR><BR>C`est la vie.<BR><BR>

xxx

I believe he still lives around Edmonds with his wife and kids. His website says so anyway. What does it matter, anyway?

Roger

The beauty of Steves' guides are that they winnow information to a bare minimum. He also realizes that Americans generally have shorter vacation periods than Europeans so it is necessary for Americans to economize time. However, I would also take things written by him with a grain of salt. He is headstrong in what he finds most important and he is rigid in his favorites. I would take a Steves guide but would add a Let's Go guide to augment. As for Steves' sexuality, he is married with kids. I do not think he is bisexual but Edward II and James I proved you can get married, have kids and still yearn for forbidden love.

curious

Penny: Where the heck to you stay in London for 50 pounds per night?? Even Rick's suggestions typically start at 60, I think (absent suggestions to stay on a Hide Park Bench). I consider myself frugal, but London eats me alive.

Philip

If it's a man with a beard, that is his producer/director.

Carol

I met a shop owner in Varenna, Italy last year who knows Rick from his many visits there. He said Rick keeps in touch with him by letters and on a recent trip to US, Rick took him out to dinner. He said he has helped tourism in Varenna so much and the merchants and business people were very appreciative.

mile

his tapes are good, although lately he<BR>is all about packing and not really much<BR>info. about the area his visiting.<BR>his info. center in redmond is excellent and people are very helpfull.<BR> if he is gay, who cares. it is about time some of us americans learn to care & <BR>worry about other stuff than anyones se-<BR>xuality. Grow up!!!! <BR>

GeeZuzz

I'm with Penny. There are numerous Spartan but meticulously clean hotels even in Bloomsbury where a single can easily be had for less than &pound;50, sometimes considerably less, but I'm hesitant to mention them by name because I want them to stay that way.<BR><BR>I think a lot of the truth is that Americans are too spoiled to climb one or two flights of stairs. They’re too hooked on a room “with a view.” They’re positively obsessed with having a bathroom en suite, even if it means that the bathroom is smaller than a coat closet, has no ventilation, and that they’re sleeping with their head 6 feet from a toilet. <BR><BR>Many American seem to approach renting a hotel room as if they were selecting a second home. When I travel I want to spend as little time in my room as is humanly possible. I want to sleep there, safe, clean, and comfortably, and I want to have a place to store my bags. Other than a shower every morning my room demands are quite humble. Therefore they never cost much.<BR><BR>In a delightfully bohemian part of London, Earl's Court, one can easy bargain for a room for &pound;20! I’ve done it many times, though I strongly advise travelers to inspect the room closely for cleanliness and amenities before renting. I’ve only been burned once. But a friend of mine refuses to stay in Earl's Court because “its so far from everything.”<BR><BR>Reckon he’s never heard of the Tube. I’ve rarely found myself too far from anything in London thanks to the Underground.<BR>

Gerry K

If I asked if Rick Steves was married, would that imply that there's something wrong with being married? I think not. Melanie's question makes no negative implications. And now I'm curious too. And only that.<BR><BR>GK

x

He does seem gay doesn't he?<BR>But I have seen some of those episodes with the wife and a kid or two,dragging along behind Rick.<BR>My son has traveled for years all over the world,and not spent a lot of money,and has never heard of Rick Steves,so that is not a really good argument for him.Anyone can travel and not have to follow Rick Steves!

traveler

Rick Steves and Trading Places. My favorite shows-they motivate me to do things that I didn't think I could do. Next trip goal. 3 weeks in Italy for my family of four for less thatn $2000.

Oscar

No self respecting gay man would dress, look or act like Rick Steves - please MARY god forbid. If he is I'm talking to the admission board immediately and having his gay card revoked - label him American but please - not gay.