Not fun anymore snob

Just ignore me in future.

northie, I recently went around western france with 40 year old maps and some really ancient red michelin guides. It make little difference, ok some things were harder to do and somethings easier but not a lot changes :-)

>>"<gray><i>household name</gray></i>"

LOL!<<

WTF -- you aren't making any sense. Are you saying is isn't a household name in the States? Or are you just having fun using <gray>gray</gray> and <i>italics</i>?

"household name"

Like Drano. (For Brits, that is like Marmite, except you use it to unclug your bathroom drain.)

bilboburgler -I had better stop throwing my guides out after 5 years LOL. The ones Michael P uses were printed in 1913 so keep everything.

<<Italy unplanned is ok but I love Michael Portillo's Great Continental Journeys -quaint with his old travel guide>>

Northie - I like Michael Portillo too - he is a much better broadcaster than he was politician though his dress sense leaves a little to be desired.

>> . . . though his dress sense leaves a little to be desired.<<

At least MP has fun w/ the garish jackets and all. RS wears the same cotton short sleeved shirt (sometimes long sleeves rolled up) and khaki slacks <i>everywhere</i>

gosh I cant wait to see RS in his "uniform" .perhaps the only way Ill see him is on google.

ha,Janis , you aren't keeping up with the RS sartorial make-over that has taken place since his new love and fellow tour guide came on the scene. He now sports jeans and sweaters slung over his slightly cooler-looking l.s. shirts. And his hair style and glasses have transitioned into the 21st. century...always remember, you can take the boy out of the PNW but a little bit of geekiness will always remain.

Rick Steves books, website tips, walking tour suggestions and maps have helped us many times.

We have waited over 1 year for you to say that deladeb.

Hehehe

Globe Trekker and Anthony Boursin.
Boursin lists restaurants visited in each episode on his website. Andrew Zimmerman too.
I don't mind Rick Steves' shows just to see a place we're heading to but those above are better.

Spellcheck overrode me! Bourdin and Zimmern

My husband and I look at the Rick Steves website to get ideas for trip itineraries. We will look at where his tours go and what route they take. Then we will decide if we want to see everything on that tour, or do we have some other ideas of things we'd like to see in that same, general route or area. Sometimes I'll have a place I want to see because I've been reading a history book and I want to see where certain events occurred. They won't be on a tour, but they are meaningful to me.

The thing that bugs me the most about RS videos is his historical inaccuracies and the myths he propagates about the past.

HappyT do you mean Anthony Bourdain?

Wolters World on Youtube

It was a dual purpose, bookmarking for other suggestions of people and sites to check out in the future, sarastro.

I like to use Rick Steve's materials for basic information and general historical background. But yes, he spends too many pages on elementary advice that experienced travelers can skip. And "famous"? How about "well known"?

Two things about his books: 1. Some of his text is just plain wrong. I think some of it is joking (Valerian root around the Cinque Terre) but some of his directions are misleading. 2. His cute maps, like his directions, can be misleading - e.g. making little alleys look like big streets.

I rarely use videos for travel planning. Don't know why. Maybe because you can't take the producer's point of view out of it? Read. Don't try to let the video do your work.

Thinking back over 20 years of travel, there was absolutely a time when we found R.S. guidebooks very useful. Lonely Planet and Let's Go were most useful in college when on a shoestring budget. Then came the R.S. years. We were newly married with some but not a lot of money and not much vacation. Rick's books helped us make the most of those limitations. We have some absolutely incredible memories from those years where we relied heavily on his books.

We are in a different phase of life now. We have more vacation and finances are not an issue, but we have two young sons (one of whom has special needs) whom we have always brought with us. We now stay in 1 or 2 spots max over our 2-3 week trips, always stay in apartments, and tend to spend more time at playgrounds than in nice restaurants. R.S. books aren't as helpful for this style of travel. We have a car and so do not need public transportation advice. We don't eat out often, instead hiring chefs to come to our apartment and do family-friendly cooking lessons on their off nights. We still sight-see, but prefer the lesser known museums and sights not mentioned in R.S. guidebooks as large crowds are not easy on our special kiddo.

In any case, I think R.S. guidebooks are very relevant and useful for a great many types of travelers. I was far from a newbie when we relied on them so much, but was new to that style of travel (mid-budget). They aren't for everyone, but they are certainly helpful for more than the very narrow segment of traveler mentioned in quite a few of the above comments.