Rick Steves' Europe's Best Three Weeks
Feb 16th, 2005, 06:45 PM
#21
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IMO the good thing about RS is that he has given many people the confidence to travel in Europe who otherwise would never have done so.
The bad is that too many people follow him blindly, never venturing beyond his recs. This lack of creativity and spontaneity is sad, but not really Rick's fault.
The worst is that he has become so powerful that a rec from him is like a guaranteed income for a hotel or restaurant. As a result, there is much less incentive to maintain or increase their standards. I don't think this is anywhere near as big a problem for hotels as it is for restaurants, because I think that Americans' standards for hotels are as high as Europeans'. But food is another story, and I think it is too easy for a restaurant to weaken both the menu and the execution knowing that its clients are budget-minded American readers of Rick Steves. In preparation for each trip to France I check RS restaurant recs and will not eat at one without very careful consideration and outside research, such as with you Fororites!
The bad is that too many people follow him blindly, never venturing beyond his recs. This lack of creativity and spontaneity is sad, but not really Rick's fault.
The worst is that he has become so powerful that a rec from him is like a guaranteed income for a hotel or restaurant. As a result, there is much less incentive to maintain or increase their standards. I don't think this is anywhere near as big a problem for hotels as it is for restaurants, because I think that Americans' standards for hotels are as high as Europeans'. But food is another story, and I think it is too easy for a restaurant to weaken both the menu and the execution knowing that its clients are budget-minded American readers of Rick Steves. In preparation for each trip to France I check RS restaurant recs and will not eat at one without very careful consideration and outside research, such as with you Fororites!
Feb 16th, 2005, 06:55 PM
#22
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Edward2005: Are you suggesting that Rick Steves contributed in a positive way to the fact that the Italian government made the Cinque Terre a national park in 1999? That, I think, would be a complete misapprehension; the Italian government was more likely trying to protect, while it still could and as far as it could, a small, underpopulated region from the inroads of mass tourism. Had it not done so, I daresay developers would have built inexpensive hotels that climbed higher and higher up the coastline. (I have never suggested, and I do not now, that SOME Italians do not take advantage of the popularity of certain regions to the detriment of those places.) And you cannot deny that Rick Steves was a major instigator of the run on the Cinque Terre.
I do not suggest that the German and Italian tourists who, you say, are in the majority in the Cinque Terre have necessarily read Rick Steves. But surely you have heard of word-of-mouth? It does not take long for word to get out, "Hey, there's a new inexpensive place on the Italian coast -- let's go!"
Rick Steves' obsession with doping things cheaply does not only offer American tourists that choice; it actively encourages many of them, to the detriment of the economies of the places that his readers flood to and overflood. As I keep repeating in this forum, each individual resident of Venice has to clean up after roughly 263 visitors, of whom 80% have bought only a sandwich and a Coke and have left the litter for the Venetians to clean up.
I do not suggest that the German and Italian tourists who, you say, are in the majority in the Cinque Terre have necessarily read Rick Steves. But surely you have heard of word-of-mouth? It does not take long for word to get out, "Hey, there's a new inexpensive place on the Italian coast -- let's go!"
Rick Steves' obsession with doping things cheaply does not only offer American tourists that choice; it actively encourages many of them, to the detriment of the economies of the places that his readers flood to and overflood. As I keep repeating in this forum, each individual resident of Venice has to clean up after roughly 263 visitors, of whom 80% have bought only a sandwich and a Coke and have left the litter for the Venetians to clean up.
Feb 16th, 2005, 07:11 PM
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What a bizarre thread. People are so angry! I suppose these debates have been going on for as long as there has been tourism and guidebooks.
For example, RS didn't invent the whirlwind trip-the average American attention span is notoriously short, and so many people get so little much vacation time, that tour companies for years have offered trips like this. Lonely Planet and other books offer their best trips in whatever amount of time-one weeks, two weeks, etc, as well. Nor are RS readers the first to travel only the recommendations of their book. Many travels are too timid to eat, drink or travel beyond the bounds of their guidebooks.
I also don't find him obsessed with cheapness at all-the Let's Go and Lonely Planet series are for those on a budget, but not RS guides.
For example, RS didn't invent the whirlwind trip-the average American attention span is notoriously short, and so many people get so little much vacation time, that tour companies for years have offered trips like this. Lonely Planet and other books offer their best trips in whatever amount of time-one weeks, two weeks, etc, as well. Nor are RS readers the first to travel only the recommendations of their book. Many travels are too timid to eat, drink or travel beyond the bounds of their guidebooks.
I also don't find him obsessed with cheapness at all-the Let's Go and Lonely Planet series are for those on a budget, but not RS guides.
Feb 16th, 2005, 07:26 PM
#26
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Rick Steves philosophy of travel is what got me traveling again after many years of staying home. Following in the footsteps of the old "Europe on $5 a Day" (was it Frommers) he certainly has opened the way to some great trips for us. Frankly there are aome things he says that I flat out disagree with, but then, there are some things I see on this website that I disagree with...but I get over it.
Feb 16th, 2005, 07:50 PM
#28
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<<RS didn't invent the whirlwind trip - the average American attention span is notoriously short, and so many people get so little much vacation time, that tour companies for years have offered trips like this.>>
I think that this is what makes this particular "itinerary" so ripe for lampooning - - it is NOT "through the back door" - - it is barely sticking your head through the front door! 1 day in Venice? 1 day in Florence? end the trip with less than 18 hours in Paris?
I am not one of the vitriolic detractor of Rick Steves' enthusiastic "you-can-do-it" evangelism.
But this is either a parody of how to really take a "grand tour" (a concept I question anyhow), or a betrayal of sound travel advice that merits being ridiculed.
I think that this is what makes this particular "itinerary" so ripe for lampooning - - it is NOT "through the back door" - - it is barely sticking your head through the front door! 1 day in Venice? 1 day in Florence? end the trip with less than 18 hours in Paris?
I am not one of the vitriolic detractor of Rick Steves' enthusiastic "you-can-do-it" evangelism.
But this is either a parody of how to really take a "grand tour" (a concept I question anyhow), or a betrayal of sound travel advice that merits being ridiculed.
Feb 16th, 2005, 08:01 PM
#29
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I had no idea who Rick Steves was until I found this board. I still haven't bought any books, but I've looked through a couple now.
For better or worse, there is a difference between his materials and others.
1) Most guidebooks I've read seem to be fairly comprehensive of the areas, cities or countries that they cover. RS seems to be more favorite-spot oriented. There's not enough "meat" about anyone place in an RS book, compared to others for my tastes.
2) Are there other guidebook companies that have become a travel industry? Fodors Tour, Frommers Luggage, LP salt-n-pepper shakers?
3) Because of the limited scope of coverage + big celebrity appeal, RS's books have a reputation for concentrating the followers into few places.
4) I've never seen anyone go off the deep end when someone said they didn't like LP books, or accuse detractors of being jealous of Rough Guides. (c'mon, you know it's coming....)
Feb 16th, 2005, 10:06 PM
#30
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All this rage toward Rick is really quite amusing! I guess one man's cheap is another man's treasure. I for one cannot afford to stay in many of Rick's suggested hotels. What does that make me? Should I be ashamed to post on this board that is sometimes dominated by elitist snobs? My wife and I love to travel and we make do on our budget. We use Let's Go and Lonely Planet budget recommendations and we enjoy our trips. I love to read about travel - PERIOD. I don't agree with everything in ANY travel guide book I have read. Shouldn't we be able to disagree without ridiculing the man who just wants to get more people to have the guts to travel on their own? Sure he has gotten rich selling his guide books - isn't that part of the American dream?
Feb 17th, 2005, 03:49 AM
#31
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RS' 3-week whirlwind tour of Europe is just that -- a whirlwind. That's what he calls it. If you want to savor a region, he has tours for that too, like a 17-day tour just of Italy, a 15-day tour of only Italian villages, or a 13-day tour of Provence. Like any other tour company he has a tour for most any itinerary the market will bear.
But let's go back in time 30 years. A young travel author named Rick Steves has just stumbled upon the Cinque Terra and fallen in love with it. What should he do next? Keep it a secret or put it in his guidebook?
And to be fair to RS, when he finds a small gem like Civita di Bagnoregio, he begs his readers to treat the place with care and respect.
But let's go back in time 30 years. A young travel author named Rick Steves has just stumbled upon the Cinque Terra and fallen in love with it. What should he do next? Keep it a secret or put it in his guidebook?
And to be fair to RS, when he finds a small gem like Civita di Bagnoregio, he begs his readers to treat the place with care and respect.
Feb 17th, 2005, 04:47 AM
#32
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I don't follow Rick Steves, have never had one of his guides, and haven't visited too many of the places he has "made". Somehow in 5 trips to Italy we have never made it to Cinque Terre. We plan to go this fall for a couple of days. If it is as underwhelming as our first visit to the Rue Cler last fall (on our 7th trip to Paris), I'll stop following the RS herds through Europe.
Feb 17th, 2005, 05:08 AM
#33
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I dislike his political ranting, but there was none of it in that link.
I'm rather fond of rubbish. I like the itineraries: I treat them like concentrated food products, not designed to be consumed without adding water (or in this case, extra time.)They are designed as templates; it is easy to alter them to one's own requirements. They also make transportation decisions a breeze, since commuting times and frequencies by public transportation are summarized at the end of each chapter; driving tips are also given.
His accomodation descriptions give one a clear idea of exactly what X euro will buy one in which market. Again, one can treat the advice like a concentrated food product; add more money as one's tastes and requirements dictate.
I'm not serious, and I travel anyway. As for RS, he publishes his books because they sell, which I admit is not a very sophisticated notion.
I'm rather fond of rubbish. I like the itineraries: I treat them like concentrated food products, not designed to be consumed without adding water (or in this case, extra time.)They are designed as templates; it is easy to alter them to one's own requirements. They also make transportation decisions a breeze, since commuting times and frequencies by public transportation are summarized at the end of each chapter; driving tips are also given.
His accomodation descriptions give one a clear idea of exactly what X euro will buy one in which market. Again, one can treat the advice like a concentrated food product; add more money as one's tastes and requirements dictate.
I'm not serious, and I travel anyway. As for RS, he publishes his books because they sell, which I admit is not a very sophisticated notion.
Feb 17th, 2005, 05:14 AM
#34
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I agree with TexasAggie on this one. While I don't agree with everything Rick Steves says, and I certainly don't follow all of his advice, I have several of his guidebooks and I found a lot of the information to be quite helpful. He gives lots of useful tips and suggestions that have helped us on several of our vacations.
While I, too, think his three week "wirlwind" trip is insane, its no worse than some of the itineraries that people have posted here. Apparently there are a lot of people that prefer to see Europe from a train window. But, like Edward said, he calls it "wirlwind" for a reason.
While I, too, think his three week "wirlwind" trip is insane, its no worse than some of the itineraries that people have posted here. Apparently there are a lot of people that prefer to see Europe from a train window. But, like Edward said, he calls it "wirlwind" for a reason.
Feb 17th, 2005, 05:47 AM
#35
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We have used his books to help plan trips, but in conjunction with others. His lodging recommendations are not the same style as what we look for, so we just ignore that part. Same with eating, and tours are not our style either. The other information he provides though is good and helps us determine what we do and do not want to see. We used to live just a few minutes from his headquarters, and before each trip we made a stop there. He of course has all his books and videos for sale, but you can also sit in the library area and browse through travel books from many other authors/sources. We really liked that he did not keep it limited to his own books. You could also sit and view the videos...you did not have to buy them. So his company does have some good qualities and from our experiences at his headquarters, he wants people to plan a trip that is right for them.
Feb 17th, 2005, 05:55 AM
#36
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Hi,
I am in the process of planning my first European vacation. I leave in 34 days. I've been using RS guidebooks and found them very helpful. So up until a few days ago I was a big RS fan. I even bought some of his DVD's. Then I read something in his Paris 2005 guidebook that really got my gander up. In the chapter on the Louvre on page 154 he talks about the Richelieu wing of the Louvre, which holds a lrge collection of asian art. On page 154 he talks about all the rulers of present day Iraq, and ends the chapter by stating "In A.D. 2003, 5000 years of invasions, violence, and regime change finally came to an end when peace, prosperiety, and decomracy were established for all time in Iraq by the United States of America under the benevolent guidance of George W. Bush" Nothing could be further from the truth. It is now 2005 and they still don't have peace. Was he temporarily insane when he wrothe this?
I am in the process of planning my first European vacation. I leave in 34 days. I've been using RS guidebooks and found them very helpful. So up until a few days ago I was a big RS fan. I even bought some of his DVD's. Then I read something in his Paris 2005 guidebook that really got my gander up. In the chapter on the Louvre on page 154 he talks about the Richelieu wing of the Louvre, which holds a lrge collection of asian art. On page 154 he talks about all the rulers of present day Iraq, and ends the chapter by stating "In A.D. 2003, 5000 years of invasions, violence, and regime change finally came to an end when peace, prosperiety, and decomracy were established for all time in Iraq by the United States of America under the benevolent guidance of George W. Bush" Nothing could be further from the truth. It is now 2005 and they still don't have peace. Was he temporarily insane when he wrothe this?
