Travel Guides
 

What has become of the venerable Michelin travel guides? I wanted to buy the newest version of the one for the Nice region, but nothing is available. I have older Guides but must, I suppose, settle for the Rick Steves guide for current information.

Underhill, I use guidebooks, and it usually doesn't matter how old they are, only to get an idea of what we'll want to see and do, but I never trust even the latest edition to be accurate as to open days and hours.

After we come up with our list I check out every item on the internet, using the most specific website I can.

Though at least one time a garden's own website wasn't up to date, but google was. We trusted the website but we should have trusted google.

Have you used viamichelin.com? You can get some info from their website. Choose maps, type in Nice, and click on "tourist attractions" to see what's where. Click on any icon on the map and it'll identify the site and tell you how many stars it has in the guidebook. I just now did that for fun and I can already tell you're going to have a good, busy time there. And that's even without checking their restaurant listings.

Again, I wouldn't trust viamichelin to keep their website up to date, so closer to the time of the visit I'd do an online check. ( I say that, but I don't always do it. Each night on the trip I know I should check out tomorrow's schedule but usually I'm too tired. I take the attitude that even if something goes wrong, we're in France so it's all good.)

I hope all goes well and that you write us a trip report when you get home.

Underhill,
I used to buy the red Michelin guide every year, but now I use viamichelin.com for my travel planning in France. No need to purchase the guide when everything is online (their recommended hotels/restaurants, etc.) I could still buy the red guides at my local B&N but viamichelin.com keeps everything up to date.

I also have the green guides for touring.

The Green Guides are still available:

https://travelguide.michelin.com/

I bought the Rick Steves guide to use along with my old Michelin Green Guide to Nice. There's just something about printed information, compared with an Internet search. The Steves guide will be useful for more up-to-date information, but the Green Guide is still our go-to. thanks for the info on buying them.

The Rick Steves outfit has been busy updating guidebooks, but the post-Covid ones aren't all out yet. Go here - https://store.ricksteves.com/shop/guidebooks - click on the book you want and then on Product Details to see the publication date. I tend to use Lonely Planet as well as or instead of RS, even for Europe (and Rough Guide, Bradt, Odyssey etc. beyond western Europe). For the books I checked at Lonely Planet it claims "all businesses were rechecked before publication to ensure they are still open after 2020’s COVID-19 outbreak" but the newest editions aren't out yet.

An alternative I have started to use is the Blue Guide series which is quite art heavy [and heavy itself come to that] and not such a convenient shape. I still like it however.

Art heavy...hmm, that would suit us well, annhig. Thanks for the suggestion. We've already planned to re-visit the Chagall Museum, the Musée des Beaux Arts (2 whole rooms of our great favorite, Dufy), and with luck the Maeght Fondation. Might fit in the Musée Massena but will skip the Modern Art Museum: too hard on the feet. We've never made it to the Villa Kerylos; so perhaps, if public transport is easy. Ditto for the Cocteau Fisherman's Chapel at Villefranche-sur-Mer.

UH, I used to do a little semi-pro travel writing on the side back during the 80s and 90s. Many of my earlier articles focused on comparing and contrasting the various guidebooks.
One more that I might suggest here for your search is the outstanding Gallimard series. One knows them by their taller, thinner shape. Those books are in French bien sur, but their mix of maps and useful articles is impressive. We've included them as part of our research for southern France and most recently, in Quebec and Montreal. *Although I've never used it, they do have a Nice edition. It apparently dates from 2019.

Thing is, they are devilish hard to find on the Interwank. Sometimes they add 'Cartoville' to their title, sometimes not. And confusingly, there is an actual bookstore in Montreal with exact same name.
Bon chance.
I am done. the Gallimard

Underhill, i don't know the one which covers Nice, and it is 20 years old, but it still seems to be available on Amazon.

I thought Villa Kerylos very interesting. I also recommend the Asian museum: https://maa.departement06.fr/musee-d...ues-13422.html

annhig, I found a used copy of the Blue Guide on the ABE (new and used books) site. Now...will the book get here in time? The outside date for delivery is the date we leave! Should have had it sent to our hotel.

i hope so Underhill. Fingers crossed!

UH, maybe check out a daytrip from Nice up to St. Agnes, or Saorge or the Iles de Lerin.
Hope that all goes well.
I am done. le porc-epic

thursdaysd, Thanks for the recommendation of the Asian Museum. It's on the list, but sorry that we'll miss
the current wood-block print exhibition. Can't see enough of those!

annhig, I see that I've ordered TWO copies of the Blue Guide; so one ought to get here in time, I hope. Perhaps they'll have a race.

zebec, We'll be sticking to outings with good public transportation, as we aren't planning to have a car this time around. That might change, however, if DH recovers his love for French driving.

I just dug up my old Nice to Paris TR for another poster, which reminded me of the little train I took to Entrevaux: https://www.tourism-alps-provence.com/train-des-pignes/

Underhill, if you like us are art-heavy, do try to get to St.PdeVence, but check what will be on display inside the Maeght, we were not impressed with the holdings on our October visit, but the setting and exterior sculptures are great. And do have lunch at Colombe d'Or right in town before walking inside the StPdeV walls. Lunch was spectacular, the art work you dine amongst (my head 6" directly under a huge Matisse) and its sculptures and what-not inside the old bar area was by far our best experience at StPdeV. Not cheap, but not unreasonable, and the dining room is old world elegance (for a pleasant change), it has remained a country inn. Reservations easy online well in advance.

aliced, We;'ve been to St-Paul-de-Vence a number of times, including the Maeght Fondation. The art at the Colombe d'Or was a rare treat, but the food (and prices) less so.

<<annhig, I see that I've ordered TWO copies of the Blue Guide; so one ought to get here in time, I hope. Perhaps they'll have a race.>>

Lol, Underhill, how did you manage that? I know that if that were me, they'd either not arrive at all or both arrive before I left.

Amateur:-)

https://www.renaud-bray.com/cartoville.aspx