During my younger years, Rick Steves PBS program inspired my desire to travel. I'm still a fan, and would say I identify with him more than the others. Yet, a dash of Samantha Brown here and there is a welcome treat.

Love to watch all the travel shows mentioned including Burt Wolf.
http://www.burttravels.com/ We used to use Rick's books to travel but now we follow the info on Rick, Foders, Frommers and tripadvisor and make our own decisions. I didn't like standing on a Paris streetcorner reading Rick Steves book with other people reading the same book. :)

Out of the four, probably most like Rick Steves.

Paul

<i>I didn't like standing on a Paris streetcorner reading Rick Steves book with other people reading the same book. </i>

Good point, but if it weren't for one of Rick's books, I wouldn't have known that you could take a lift up and walk from one town to another in the Alps! I also wouldn't have known how to do a super-short visit to the Sistine Chapel (long story). He really has some excellent suggestions, even if hotels aren't among them!

dmlove You are right about Rick he gives some good info that has helped us many times. But I don't go by his hotels or b&amp;b selections anymore. Some of his info is outdated by the time it comes into print. He has helped more Americans travel in Europe independently than any other person.

I wish to sleep like Samantha Brown, see as much of Europe as Rick Steves, be as confident as Anthony Bourdain, and have nothing to do with Andrew Zimmerman.

Aw, thanks to LJ for mentioning Ian Wright. I also like the response about who you'd like to travel WITH. Bourdain is irreverently hunky, but I'd pick Ian Wright any day! (And I think the Geico gecko must have been modeled after him -- this may only make sense to US posters.)

Samantha Brown - not that I could afford 5* hotels - love her series on China. I want to hug a panda even if it costs $250. Have been to China - Beijing, Xian, etc. but now want to return because of the information on the series.

<i>He really has some excellent suggestions, even if hotels aren't among them!</i>

I'm not really a fan of Rick Steves, but I would say his coverage of the major museums is the best of any of the big guidebooks.

<i>I don't understand this fascination with eating weird/different food. How many people go on vacation wanting to eat wood worm (Phlippines) or strange meat?</i>

But you might like it. And weird is such a relative term. Does grilled octopus count? Escargot? Raw (which are actually still alive) Oysters? Objectively, I would think these are pretty odd foods. It is only that they are common in the west that we think them weird.

I don't go that far out of my way to eat obscure foods like wood worm, but if a food is highly regarded in a region, I don't see a reason to not give it a try.

Sometimes Samantha Brown, sometimes Anthony Bourdain, depends on my mood and the destination.

Bourdain, btw, is S*x on a Stick (to me, at least)

macinpy:
If you go to Asia you will be surprised you might just be able to afford 5 star hotels and the service you receive is outstanding!
To get the same in Europe you would have to spend maybe 3 or 4 times that much!

Well I'd only heard of two of the four until some kind poster enlightened.

As I don't travel to eat, (3) is out. As I think spending mega amounts on somewhere to sleep is idiotic (1) is out.

I don't need Rick Steves to tell me where to go, and would probably avoid anywhere he suggested.

In other words - none of the above, but I appreciate the inventiveness of the question.

To be honest I find them all annoying except for Bourdain, but I second the nomination of Ian Wright and the Globe Trekker crew.

More like Steves in terms of the places we stay and eat most of the time. But we tend to stay in one place longer.

Non of above.

BillT - We did stay in 5* hotels for our tour in China about 8 years ago. Accommodations were wonderful! Although part of a prepaid tour we were able to figure the cost of the hotels and they were low by comparison with Europe and the US. China is on our list for a return visit...after we do a few more &quot;must see&quot; and &quot;first time&quot; places.

Ditto bratsandbeer -- Our style is our own, forged from many travel sources, especially this one!

I'm probably like Rick Steves but I'm not a Rick Steves zombie - the people who travel with his book, go exactly where he suggests, stay where he suggests and eat what he suggests.

I do one carry-on only, stay at a variety from hostels to pensions and budget hotels (unlike Samantha), eat local food only (but don't go out of my way to make it wierd like Zimmern) and I like to try the local beer and wine (but don't exist between a hangover and stupor like Bourdain). I also don't spend a lot of time shopping like Samantha Brown. I'd rather spend the time seeing things that are of historic, artistic or architechtural significance.

Probably my travel style is more Steves/Samantha as I go mostly to tame destinations and don't eat bugs.

That said my drinking style is more Bourdain ;-)

topping

Probably Samantha Brown as we like the better hotels and apartments(not 5 star, but 4 or possibly 3).

Last sept. we spent 3 wks. in France with just a carry-on as they lost our luggage, and we didn't see it again until after we got home. I must say, we probably will never check again. It worked out fine, and it was nice not having so much to choose from. Rick Steves is right about that. We were in an apartment with a washer and dryer, so it wasn't a problem at all.

Travel On!

Probably between Rick Steves and Bourdain. I wish I was more like Bourdain, and I do love to try interesting and diverse food. However, I like searching long and hard for the perfect, charming little boutique B&amp;Bs for a great price. My traveling involves few museums and galleries, many castles and churches, lots of landscapes and local pubs. I'm willing to pay more to get a better meal than Rick Steves is, too.

While I would rather be closer to Bourdain, I don't think I want to be more like Zimmern - I'm not THAT adventurous!

In my mind this question from the beginning twists around to who would I want to travel WITH.

3) Anthony Bourdain

is my only answer. The other 3 embarrass me for various reasons.

I love the backdoor, I mean I vote for Rick Steves.

hmmm - I wouldn't mind traveling WITH Anthony Bourdain either, altho my solo style is more Rick Steves: one carryon bag, taking trains, small family-run centrally-located hotels -- sometimes with the bathroom down the hall, renting bicycles, talking to locals, eating local daily specials, drinking local wines.
I definitely agree with the poster who said that Rick Steves has done so much to encourage people to travel to Europe, and with his books and tv shows has given people the confidence to do so.

That'd be a separate question and Rick Steves wins by a landslide! Which travel personality helped the most people get the heck off their couch and travel with confidence self-planned to Europe... go Rick Steves.

Yeah, I'd definitely prefer to travel WITH Bourdain - he's awesome :)

I prefer the Bourdain style. He hates touristy stuff and loves the food of the people of the country he visits.

Interesting question. Our style is probably a little Bourdain and Steves. We are back-door, small town, out of the way travelers that can enjoy a big city or two. We like the local angle when we travel (B&amp;B's, small family owned places, etc.). Andrew Zimmerman, Yuk! While we enjoy watching Samantha, she obviously has someone else paying the bills as she stays at very expensive places. I read a few of her travel blogs a couple of years ago and they were very negative. The early/late taping and being so busy she really wasn't able to enjoy where she was, didn't make her travels sound very inviting. I get the sense that Rick &amp; Anthony at least enjoy their work. We plan our trips for almost a year before they happen (this site being a storehouse of information for us). That anticipation is more than half of the trip enjoyment. Shirley (26 days away from departure to Croatia)

That's a good point. Rick &amp; Anthony both always seem to be having a fantastic time. Samantha seems pained by the experience somehow.

Hey, here's an idea - how about the Thirsty Traveler! There's someone who would be fun to travel with :) How else to turn your alcoholism into a career?

If it wasn't for RS we would have never thought about going to Europe on our own. Now we are going back for a 2nd time. The B&amp;B's we've stayed at have been just fine. Would rather spend $$ on other stuff. I love Sam Brown...she's adorable!!

The only one I'm familiar with is Anthony Bourdain. I find him interesting but boring after awhile and his heavy accent (Is it New York, Brooklyn, or the Bronx ? ) kind of grates on
my ear.

But I'm not a foodie. I like good food, like escargot in a good garlic cream sauce, and fish in good sauces - am not into steaks and beef - and starved in Spain - will not eat Octopus or things that are unrecognizable....one night they insisted I try some kind of black sausage...it was blood something or other which I promptly spit out - thank goodness for instant oat meal which I brought with me from the states cause I wasn't eating what they were serving in Spain...

Hotels: I've noticed what used to be two star in Paris is now called 3 star.

When I had my own business I stayed in places like the Negresco and The Grand Wailea in Maui (spectacular), ate at Giannino's in Milan and regularly at Giambelli 50th in New York - now that I dont have a business, I'm a bargain hunter for the nicest place for my budget but still in the best areas.