I have a Rick Steves book and it seems pretty good. I don't love it, compared to other books but it has some good points. I find his little sketched maps not very helpful...

I did just spend a whole week with someone with the Rick Steve's guide to Switzerland and she about near drove me crazy...

For instance, in Luzern, "the best way to leave the train station to avoid the traffic and crowds, is to go downstairs in the train station and cross under the road..."

Yikes! Luzern is like a town to me - just go outside and walk across the crosswalk...

After about a week of "Rick Steves says..." you want to fling Rick Steves in the nearest river;)

Well, also, this person and I clearly have very different travel ideas so maybe Rick Steves isn't for everybody.

Funny, he does have a great guide to the coffee shops of Amsterdam. I had no idea of his politics on this issue!

bozama- OP wanted to know why some seem to frown upon Rick Steves. I choose not to use his books- doesn't make me "cool" or "uncool"
Most people on this site read a selection of travel books and research in depth for their travels and thankfully most don't walk around Europe drawing attention to themselves by means of their travel book/guru.
I also don't like to be surrounded by "Rickites"

My traveling group love his books.
We also use other guide books also.

Perhaps one day, I may become refined (or pretentious) enough to completely disassociate myself with Mr. Steves. For now, I will keep an open mind and use his books like any other tool. Honestly, some folks really need to get over themselves.

"After about a week of "Rick Steves says..." you want to fling Rick Steves in the nearest river"

Gruezi, I find this funny because in our house it's "what do the fodorites say". :-d

As I said earlier, we consult lots of books (as well as this and other websites). We choose and book our hotels well before we leave so what any particular book has to say about hotels is really only one ingredient in the mix.

I think it's funny that some posters don't want to end up where there are a whole bunch of rickites but have no problems with ending up where there are a whole bunch of fodorites!

I'm not yet so sophisticated in my travels -- I'm still seeing lots of things for the first time that some of you saw years ago, so I'm pretty much OK with being a tourist.

I'm with Bozama re RS. For the record, we've taken a RS Tour and
(presuming you like being on a tour)
well-run w/excellent local guides.
The hotels were fine and the sites
well-chosen. Fellow tour-mates were
congenial and mostly teachers/professionals from PNW.

Also, by sheer accident, we have
stayed in some of his recommended
hotels and without exception they
have been very good - the Albergo
Milano in Varenna comes to mind -
and not at all full of Rickittes.

I find it amazing that so many people have run into him on his
jaunts around Europe - even in our
family. The boy gets around!

But IMHO the best guides are Cadogan, Lonely Planet, and their ilk esp. for the independant tourist.

"some folk dislike(!) his left-
leaning politics and espousal of
legalizing marijuana. And the fact
he has dared to criticize some US
policies regarding other countries.
Somehow, people have difficulty separating the persona from the
product."

I don't hate him and do like his books but he can annoy me in some areas. It's not his politics but the fact is a travel guide/author should keep his politics out of his guides. He looks at Europe, I find through rose colored glasses when it has just as many faults as anywhere else, it has its' good points too but also bad. Also, US policies are criticized all the time by americans, big deal, no american cares.

ronnie36 wrote: "It's not his politics but the fact is a travel guide/author should keep his politics out of his guides."

This is outrageous hypocrisy. This is a travel forum, and almost all your posts here are political.

"ronnie36 wrote: "It's not his politics but the fact is a travel guide/author should keep his politics out of his guides."

This is outrageous hypocrisy. This is a travel forum, and almost all your posts here are political."

Dude, I don't go around writing travel guides and if I did, no I wouldn't mention politics. Yes, I agree that I have made political posts but only in reponse to other's political comments. I do agree that this forum really isn't the place for politics however, I will give you that.

MomDD-I like that, too.

Does he have opinions,yes? Do we always agree with his choices, no? But I also find it aggravating when a concierge is asked about a good restaurant and answers...they are all excellent!! Sometimes, I want an opinion!!!!!!!!!!!! when I'm just too tired to think and that is a lot of the time in Europe.