Rick Steves London

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bostonphil7, I can relate. It drives me crazy how small the font is in the guidebooks. Rick Steves isn’t even the smallest. The rough guide series has an even smaller font.

I also tried using a magnifying glass but found it too awkward.

The solution for me was a trip to my eye doctor for new prescription eyeglasses. The glasses found in most drug stores are not strong enough for my bad eyes. The prescription strength glasses have made a huge difference and I can actually read that tiny font now.

Another solution might be getting an electronic reader, like an amazon kindle, and reading on that as you can increase the font size.

I didn't know that vision was another of your medical issues or I would have suggested the Kindle version on which you can expand the text and maps to quite large.

My wife is visually impaired and we often buy digital books for that very reason.

I am not considered visually impaired. I am working on this computer without wearing any reading glasses and can see just fine. My font is what I would call normal if there is such a thing.

Also a friend who is about 20 years younger than me had trouble reading the book with her glasses on. She had to remove her glasses and get very up close.

I do have cataracts and need them removed. My optometrist would not give me a prescription for glasses until I get my cataracts out.

But I can read most other things with or without reading glasses.

The book is condensed in size and the font is very small. There does not seem to be any information about this when you read the description of the book. There are no cautions.

I have noticed this happening with other publications. Possibly it is being done to save the trees and the environment as well as to save money. Printing is very expensive.

I will send some feedback to Rick Steves but I believe my experiences with the book does belong on this travel forum. I bought the book from Amazon and plan on telling them why I need to return the book.

With good reason, Rick's books are recommended to other members. I am a big fan but I want to let other potential buyers of the book know that I find the font too small to read and they may as well.

I am going to suggest that Rick Steves attach a note to his books that the font is small and give an example of what the buyer will be seeing when they receive the book.

I also will suggest that they print a book with larger print.

You make it sound like this is a Rick Steves issue, but if you have read any other guidebooks out there, you will find that most of them use the same font size or smaller than he does. I am older and wear reading glasses but have not had any problem reading this books (or other guidebooks). I understand that it is difficult for you to read, but you cannot expect him to change the text size in his book because of one person.

As Carrie and Nigel suggested, you might be better off with a digital edition - that way you can increase the font size to something you can read. It also has active links to travel sites and maps and so on, which can be very convenient.

One other thing - travel books have smaller font sizes because publishers are trying to keep the size of the book down. Nobody wants to buy a huge travel guide to take with them. Another reason to go digital - you can carry multiple books with you for the weight of one Kindle or table.

Thank you Mardee.

To be honest, I have never bought a guidebook until this one.

I have gone to the library to read some guidebooks and have found that many have fonts so small that I can not read them without reading glasses but I thought that that was the publisher of the particular guidebook such as Foder's.

I did not realize that small fonts are typical for all or most publishers of travel guidebooks.

It may be that it is done to save the trees and be kinder to the environment as well as to save money. Printing is very expensive.

I agree that it would be easier to carry the condensed version of Rick Steves London around rather than a full size version if I were to take it to London with me.

So, I did not know that travel guidebooks use a small font or a smaller than what I call normal font.

I only take one vacation a year and I have always sent for free information or read travel information on line. I pick up brochures when I get to my cities or ports.

Many of you on Rick Steves Forum are very experienced travelers. I am not.

I did send Rick Steves an email and suggested that they publish their guidebooks with a larger font even if it would cost more for people like me. Maybe I am not the only one who would prefer a larger font. It does not have to be one with large size print but larger size print. And people like me can read it at home before we go and or pull out the pages that we think we might use after leaving home.

I was going to say the same as the rest and point out that other guidebooks are just as bad or worse.

A comment about guidebooks on EReaders; I can get frustrated by the maps. I use my 8" tablet, and I have the ability to make the print font larger, but I don't have the ability to zoom in on maps, and so for that reason I find the eBook version more frustrating when it comes to guide books.

There are some guidebooks that come in large print but they are very limited and more expensive. I don't think there is much of a selection, though. For example, if you go to Barnes & Noble, here are the travel books they have in large print. https://www.barnesandnoble.com/b/large-print/books/travel/europe-travel/_/N-1pu1Z29Z8q8Z1avm

You have done a good job of highlighting a need, my question is "May we help you in planning your journey to London?.

Believe me, it's the cataracts. I had the surgery last year; you should see a big improvement afterward, though you may still need glasses.

The font in Rick's guidebooks is not small. I have the 2020 edition of the London book (634 pages). It uses 10-pt type for the basic text; the italics used for some inserted directions within the walking tours are 9.5-pt type, as are the sans-serif panels used for side commentary. Maps are different and may be more challenging. There are other companies' guidebooks that are definitely harder to read for those with imperfect vision--one I tried to use had large chunks of 8-pt type, or perhaps even 7.5-pt. (I even complained to my optometrist about my inability to read such guidebooks, pre-surgery.)

I must warn you that if you cannot read Rick's guidebooks, you are probably going to struggle with at least some of the explanatory material posted in museums. My cataracts worsened during my lengthy 2019 trip, and reading museum info became really difficult for me. I also had a hard time reading my tablet computer.

If I were you, I'd check on what one of the discount eyeglass places would charge for an exam and a pair of glasses. It might make a lot of difference to your enjoyment of the trip. On the other hand, new glasses may not help much (or perhaps not at all), because they won't fix the cataracts themselves. I struggled to get workable glasses while my cataracts were forming. Take something you can't read easily (or at all) with you to the eye exam. I would hope you'd be able to tell from the exam (as the optometrist swaps potential lenses) whether the proposed lenses would make much difference, so you could opt not to follow through on purchase of the glasses if it appears they won't really help.

One other thing: Until you have the surgery, you need to be sure you have really good (excessive) lighting when you try to read. That will probably help a bit. I resorted to using the flashlight on my smartphone in museums before I had the surgery. (I still use it today in museums with extremely low light levels.) It is possible to buy an illuminated magnifying glass. However, I find using any magnifying glass frustrating and would be too impatient to use it for reading a guidebook.

I think your young friend is due for an eye check-up. Seriously. I am 71 years old and am not 20/20 even after the surgery and with brand-new glasses. If I can read Rick's guidebook, she should be able to with the right glasses.

First thing that I did was pull out my Rick Steves London Guidebook (2018 edition) and give it a good look. Then I pulled out my Lonely Planet London guidebook. The RS guidebook had bigger fonts than the Lonely Planet! I don't think the problem is with the guidebook.

I know that you are eager to learn all that you can in preparation for your very special trip to London next year. It must be disappointing not be able to read the guidebook. There are other good sources of information available.

1. Look at the videos available on the Rick Steves websites. These will give you an overview of some of the key sites. You can type "Rick Steves London Videos" into any search engine and get several videos to choose from.
2. You Tube. Lots and lots of videos about traveling around London on You Tube. type in "Touring London" for a huge selection of videos about key attractions, how to get around on transport, etc.
3. Try a different London guidebook that is also available as an audio book, such as this one from Amazon https://www.amazon.com/London-England-Travel-Guide-Comprehensive/dp/B01AMP2BJU You can listen and follow along in the book.

Don't get discouraged. I know that you can continue to plan and enjoy your trip.

Thank you for all your your comments and your help.

Actually, I have done very well researching London and have a handle on it. (See all my posts going back to Neighborhoods of London which was the first one)

I ordered the guidebook to continue my education and it did. I found out that fonts in guidebooks tend to be very small and I can not read them. This is new.

previously I have requested information from Visitor Centers in cities such as Seattle Or Denver. Usually it is free but Boston charges. I have also gotten free information from Copenhagen from where I left on my Baltic Cruise.

London did not mail free information or even tourist information for a fee. I have been active on this site as well as on youtube.

I remember going to the library or to book stores years ago and looking at guide books. Often they were what I called normal size with fonts that were normal size for me back then. But that was years ago and maybe the problem is with my eyes.

But I can still read normal size boks with "normal" fonts.

So maybe it is a combination of my eyes and the condensed guide books.

I did email RS and already got a response back. They apologized to me that the font did not work and said that they would send my suggestion over to their book department. They said that if it was a normal size book with normal size font, it would be HUGE and not easy to take with you. It was also suggested that I download kindle. Perhaps, though, there is a need for guide books which use a larger font. Maybe I am not the only one who is thinking this.

I now have a good understanding of London thanks to this site and youtube. I will pick up more information when I get to London.

I will not be buying any more guidebooks for now

Update: so i am now reviewing the book again.

The glossy pages in front I can mostly read just fine with my reading glasses. The font on Tea Time is too small. Then we get to the paper pages. All the bold is fine whether it be large or small. There is some problem with the non bold print but I have been having some success using a magnifying glass. At the back of the book are the glossy maps and I can read them some.

I am going to keep the book because it is of some value and I am not going to be taking it with me but I will not be buying any more guide books.

Oh, this is terribly embarrassing.

My problem reading R S London was due to the lighting in my apartment. It has nothing to do with the print.

I was able to read it just fine at the doctors office and at the bus stop. I had to wear reading glasses but so what.

I feel so stupid.

It is a great guide book, well worth the money.

Don't feel bad, but consider a brighter reading lamp. I'm having cataract surgery next month after about a year of increasing trouble with reading, TV subtitles, crosswords, night driving, and navigation markers on Puget Sound. All my friends and relatives who've had it (seemingly a majority of everyone I know) say it's "like a miracle."

I checked out a Rough Guide to Mexico last week and I can barely read anything in it. Rough is right! Of course it's aimed at a younger, rougher readership.

Have a great time in London.

Hello Dick

I, too, need cataract surgery but I do not drive and can still read well enough with readers.

I may have one eye done before my cruise in October.

All my friends who have had it done (and there are a lot) are so happy with the results.

Greatly enjoying R S London Guide Book.

I just bought a Lonely Planet guide for a friend, and wow! Smallest print I've ever seen outside a rental contract.

Rick's books are a breeze.

I only buy e-books these days. I find it much more convenient, and you can always increase/decrease the font size, lighting, etc. It is sad looking at my book shelf and not seeing any new titles, but so be it.

Bostonphil, I recommend getting the cataract surgery as soon as your doctor says it's time. It's impossible to predict when the cataracts will progress so rapidly that you have really severe problems. You wouldn't want to be an unsafe driver, or to have your vision deteriorate badly not long before a planned trip. It can take months to get cataract surgery scheduled. (You might ask your eye doctor about that, just so you have an idea.)

I can relate completely. Unfortunately, this is not even a Rick Steves issue alone; it is my experience in English magazines and guide books, generally. It is as mysterious as the "why is the gear shifter so far down so that I can barely reach it?" on the rental cars, or "why are the arms so long on these shirts?"

If the printed pages method doesn't work, the Rick Steves Podcast Tours are great.

accraven

Appreciate your advice and will be looking in cataract surgery very soon.

phoffen2001

Print is very expensive these days. I do not know if smaller fonts are being used because of this or if it just has something to do with aging and the eyes not what they used to be.

Steven from Florida

I have gotten so much help from this Forum. I have so much more knowledge than when I first posted. Thank you for your offer of help.

Another perk to purchasing books for my Kindle is that I can read them on my laptop which has a much larger screen AND I can increase the size. BUT, I no longer need to because both eyes had cataracts and with the surgeries, I am just "one tick" away from 20/20 vision. My eyesight was so horrible that my opthalmologist quit assigning a number. If you can afford "the best" cataract repair, go for it.

Dear Phil

Definitely get the cataract surgery as soon as possible. It will probably take about five minutes and is painless. You will be so happy when you can see 20/20 again, with new glasses and maybe without. (I still wear glasses but my eyes tested at 20/20 two weeks ago, and I am 83.)

I bet when you have the eye surgery, you will be able to read the guidebook's small font pretty well. And I think the Kindle or iPad is a great idea for consulting in your hotel or b and b room, and your RS London guidebook in your backpack.

We've been following your plans and just know you will have a wonderful time!

Thank you all for your sweet replies

As it turned out the lighting in my apartment was the culprit. With reading glasses, I have no problem with the R S guidebook outside of my own apartment.

I have a patient advocate coach and she has encouraged me to get at least one cataract removed before my next vacation.

However I am screening for a chronic pain clinical trial next month and can not have any surgeries, even cataract surgery, until after the study (assuming that I get in)

I am not certain how long the study lasts but I will have extra money for this next trip and I might even be able to have one cataract removed.