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Why I love Rick Steves Guide books

How about you?

The first Rick Steves book I bought was for a trip to Portugal in 2005. Have bought many since for various trips. We used to exclusively book Rick recommended lodging, and only once were disappointed.
Really appreciate the logistics information. No other guidebook tells it like it us and gives you the right links to websites.

While I’d always noticed the “what if you need a doctor”, I never had to use until our trip to Austria and Budapest last month. 5 nights into the trip I was coughing and wheezing so bad I coukdnt sleep. So first thing in the morning, I pull out the Kindle, and yeahhhh, a clinic where English is spoken. Called for appointment, was told it would cost 44,000 fonts about $150. So google maps helped me catch the bus near the doctor. After being diagnosed with bronchitis was given three prescriptions. I texted the person that met us at the apartment and he found a pharmacy that was open on a Sunday.

Thank you arick Steves for including things most people never need in your guide books!

Posted by
680 posts

I love his guidebooks because he includes how to get from "point A to B." His guidebooks includes specific information on how to travel by public transport from city to city or within a city.
On one of our trips, traveling by train from Rome to Lucca, via Florence, we found ourselves on the train at the Florence station, watching everyone leave the car. Train strike!
No problem. In the RS Guidebook, it told us it was possible to go by bus from Florence to Lucca. Made it there by dinnertime!

Posted by
7756 posts

Each year when I’m planning a trip, it’s the first guide book that I purchase. Features I like best are the self-guided walking tours, the priority list of top sites (not necessarily our top priorities but helps us decide), the maps (SO much better than the previous drawn ones for scale & info), a first-look at transportation options that contain extra hints such as purchase a return ticket - destination station is unmanned, and I like to enlarge the one-page language Cheat Sheet and add my own additional words & sentences.

I freely pull out small sections of the book, pull out any hotel pages etc. that aren’t needed during the trip, and I bring those to review on the train ride or scan while I’m waiting for dinner to arrive.

I don’t use the recommendations for lodging. I prefer to select it from reviews & price on Booking.com. We read through recommendations for restaurants in the RS book but usually end up following our nose or recommendations from a B&B host.

I’m one of those people who actually read the entire guidebook. There’s lots of valuable information, especially the years I first was planning our own traveling.

Posted by
3961 posts

Hi Karen!
I too love RS Guidebooks for logistical details, you don’t find in other resources. Your example of locating emergency healthcare sooner rather than later can be a lifesaver.
In good health.
Hugs to Barley! ;J

EDIT To add, when traveling around Europe we see many travelers with a RS Guidebook in hand. Several years ago we were in line outside the Santorini Airport and the young couple behind us were looking at their RS Guidebook. We started a conversation and told them we were finishing a RS Tour. I also told them we lived near RS headquarters in WA State. They said they were grateful for all the information they needed for their trip. It made me smile.

Posted by
755 posts

Yes, the logistics are tops! I always head to the most updated RS guidebook, even for places I’m revisiting for the nth time. There is always something new, or a hack I haven’t seen before. (of course I couldn’t do without the forum, either)

Posted by
5315 posts

I enjoy walking tours. Sometimes the timing doesn't work out to take one of the tours based in a city. I love knowing that I can take the self-guided walks from my Rick Steves guide book at any time of day, any day of the week. Before my trips, I also love listening to the Rick Steves walking tours on the Audio Europe app to get excited about what I'll be seeing.

Posted by
672 posts

Agree with @Carol. The RS guides are second to none in how to get from point A to point B.

Posted by
4505 posts

Count me in for agreement to all the comments so far. When we first plan a trip we usually start with Insight and Eyewitness guides because the photos give us a broad description of sites, as time goes on though and we get into the meat and potatoes of the trip, the RS guides are our go-to books.

Posted by
1332 posts

I’ll say that I like the guidebooks because they’re written in a more conversational style and are readable. Too many guidebooks are written like an organic chemistry textbook, deadly dull and full of way too much detail. Do we really need to know every single Marriott, Hilton, Hyatt, and Sheraton in every city?

I don’t always agree with Rick but if I’m interested in a new place, I’ll download his guidebook first, read it, and then explore further if I’m still interested. His guidebooks work well on kindle.

Posted by
681 posts

I like the RS for a "getting to know you" experience. It gives me an itinerary that I add and subtract from. The top sites and specific places to look at. I also love using this forum. My family laughs 'cause I call you guys my BFFs. They know exactly who I mean. I will look at Trip Advisor for details of activities and use AirBNB for places to stay. You guys are helping me plan my Southeast Asia and Japan trip. I don't use you for just Europe but all over the world. Keep on traveling!

Posted by
11741 posts

Amen, everybody! Cannot be beat for teaching the “how to” in terms of logistics. Carefully points out where you might need a car and how to survive without one. We do the self-guided walks everywhere as an intro to a city. And I always buy the latest book fro any country we are visiting because, ahem, things change. Internet sites do not always update and a blog written 5 years ago (I am guilty of this in my blog) will eventually become old news with respect to opening times, dates, exhibits, prices.

Posted by
106 posts

The phrases "well, what does Rick say?", or "according to Rick" are ones that my friends and I utter quite often. We pull out the book, and take a look. For logistics, it is awesome.

As others have said, and as Rick himself has indicated, his preferences for what to see are his, and really, I think, designed more for the first time visitor to each of the locales. I don't always agree with the value he assigns to places, but I get why he does.

Posted by
4505 posts

I remember buying my first RS book just before Christmas about 5 years ago. It was a gift for my wife because we were going to Rome the next Fall. Up to that point I knew his TV show but had no idea about any of his other enterprises. I almost didn't buy it because I didn't like the blue and yellow colour. I don't remember why I ended up choosing it but they became my go-to guide book ever since because of the logistics it offers which are so much superior to other guide books. Now I appreciate the distinctive blue and yellow colour because it's so easy to find on the shelf.

Posted by
522 posts

I like being able to easily pull out pages I need and carry them with me, especially for the RS Walks or for day trips. The paper is sturdy enough, yet is lightweight and not too bulky.

Posted by
3961 posts

In addition to Den's and previous tip's I too remove helpful pages from a RS guidebook. RS travel store has a "Guidebook Page Binder" that works well to secure the pages you need for a day. They are light weight, laminated. Fill to 1/4". Just freshen up with a new batch daily. I use this method in addition to info. I have online. Stop by RS Travel Center or purchase online. Sale price: $1.00.

Posted by
10104 posts

It’s funny, I was actually thinking of this today.

A few years ago i thought if I could ever get my cousin from Kansas and his wife to come visit me in Paris (for what would be his first trip abroad; not sure about her), that I wanted to send them the ETBD book to inspire them and get them to see that it’s not just fancy rich people who come to Europe, but normal people like us, too.

Today I woke up to an email from them that her daughter is strongly considering a doctoral program in the Netherlands — which would get her over here and then then for a visit! It put me back to that idea of sending them a few books for inspiration. I will have to do that tomorrow.

I really like Rick’s books as mentioned above for the tone and for the big picture — and yes often the practical tips too. It’s not my sole planner, but often my very first one (definitely the case when I made my first trips last year to Oslo and a Stockholm).

Posted by
327 posts

I still have my first RS guidebook – 1990 "22 Days in Europe" and 1990 "Europe through the Back Door." I loved how slim the Europe book was, the rounded corners of the pages, the very clear maps, and of course the information. My "bible" as a student had been "Let's Go," which, while useful, was exhaustive, with tiny print and too much information; I appreciated (even if I didn't agree with) Rick's opinions and rating system. Some of his ideas have become such a part of our travel that it is only with difficulty that I remember that we learned them from him and didn't think them up by ourselves : )  – like attending evensong; trying to be less introverted (!); getting fresh air and aiming for an "early local bedtime" to combat jet lag; packing light; etc.

Posted by
4132 posts

I like them because Rick rates things. I do not always agree with his ratings but I know Rick's tastes and personality well enough to take that into account. It is incredibly helpful and I rely on those ratings with confidence.

The only other guidebook I know that does this is Michelin. There too one must take Michelin's personality into account (3 stars for Limoges? Really?) but once one does it is a boon.

Do any other guides do this?

Posted by
11741 posts

I like them because Rick rates things. I do not always agree with his ratings but I know Rick's tastes and personality well enough to take that into account. It is incredibly helpful and I rely on those ratings with confidence.

Yes! I don't always agree but it is so helpful versus lists of places to see/go with no quality assessment at all.

Posted by
32345 posts

I'm also a big fan of RS guidebooks. I've looked at a number of different books over the years, and have found the RS books are logically organized and easy to use, so they're my preferred choice for travels. For locations not covered by RS (such as Malta), I've been using the Lonely Planet guidebook and those would be my second choice.

Posted by
4063 posts

RS books in combination with Fodors & Frommer’s are the hat trick of travel planning for me. They complement each other quite nicely. RS books alone can be limited. Locales I have adored are those RS didn’t cover. RS audio podcast walking tours are phenomenal as I download them in advance for off-line use.

Posted by
259 posts

That was going to be my next question -- I'm going to Florence and Milan this summer in between my annual visit to Munich's opera festival. For my first time visit to a city, Rick's guide is my initial choice. I like the fact that he is opinionated, whereas so many guidebooks are basically a listing of sites one could go, with no discriminating input as to what's worthwhile or not, especially with limited time.

What is your second choice for a guide -- Lonely Planet, Fodor, Frommer -- and why, and do you always get a second one?
I'm not going to be in Milan or Florence very long so Rick's may be enough for that short of a trip.

I found a 1984 edition of EUROPE THROUGH THE BACK DOOR at a used book store, and it was fun to see the differences and what's remained. I don't think there is a chapter on hitch-hiking anymore (!), and of course eastern Europe is totally different. It's really astounding how the internet and easy access to ATMs has changed the way we travel. I wonder if American Express offices still exist and if they'll forward your mail?

Posted by
10104 posts

No American Express office any longer in Paris . . . you’ll have you watch the old Cary Grant-Audrey Hepburn movie Charade to get a glimpse.

My other essential books are
1) Rough Guide
2) Gallimard for city breaks
3) Géo for places in France

Posted by
893 posts

We traveled to Europe independently a number of times and then have taken 7 RS tours. When we first started taking the tours, it included a certain amount of money to spend on guidebooks and language books. I love getting the language books and we find them very useful! We always start using the language books 6 months before our trip. We get them out and quiz each other during dinner every night!

If you read them closely Rick inserts some phrases for fun and hubby uses them! He told a taxi driver (in Italian) in Rome that if he didn't slow down he would throw up! This was at 5 am on the way to the airport. The driver got this shocked look on his face and when he saw us in the mirror laughing, he did too. He slowed down and gave us a drive around Rome as a last look. It was fun.

On another occasion we were in a very small family trattoria and the little grandmother was serving us. She didn't speak much English but she asked when we had finished "OK?" My hubby said in Italian that "It was better than my Mama's kitchen" She threw her arms up and kissed him on the top of his head. We don't shop a lot on these trips, but if we have a particularly good meal, and make a memory I will ask the owner if they will sell me a logo plate. I have never been turned down and have them on plate stands in my dining room. The little mama that kissed my husbands head wrapped the plate and gave me a logo wine glass to go with it!
These are just some of the fun phrases that Rick inserts into his language books. But there are many extremely useful phrases in the language books. And they are small and easy to carry on a daily basis.

Posted by
259 posts

Mimi-- what a delightful story!
It never even occurred to me to ask for a souvenir logo plate. I love that idea