Guidebooks...Italy 2020 or Best of Italy?

Pretty much the same info for the 2 cities. 'Best of' is an older edition, but the info hardly changes. Why not cut the weight and get more info with two separate guides. Look at https://www.apathtolunch.com/2019/03/italian-city-town-guidebooks-reviewed.html?m=1 for more suggestions.

The differences are explained right on this website: https://store.ricksteves.com/shop/p/italy-guidebook. Click on "Is This the Right Book for Me?"

Thanks! I’ll need to check it out.

I prefer/am used to the style of Rick's longer format country and city guides and would also choose them for being newer. In both cities, museum pass coverage and reservations changed a couple of times last year; see some changes summarized at https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/italy/guidebook-updates.

If you don't mind the weight, check both city books out of the library and take them along for your 8 day trip. I did this for a 1-week Switzerland trip -- kept the book in a ziploc to make sure it got back to the library in pristine condition.
You can also read the Italy book ahead of time for general Italy i information. Best of had prettier pictures.

Any of his Italy books would be a great choice for practical information. BUT, the RS guides basically cover the highlights and the places/things that primarily appeal to middle-aged Americans.

I would suggest that you buy or borrow a second travel guide from a different company - I like the RS guides for practical information and Lonely Planet guides for information on sites the RS books don't cover.

Lulu,

I usually prefer the full sized country guidebooks. They have a lot more information, cover more places and are also good reference for planning future trips (at least for a couple of years).