I wish he had a guide book for Japan

japan-guide.com and their excellent forum: japan-guide forum

Rick Steves dabbled with an Asia guidebook early on (my vintage copy of Rick Steves' Asia Through The Backdoor is evidence). Unfortunately, that didn't work out. I would not hold my breath for them to branch out with books or tours across the Pacific nowadays (and in case you have not noticed, the difficult business of publishing travel guide books is circling the drain...enjoy them while you can still get a decent one, they'll soon be as anachronistic as rotary phones or typewriters).

Japan is indeed lovely, and surprisingly easy to do as an independent traveler. I'm very much looking forward to our next trip there (3 weeks in Kyushu, in May).

We used a dkEyewitness Japan guide.

I like Rough Guides.

There are several Moon Guides for parts of Japan. Moon is published by Avalon, the same publisher as Rick’s books.

The Fodor's guidebook was helpful for planning a trip to Japan. But I agree that it's not as practical as the Rick Steves series. Our family had a wonderful trip to Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara in December 2019 (just before the COVID-19 lockdown). But it took a lot of planning and careful research using the JNTO website. Someone who loves independent travel in East Asia and can partner with Rick Steves might be able to expand the brand.

Just wanted to share two challenges of going to Japan. One challenge is the need to carry cash with you all the time. I was surprised that some taxis did not handle basic VISA credit card transactions. Another challenge is the language itself - beyond the major cities, it can be difficult to communicate in English (i.e., basic Japanese is helpful). That said, Japan is delightful - the food, culture, and temples are truly memorable.

I'm glad to see someone else besides me remembers RS "Asia Through the Back Door." I lived in Seattle for a year in 1988-89 and once went to see Rick give a slideshow about Asia in a classroom at the U of W and sell copies of that book -- his business was a small, shoestring operation back then. I was preparing for a trip to Asia and found that resource very helpful. Rather than "branch out", though, many years ago he "branched in", abandoning anything to do with Asia or other parts of the world (except for an occasional TV show about Egypt or Iran, or development efforts in places like Ethiopia), and focusing his expertise and business efforts solely on Europe -- which obviously has worked out very well for him.

As a former Asian expat who has visited many Asian countries, I wouldn’t rely on any guide except for an intro to a country or city. These days, I find the internet resources are much more helpful for details and specifics.

For a new area (including Europe), I check out a number of guides from my library. I compare what is reviewed and develop a set of personal interests, then further explore directly on the websites of places of interest, travel blogger accounts, Tripadvisor forum and reviews.

RS Guides have always been limited in my opinion. If I had explored Europe only with RS, I’d have missed many favorites. Luckily, I’d traveled for years before he became “the name” he is now.

We just returned from our second trip to Japan. I found the website mentioned above, together with the TripAdvisor Japan forum, to be most helpful in planning the trip and solving any problems that may arise while there.
https://www.japan-guide.com/

I carried the Lonely Planet Pocket Guide to Kyoto and Osaka and found that to be useful, at least for Kyoto. And I like the book “Exploring Kyoto: On Foot in the Ancient Capital” for longer stays in this fascinating city.