Eyewitness Travel Guide to Greece: Athens and the Mainland [Paperback]

Marc Dubin (Author), Esther Labi (Editor)

Book Description

Series: EYEWITNESS TRAVEL GUIDE | Publication Date: May 1, 1997

The guide that shows you what other travel books only tell you!

From ancient history to modern hotels, no travel reference accommodates your needs like DK's Eyewitness Travel Guide: Greece, Athens & the Mainland. With more than 750 full-color photographs, this accessible handbook guides you in and around Athens and throughout mainland Greece using street-by-street and 3-D maps to direct you to all the main sights. The extensive Athens section highlights the history, art, architecture, and culture of this extraordinary city with special layouts devoted to the National Archaeological Museum, the Acropolis, and the Parthenon. Beyond Athens, the guide takes you to the ancient and medieval ruins abundant throughout the Peloponnese peninsula, location of the ancient cities of Corinth and Olympia. Three special sections covering wetland wildlife, the Thessaloniki Archaeological Museum, and Mount Athos, detail prime features of Northern Greece. Other chapters explore Greece's Byzantine architecture, history, cuisine, and wines, making this the most complete and invaluable guidebook to Greece on the market.

Editorial Reviews

Review

...You feel, looking at them, as if you could close the book and step into the street. -- Contra Costa Times

...considered to be the world's best travel resource to over 30 destinations around the world, make it easier to plan a splendid vacation. -- North American Press Syndication

Both novice and experienced travelers will be captivated. -- US News & World Report

Each book is a visual as well as informational feast about a particular place. -- The New York Times

Encyclopedic in scope, it's meant to be used before, during, and after your stay. -- Travel & Leisure

The Best Guidebooks Ever -- SKY MAGAZINE

The best travel guides ever. -- Sky Magazine -Delta In flight Magazine

The most graphically exciting and visually pleasing series on the market. -- Chicago Tribune

Want to know where to get a great espresso on your way to the Uffizi? Or how much to tip a hotel maid in New York City? Try these travel guides, each an intricate trove of 3-D aerial views, landmark floor plans, color photos and essential eating, shopping and entertainment info. With titles covering Paris, Prague, and London, these pocket-sized guides are like a Michelangelo fresco: deliriously rich in detail. -- People Magazine

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: DK Travel; 1st edition (May 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 078941452X
• ISBN-13: 978-0789414526
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,269,753 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #45 in Books > Travel > Europe > Greece > Athens

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading in preparation for travel to Athens ., September 28, 1999

By 

Brian Kearney (Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Eyewitness Travel Guide to Greece: Athens and the Mainland (Paperback)

As a first time traveller to Athens in 1999 I was looking for a guide beyond the usual narrative form of most guides. I wanted to see in advance where everything was and what everything had to offer so that I could make many of my choices in advance. A particular benefit of the guide is that it shows the actual location of significant artefacts within particular museums. This is most useful if time is short.The extensive detail provided on surviving in Athens prepares you well for the challenges ahead. The true test of a travel guide must surely be its value in the field. The only time I got lost in Athens was one afternoon when I forgot to put the guide in my backpack.Based on my experience with the Athens guide I have already purchased the equivalent guides for Rome and Paris.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Travel Guide that shows you what you will be seeing, June 9, 2002

By 

Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Eyewitness Travel Guide to Greece: Athens and the Mainland (Paperback)

I am seriously toying with the idea of taking a trip to Athens (so I can teach my on-line mythology course from the Acropolis) so I spent some time looking through various travel guides. When it comes to illustrations and graphics, none of the dozen I looked at can compete with this volume from DK Publishers. Of course, if you are familiar with any of the books from DK then you are already well aware that they have made their reputation providing visually stunning volumes. When I first flipped through this book I kept thinking it was a picture book and not a travel guide, and then I wondered why anybody would even need to go to Greece after looking at all of this.

The guide is divided into six sections: (1) Introducing Athens and Mainland Greece; (2) Ancient Greece, which includes historical, culture and mythological details; (3) Athens Area by Area; (4) Mainland Greece Area by Area; (5) Travelers' Needs, which covers where to stay and where to eat; and a (6) Survival Guide of practical and travel information, including a phrase book. You can go through the pages provided above to see exactly how things are laid out. Note: DK has a separate travel guide devoted to the Greek Islands.

I will not contend that this is the only travel guide you would need to plan your trip and/or go to Greece. There are several other travel guides that provide considerably more detail in terms of lodgings and restaurants. However, I would suggest that this is the travel guide you want to take with you while doing sightseeing; the other one can sit in your car, backpack, or whatever. For example, there is a diagram of a Byzantine church that provides more architectural detail than you would ever need to know. Other reviewers, who have actually used this book in Greece, have commented on how a lot of things are not marked in English, which made this volume particularly helpful. That is certainly good to know. However, at this point I am using it to figure out how to maximum the time I would spend there and where else to go besides Athens (obviously Delphi is the other must see place and then, probably, Mycenea).

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Resource, August 27, 2001

By 

Anonymous "sarafina2cool" (Heart of Silicon Valley, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Eyewitness Travel Guide to Greece: Athens and the Mainland (Paperback)

.... The guides to the museums and the maps of the ancient sites are so helpful, especially in Greece, where things are not always marked in English. The pictures are beautiful, and make the book a wonderful souvenir of your journey. The historical explanations are clear, concise and interesting to read. The maps are excellent and accurate! My only complaint is that it doesn't give specific information about recreation places, like where the best places for swimming are. Also, it's coverage on hotels and restaurants was limited, but this was not a problem for us since it gave us all the information we needed to know. Overall, it is a great little book.