Customer Reviews

Fodor's Italy 2009 (Full-Color Gold Guides)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Having previously used Lonely Planet guides, this was my first Fodor's guide. In terms of information, the guide is good - a little lightweight, perhaps, in accommodation options. The layout could be better, however, a little thought into the arrangement of information would make it easier to quickly locate the desired pages. Don't bother trying to locate information on Sardinia, however - there isn't any... This is my biggest gripe with the guide - we are all familiar with regional guides with in depth information regarding a specific region (eg Tuscany) and it is sometimes hard to decide whether to buy the country guide or the regional guide. I usually go for the country guide to give me an overview of the entire country, so I am very disappointed that this guide does not cover Sardinia. Back to Lonely Planet for me.

A heavy block-of-a-book on the outside, Fodor's Italy 2009 (from the Full-Color Gold series) is packed with informative, well-organized and pleasingly presented material inside.

The entirety of Italy is an ambitious scope and Fodor's tackles it, with depth and breadth, according to geography: Rome; then northern Italy (e.g. Venice, Milan, et al); central Italy (Florence, Tuscany, and others); and southern Italy (Naples, Sicily, etc.). Each area gets some history, local culture, color photographs, and transportation info; but the emphasis is on vetted recommendations for sites/attractions, restaurants, lodging, entertainment and shopping. In urban areas, accompanying maps and charts convert the text into at-a-glance summaries.

I especially like the suggestions for walking and driving tours, and the "Need a Break?" recommendations for places to pause for a glass of wine, sandwich, pastry or gelato. The only odd and iffy aspect is the inclusion of "Word of Mouth" quotes from Fodor's online community of travelers -- mostly vacuous comments attributed only by screename -- that might fit on a casual website but strike a discord with this text's otherwise polished tone. Overall, the book's scope (and 960-page weight!) suit it best to armchair travel or as a starting point and planning tool -- indeed, I went from casual familiarity to an enthusiastic interest in visiting Italy as I read through this terrific guidebook.

This is an excellent guide book. I particularly enjoyed all the restaurant recommendations. They were amazing locations for very reasonable prices. Several of them only had locals, which enhanced the travel experience.

Great thank you! Wouldn't hurt to mention that the map in the back has been taken out, but as it was a library book I wasn't too surprised. Great, thanks!

Difficult to find points of interest the way the book is divided. Not worth the money!

An excellent, exceptional book on Italy !! Buy it, you will not be sorry you did. Bill S.

Prompt service and delivery. The book is always a good choice for travelling tips !

Thank you.

I ordered this book on 7/9/09 and was told it would arrive to my home by 7/13. It did not arrive until 7/15. We had orderd the book to use on a trip to Rome that we were leaving for on 7/14. The book arrived late and was of no-use to us.