Most Helpful Customer Reviews
29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not the book to use, April 1, 2005
I bought this book about two weeks before I visited Rome and used it and its associated map as my guide through Rome over Easter weekend. I found the book and the map pretty difficult to use. Many major attractions in the book are not noted on the map, and many street names are missing from the map. It took me an inordinate amount of time just to figure out where the catacombs really were. Further, there are beautiful descriptions of things to see, but no pictures. That's a problem if you want to get an idea of what something looks like before you decide to invest the time in your itinerary to go see it. Further, in a city that has very few signs describing its buildings and sites (or the signs are in Italian only) you really need a book with pictures just to identify what you are looking at at times. This book is not good at that. The itineraries were sometimes confusing and conflicting. There is a section on an itinerary if you have one day which takes you through ancient Rome, then in a different section of the book the ancient Rome itinerary starts at a different location. If you really are new to a city, you probably want to rely on the book to suggest a good itinerary, not offer confusing and conflicting options. The book tended to jump around a lot. What I mean is, within a paragraph it would describe nice things to see which were nowhere near each other in the city. Overall, I was pretty frustrated with this book. Of the hundreds of tourists carrying guide books around the city that weekend, I didn't notice anyone with this book. It just seems you have to invest too much time trying to figure out the best use of your time (I spent several hours reading the book in preparation for the trip.) I think the biggest shortcoming is the lack of pictures.
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not for independent travellers, February 15, 2005
I have just returned from my second trip to Rome, and I used this book as my primary travel guide. I have also used this series in other cities. Compared to other series, the Frommer's guides stand out in that they focus more on hotel and restaurant recommendations than on historical or practical information.
With that in mind, the restaurant options in this edition seemed to be limited only to locations off major squares or else near the train station, offering very little off the beaten track or for budget travellers.
The information provided for the attractions, such as the museums and ruins, etc. was accurate, although very basic: hours and prices but little historical information. Sometimes the guide would direct one's attention to a particular column or square, but neglect to explain its significance. The recommended restaurants were good, but there was more missing than was included. A guide claiming to offer information on "what's worth your time and what's not" did very little to justify the exclusions... and the fact that several of the recommended restaurants and attractions didn't appear on any of the included maps doesn't support the recommendation at all!
Overall, the maps need to be more complete, to consistently reflect the textual content of the book. Furthermore, it seems suspicious for a guide with so very few included recommendations to have some that were across the street from each other, suggesting very lazy rather than comprehensive coverage of what the city has to offer. Moreover, the photographs on the cover were stock photographs, having nothing to do with any actual experiences of the writers, whose recent actual trip to Rome can only be the object of assumption.
Also, some travellers may find it difficult to trust a guide which includes advertisements for web-based hotel finding agencies.
I would recommend this book for anyone with more money than taste, or who is more interested in getting his or her passport stamped than in becoming educated about Rome, then or now. Just so you know: There's plenty of shopping on Via Corso.
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Frommers Guide To Rome is a Must Have, August 23, 2005
I found the 36 pages of restaurant review invaluable, especially with the pricing guides and hours of opening and if booking in advance was necessary. The self-walk tours was also very helpful as we did not want to go on large guided tours. The section at the start on what you must and must not bring, what precautions to take, was also invaluable. I was pleased to get such a large map to do my planning, but disappointed that none of the major sights was displayed boldly so that I could see how to link up a certain few within a given day. Nor were any of the recommended restaurants marked on the map. It was a book essential to planning and plotting my trip, but the map was too big to bring and unfold in the middle of a busy street. I thought the shopping section very disappointing. It was all where to avoid, or make do with people-watching, on the grounds of extremely expensive, but no tips on where else one should try - except the early morning markets. It would have benefitted from more photos, even small black and white ones, as many of the recommended sights are not signposted in Rome, or else only in Italian. However, it was an absolute must have and gave me many insights and opportunities that I would not have found in other books claiming to be as good. I know that the next city I vist, whatever it may be, I will immediately get the Frommer's guide (to that city) without even looking for others. Finally, a few common phrases in Italian would have helped.
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