Customer Reviews

Lonely Planet Florence

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

 

 

On a recent trip to France and Italy, my wife and I picked up books from several different publishers to cover each of the four areas we were visiting: Paris, Florence, Venice, and Provence. Every book was a tremendous help - except for this one published by Lonely Planet. Without a doubt, this is the worst travel book I have ever tried to rely on. A heroin-addicted chimpanzee could organize a book better than the author and editor, who have eschewed alphabetizing in favor of the random topic jumps of a fashion magazine. Once the information is located, it is muddled with the author's stream of consciousness ramblings about the reader's anticipated viewing of the Florentines' summer tans. For the book to be of any use, a visitor would have to highlight and memorize the rare and sporadic meaningful passages long before setting foot on Italian soil. Finally, the publishers at Lonely Planet have elected to provide only a smattering of maps of Florence, and instead ask that you purchase a separate book for that purpose. I can say, without question, that there are only 3 legitimate reasons for purchasing this "guide": (1) you are related to the author and have some familial obligation that cannot be severed by divorce; (2) you are writing a travel guide yourself and need an example of the worst case scenario to avoid; or (3) you are suckered in by the Lonely Planet logo without a prior customer review to warn you how bad it is.

I lived in Florence for 6 months and made the mistake of taking this book along...worthless!

I just came back from Florence and I used this guide. It had great restaurants listed and I visited serveral. It also gave me some great advice for going to Fiesole. I saw a private garden that was beautiful!

If you are the type that likes to go to local hangouts, this is your guide.

I loooooooooved this book while I lived in Florence for four months. The descriptions were witty, sometimes totally out there, yet always on par. I truly believe that anyone that doesn't like this series is merely too old for it or not up for enough fun. It has spectacular recommendations for restuarants, bars, and just enough history for the sights to see. For more history and detail, I like the Eyewitness guides. My Italian experience would not have been the same with out this guide... a definite must buy.