Rick Steves' Italy 2005 [Illustrated] [Paperback]

Rick Steves (Author)

Book Description

Series: Rick Steves' Italy | Publication Date: December 2004

Who but Rick Steves can tell you the best way to see Rome, Venice, Florence, the hill towns of central Italy, the Dolomites, and the Amalfi Coast? With Rick Steves' Italy 2005, you can experience the best of everything Italy has to offer-economically and hassle-free. Completely revised and updated, Rick Steves' Italy 2005 includes color maps and photographs, opinionated coverage of both famous and lesser-known sights; friendly places to eat and sleep; suggested day plans; walking tours and trip itineraries; clear instructions for smooth travel anywhere by car, train, or foot; and Rick's newest "back door" discoveries. America's number one authority on travel to Europe, Rick's time-tested recommendations for safe and enjoyable travel in Italy have been used by millions of Americans in search of their own unique travel experience.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Steves preaches a low-cost, low-to-the-ground style that not only saves money, but gets you closer to the real Europe, the way Europeans experience it.

Product Details

• Paperback: 576 pages
• Publisher: Avalon Travel Publishing (December 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566916798
• ISBN-13: 978-1566916790
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 4.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,304,434 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

64 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Rick Steve's is almost right on with recommendations for...., November 16, 2004

By 

Robert Merivel - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rick Steves' Italy 2005 (Paperback)

hotels and attractions in Italy but the problem is...SO MANY people from the US know this and buy his book. We enjoyed most of the hotels recommended in Northern Italy and Tuscany but found that numerous American travelers carry this book. (We were sitting at a small restaurant in Montepulciano and observed that all 7 tables including our own were Americans and 4 tables had folks reading Rick Steve's Book) It makes it difficult to get a room less than 30 days in advance...at least some of the more moderately priced hotels. I found some of the restaurants and hotels sufferred from what I call "Rick Steves Syndrome" where many Italians associated seemed to have overdosed on tourism and Americans. What was once the "Backdoor" is now the front door. That said, it is an essential part of travel to Italy, expecially when you're on a schedule and want to maximize your sightseeing. Just dont rely on it 100 percent to solve your lodging and dining needs while in Italy.

74 of 80 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Spend Your Money Wisely!, July 6, 2005

By 

Richard R. Carlton (Ada, MI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rick Steves' Italy 2005 (Paperback)

I've been to Italy several times.....Rome, Venice, Florence, Bologna, Milan, some of the hill towns, etc. Here are my reviews of the best guides to meet you r exact needs.....I hope these are helpful and that you have a great visit! I always gauge the quality of my visit by how much I remember a year later......this review is designed to help you get the guide that will be sure YOU remember your trip many years into the future. Travel Safe and enjoy yourself to the max!

Rick Steves' books are not recommended. They may be an interesting read but their helpfulness is very poor. They don't do well on updates, transportation details, or anything but the first-time-tourist routine and even that is somewhat superficial on anything but the mega-major sites.

Frommer's
These are time tested guides that pride themselves on being updated annually. Although I think the guides below provide information that is in more depth or more concise (depending on what the guide is known for), if your main concern is that the guide has very little old or outdated information, then this would be a good guide for you.

Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet has City and Out To Eat Guides. They are all about the experience so they focus on doing, being, getting there, and this means they have the best detailed information, including both inexpensive and really spectacular restaurants and hotels, out-of-the-way places, weird things to see and do, the list is endless.

Blue Guides
Without doubt, the best of the walks guides.... the Blue Guide has been around since 1918 and has extremely well designed walks with lots of unique little side stops to hit on just about any interest you have. If you want to pick up the feel of the city, this is the best book to do that for you. This is one that you end up packing on your 10th trip, by which time it is well worn.

MapGuide
MapGuide is very easy to use and has the best location information for hotels, tourist attractions, museums, churches etc. that they manage to keep fairly up to date. It's great for teaching you how to use the public transportation system. The text sections are quick overviews, not reviews, but the strong suite here is brevity, not depth. I strongly recommend this for your first few times learning your way around the classic tourist sites and experiences. MapGuide is excellent as long as you are staying pretty much in the center of the city.

Time Out
The Time Out guides are very good. Easy reading, short reviews of restaurants, hotels, and other sites, with good public transport maps that go beyond the city centre. Many people who buy more than one guidebook end up liking this one best!

Let's Go
Let's Go is a great guide series that specializes in the niche interest details that turn a trip into a great and memorable experience. Started by and for college students, these guides are famous for the details provided by people who used the book the previous year. They continue to focus on providing a great experience inexpensively. If you want to know about the top restaurants, this is not for you (use Fodor's or Michelin). Let's Go does have a bewildering array of different guides though. Here's which is what:
Budget Guide is the main guide with incredibly detailed information and reviews on everything you can think of.
City Guide is just as intense but restricted to the single city.
PocketGuide is even smaller and features condensed information
MapGuide's are very good maps with public transportation and some other information (like museum hours, etc.)

Michelin
Famous for their quality reviews, the Red Michelin Guides are for hotels & Restaurants, the Green Michelin Guides are for main tourist destinations. However, the English language Green guide is the one most people use and it has now been supplemented with hotel and restaurant information. These are the serious review guides as the famous Michelin ratings are issued via these books.

Fodor's
Fodor's is the best selling guide among Americans. They have a bewildering array of different guides. Here's which is what:
The Gold Guide is the main book with good reviews of everything and lots of tours, walks, and just about everything else you could think of. It's not called the Gold guide for nothing though....it assumes you have money and are willing to spend it.
SeeIt! is a concise guide that extracts the most popular items from the Gold Guide
PocketGuide is designed for a quick first visit
UpCLOSE for independent travel that is cheap and well thought out
CityPack is a plastic pocket map with some guide information
Exploring is for cultural interests, lots of photos and designed to supplement the Gold guide

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Book more practical than TV show, February 7, 2005

By 

Stephen (Harvard, Morocco) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rick Steves' Italy 2005 (Paperback)

Rick Steeves sometimes get a bad rap because many have seen his TV shows, which sometimes come across as simple and lacking detail. His books though are much more practical, and his hotel recommendations have, in my experience in France, Spain, and Italy, never missed. For whatever reason, his influence seems to be greatest on tourists to Italy relative Spain or France.

My biggest criticism about Rick Steeves is that he seems to have little interest in food, and his restaurant recommendations are not as good ( I follow the Michelin guide for those).