Rick Steves' Scandinavia [Paperback]

Rick Steves (Author)

Book Description

Series: Rick Steves | Publication Date: April 15, 2008

Who but Rick Steves can tell travelers the best way to see Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm, Helsinski, Tallinn, and the Norwegian fjords? With Rick Steves’ Scandinavia, travelers can experience the best of everything Scandinavia has to offer—economically and hassle-free. Completely revised and updated, this guide includes: opinionated coverage of both famous and lesser-known sights, friendly places to eat and sleep, suggested day plans, walking tours and trip itineraries, and clear instructions for smooth travel anywhere by car, train, or foot. America’s #1 authority on travel to Europe, Rick’s time-tested recommendations for safe and enjoyable travel in Europe have been used by millions of Americans in search of their own unique European travel experience.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Today's tourists are as likely to be toting Rick Steves as Giorgio Armani, tasting the good life without burning through the Kids' college fund. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Rick Steves is on a mission: to help make European travel accessible and meaningful for Americans. Rick has spent 100 days every year since 1973 exploring Europe. He's researched and written 24 travel guidebooks and hosts the public television series Rick Steves' Europe, now in its seventh season. He also organizes and leads tours of Europe and offers an information-packed website (www.ricksteves.com). Rick lives in Edmonds, WA, just north of Seattle, with his family.

Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Avalon Travel Publishing; 11th edition (April 15, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566918677
• ISBN-13: 978-1566918671
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 4.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #777,542 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Rick Steves advocates smart, affordable, perspective-broadening travel. As host and writer of the popular public television series Rick Steves' Europe, and best-selling author of 40 European travel books, he encourages Americans to travel as "temporary locals." He helps American travelers connect much more intimately and authentically with Europe -- and Europeans -- for a fraction of what mainstream tourists pay.

Over the past 20 years, Rick has hosted over 100 travel shows for public television, and numerous pledge specials (raising millions of dollars for local stations). His Rick Steves' Europe TV series is carried by over 300 stations, reaching 95 percent of U.S. markets. Rick has also created two award-winning specials for public television: Rick Steves' European Christmas and the ground-breaking Rick Steves' Iran. Rick writes and co-produces his television programs through his company, Back Door Productions.

Rick Steves also hosts a weekly public radio program, Travel with Rick Steves. With a broader approach to travel everywhere, in each hour-long program Rick interviews guest travel expert, followed by listener call-ins. Travel with Rick Steves airs across the country and has spawned a popular podcast. Rick has also created a series of audio walking tour podcasts for museums and neighborhoods in Paris, Rome, Florence and Venice (with more tours, including London, coming in 2010).

Rick self-published the first edition of his travel skills book, Europe Through the Back Door (now updated annually), in 1980. He has also written more than 40 other country, city and regional guidebooks, phrase books, and "snapshot" guides. For several years, Rick Steves' Italy has been the bestselling international guidebook sold in the U.S. In 2009, Rick tackled a new genre of travel writing with Travel as a Political Act, reflecting on how a life of travel has broadened his own perspectives, and travel can be a significant force for peace and understanding in the world. Rick's books are published by Avalon Travel, a member of the Perseus Books Group.

In addition to his guidebooks, TV and radio work, Rick is a syndicated newspaper columnist with the Tribune Media Services. He appears frequently on television, radio, and online as the leading authority on European travel.

Rick took his first trip to Europe in 1969, visiting piano factories with his father, a piano importer. By the time he reached 18, Rick jokes, "I realized I didn't need my parents to travel!" He began traveling on his own, funding his trips by teaching piano lessons. In 1976, he started Europe Through the Back Door (ETBD), a business which has grown from a one-man operation to a company with a well-traveled staff of 70 full-time employees. ETBD offers free travel information through its travel center, website (www.ricksteves.com), European Railpass Guide, and free travel newsletters. ETBD also runs a successful European tour program with more than 300 departures -- attracting around 10,000 travelers -- annually.

Rick is outspoken on the need for Americans to fit better into our planet by broadening their perspectives through travel. He is also committed to his own neighborhood. He's an active member of the Lutheran church (and has hosted the ELCA's national video productions). He's a board member of NORML (working to reform marijuana laws in the USA). And Rick has provided his local YWCA with a 24-unit apartment building with which to house homeless mothers.

Rick Steves spends about a third of every year in Europe, researching guidebooks, filming TV shows, and making new discoveries for travelers. He lives and works in his hometown of Edmonds, Washington, where his office window overlooks his old junior high school.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Indispensable in Scandinavia, June 8, 2005

By 

Erik Olson "Seeker Reviews" (Ridgefield, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

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

I just returned from a two-week adventure in Scandinavia, where I hung out in Oslo, Copenhagen, and Stockholm. I had a great time seeing the places where my predecessors came from, and I can attribute much of my trip's success to the "Rick Steves' Scandinavia 2005" guidebook. Mr. Steves has created an excellent and portable all-in-one travel resource for this region. It's well organized, and compact enough to fit in a jacket pocket for consultation on the fly. But most importantly, his hotel, transportation, and attraction recommendations fit my traveling desires and saved me time and money.

For example, finding a decent place to stay in a strange country can be daunting, but Mr. Steves' picks came through every time. His three-tiered rating system based on pricing helped me zero in on optimal accommodations: high (fancier hotels), moderate (nice, but no frills), and low priced (hostels and private homes). I stuck to the moderate level, and the book led me to a good night's sleep in each city. The City Hotel and Rainbow Hotel Astoria in Oslo, Hotel Jorgensen in Copenhagen, and Queen's Hotel in Stockholm were all great for a thirtysomething solo traveler on a budget. They had helpful staff, good breakfasts included with the room, and locations close to transportation centers and attractions.

Getting around Scandinavia was made easier by the hints in "Scandinavia 2005." Taking the night cruise from Oslo to Copenhagen got me on a cruise ship for the first time, and watching the shore slip by while enjoying a nice wine and cigar was sweet. I also took Mr. Steves' advice and reserved a couchette on a night train from Copenhagen to Stockholm (a bit crowded with five other people in the cabin, but efficient nontheless). Both methods enabled me to combine travel with sleep to maximize time and kroner savings. And his admonition to rely on walking and bicycling to intimately experience the cities was smart, especially since I lost seven pounds while seeing the sights!

Finally, Mr. Steves' ratings on things to see and do helped me dive into my Nordic roots. He uses a zero to three triangle rating system (three triangles = don't miss; two triangles = try hard to see; one triangle = worthwhile if you can make it; no triangle = worth knowing about). Based on his recommendations, I experienced cool sights like the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo, Christiania in Copenhagen, and the Vasa Museum in Stockholm. Simple hand-drawn maps helped me navigate the cities and easily find these attractions (along with the accommodations listed above). And the additional information he provided enabled me to prioritize my sightseeing based on distance, operating hours, and price.

Of course, no guidebook is perfect because the information is static and recommendations are based on opinion. Admission prices rise, museums change their exhibits, and a "don't miss" attraction ends up being a bust (like the three-triangle Nordic Museum in Stockholm, mainly because Swedish fabrics and dinner settings aren't my thing). But having the "Rick Steves' Scandinavia 2005" guidebook really helped me to achieve an outstanding travel experience I'll never forget. For that, he gets my highest endorsement.

30 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not Rick's Best, September 30, 2004

By 

Molly "Molly" (Seattle, WA 98102) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rick Steves' Scandinavia 2004 (Paperback)

While I usually love Rick Steves' books, won't leave home without one, and take nothing else, this book was a disappointment. The directions were very poor so we got lost even on his orientation walks (not generally a time you need a real city map). The accomodations listings were wanting. Though it said you could assume breakfast was included and credit cards were accepted unless otherwise mentioned, this never worked. We found no breakfasts at places that he didn't specifically describe them, and the places in Denmark he listed as taking credit cards only accepted Danish cc's. We found better meals for better prices than he recommended with very minimal effort. Scandanavia is so expensive that saving money (the primary RS claim) is critical, but not easy following this book's suggestions. This guide was so far below the normal RS standard, we were left wondering if RS actually had anything to do with it or if he has bitten off more than he can chew during his success and passed it off to less consciencous minions. The book was helpful on narrowing down what to see, so I would recommend checking it out; just don't rely on it exclusively.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Useful Guide To Scandinavia, February 4, 2010

By 

Robert I. Hedges - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rick Steves' Scandinavia (Paperback)

I am a fan of Rick Steves' guidebooks (and television travelogues), and used this guide extensively on a recent Scandinavian vacation. During the course of the trip I visited Norway, Denmark, and Sweden, and loved them all for different reasons. Steves gives generally good overviews of all three countries (I didn't visit Finland, so I can't pass judgment on that), although I found the book not quite up to his normal standard.

The book has excellent ideas for walks and tours, and his proposed itineraries are fairly easy to adapt to individual interests. I didn't use his hotel recommendations, and his restaurant recommendations were a bit hit and miss as well, although in the larger cities and towns there are quite a variety of eateries available, and I never had any difficulty finding decent food.

I know that no guidebook can be utterly complete, but there were several omissions I found peculiar. For instance, Malmo is a wonderful city in southern Sweden, and is an easy and quick train trip from Copenhagen now that the Oresund bridge is complete. Despite discussion of several even more off-the-beaten path destinations, Malmo is not discussed in the book (except for a three sentence acknowledgement of its existence on p.107), despite it's convenience and charm. These things aren't a huge deal separately, but there are several examples of oversights in this guide.

My biggest annoyance with this book concerned the maps: there are several maps in the guide, and while they are adequate for general itinerary planning, they are definitely not adequate for navigating on the ground. This is especially true of the maps of Copenhagen: it's an old city, and you definitely need a better map than Steves', or you positively will get lost.

On the positive side, the sights that Steves recommends are generally spot on. From a base near the Radhuspladsen (adjacent to Tivoli gardens and the central train station), exploring the city using the guide (and a better map) was a pleasure. I appreciated his commentary on Kongens Nytorv (although it was ghastly hot inside), the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, and of course beautiful Nyhavn (watch out for pickpockets). His writeups of these and many other places made planning and touring much easier, and really helped me formulate the sights I truly wanted to see. I likewise found his details relevant and very helpful for Norway, where most of my time was spent in Bergen (bring a raincoat and don't miss the floibanen to the top of Mount Floyen).

This is a good book, and I recommend it without reservation. While I don't think it's one of Steves' best, it is extremely readable and excellent for designing your itinerary. If used in conjunction with better maps (especially in Copenhagen), it will get you where you want to go.