Customer Reviews

Rough Guide First-time Europe : Special (3rd Edition)

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Buy this book if A) you are saving up for the "graduation trip to Europe," and B) you can admit to yourself that learning from someone's experiences can help you.

I saw the author at a college travel seminar and decided he had told me enough travel. A week later I realized that I had lots of questions, so I bought the book. It is an easy read, and yes it might be full of some common sense advice, but I think it is definitely worth it. I went to Europe last summer and I can say that the info about the McDonald's bathrooms is true, and based on a friend's experience, knowing the difference between Florence and Firenze is key if you want to see Michealangelo's David.

Even if you are traveling on a budget you will still spend quite a bit of money on your trip. The author's tips about packing light, keeping your gear safe, and how not to get ripped off will make this book worth while.

I took my first trip to Europe last summer, and I'm going again this spring. I can't imagine how I would have done it without this book, which I still use whenever I plan trip #2. For the person who has not traveled extensively, or who has never been to Europe, this book is an absolute must. When I was in Europe I met hundreds of people for whom traveling was the simplest thing in the world--they thought nothing about jumping on a train and visiting another country (or five) for a month or a summer. There is a huge network of trains, hotels and tourist offices to accommodate these travelrs, and I would never have known about it, or how to use it, or how much it would cost, without "First-Time Europe". If you are a teacher or a student or just someone who wants to go to Europe (and you should, it is INCREDIBLE) buy this book and go and you will understand what I mean.

I am adding my comments in hopes of encouraging more people to buy this book. I returned from a month-long trip to Europe on the rails, and this book helped me to avoid some major pitfalls. Casabianca's style is warm, friendly, and (most importantly) concise. The information is well-organized and clearly laid-out, making it easy for you to get the information you need speedily or continue to browse through and enjoy the anecdotes. I found myself re-reading certain sections along the way. It was a great reference that helped me to feel more at ease about traveling alone. I had the insider's perspective with me every moment. Buy this book! Whether you are going in four months and are just beginning to plan or you are leaving in a week, this book will help make your trip more of a joy and less of a headache.

I travelled abroad for my first time this past year. It was, in fact, the first time I had left the USA at all (despite my parents living in Michigan, I have never even been to Canada). The first book I bought to prepare for the trip was First-Time Europe : A Rough Guide Special. This was after I had already gotten through about a third of it in the bookstore. As this indicates it is a very readable book, much more than I generally expect most travel guides to be.

Of course, I should emphasize that it is not, in fact, a `country-specific' guide book. It doesn't tell you what to see or where to go in any particular country. It is designed as a general guide, a companion to such a guide book, basically covering the sort of information that something like Let's Go Europe tries to fit in its first chapter: pre-departure preparations, what to expect, how not to get your luggage stolen, etc.

This is not to downplay the value of First-Time Europe at all. It covers a lot more than the general introduction of a travel guide. And more importantly, at least for me, it is designed for readability. A country-specific guidebook is usually more like an almanac, designed for maximum information in the least amount of space. They are great if you know what you are looking for (i.e. the phone numbers of youth hostels in Berlin). Yet important reminders and notes that stuck with me from the passages of First-Time Europe are often reduced to single sentences in other guidebooks. And with my style of reading and retention, that means I'll often miss them. In fact there is even a great anecdote illustrating this in the book, where the author, Louis Casablanca, recounts the effort he spent trying to get directions to a hostel, before noticing the directions were in his guidebook the whole time.

So could I have gotten by without reading it? I'm sure I could have, especially since the first part of my trip was a `Study Abroad' experience, so I had someone to hold my hand in the beginning. And honestly, a good deal of the information in the book could probably be found elsewhere. I'll stop short of calling invaluable. However I'm still glad I bought it. Even if all the information isn't new, it is presented in a much clearer way than other books. Reading a country-specific guide book before going was generally a frustrating experience for me - they are much more useful once you are all ready there (and have made a couple mistakes). First Time Europe is a much more satisfying read. No, I can't tell you exactly how many potential blunders it actually eliminated. Yet just in the number of perceived worries it answered, and my corresponding growth in confidence about going to Europe, it was well worth the read.

This is one of the best written and most helpful travel books I have ever read. It is equally valuable to the novice as well as the veteran traveller. I have been travelling abroad for over 20 years yet I found several useful tips that will undoubtedly make future trips even more enjoyable. One of my duties as an educator is to organize European study tours for university students. I intend to require all participants in future tours to purchase this book well in advance of departure. It should serve to better prepare them for the little surprises often experienced by the first-time traveller to Europe.

This book was surprisingly enjoyable to read. It contains much of the same information as Rick Steves' Europe Through the Back Door, which also came highly recommended, but was significantly less expensive, lighter to carry and easier on the eyes. Having read both Casabianca's and Steves' books, I highly recommend First-Time Europe. It was an excellent guide that put some seemingly troubling issues into perspective in a minimal amount of time and paper.

I read this guidebook near the end of a European tour that was filled with pitfalls and inconveniences. I was dumbfounded - the book was almost a synopsis of my entire trip. The situations that this guidebook will prepare you for will almost inevitably occur, and the book is an excellent way to avoid the kind of mistakes that I made. I only wish I had read it before I left! Well organized and well written

It's a really good overview of the little things that one needs to know when planning such an extensive trip. Of course, as one of those who has never been to Europe, I can't say for a fact that all of his ideas are on target. But everything sounds logical, and when I ask my traveling friends about some of the things in the book, they all support what the books says. He covers everything from initial planning to packing to subtle tips about particular places (Be very careful if you're a guy and a woman asks you to buy her a drink in Amsterdam. It might cost $200!). The book has gotten us very excited about such a trip, and we're starting to get more specific in my plans.

I have been preparing for a few months for my trip to Europe. I had been floundering because there were a lot of things I had no idea about. I have other guide books that gave lots of information that was basically common sense. This book gave information that I hadn't even thought about, such as, using phones in Europe. It is very organized and takes you step by step. It is a must by for anyone going to Europe for their first or even second time.

As a prospective AFS exchange student to Europe, I found this book to be of more help than any other. Student travelers don't have many books as resources; "First Time Europe," while not geared exclusively toward students, has a wealth of information that is useful to us. What to pack, what to expect, places to stay, attitudes...they are all contained here. This is highly recommended to any student, or others who are on a tight budget and want the most for their money. Written with a perfect balance of anecdotes and practical information, the book is interesting as well as informative. Buy it, buy it, buy it!