Customer Reviews

The Rough Guide to Hungary (4th Edition)

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The Rough Guide Hungary is a complete paper guide: both practical as well as good in in-depth knowledge. Arriving in Hungary by plane as I did in the Summer of 2000, you feel you have arrived in a country where a completely strange, vigourous and stimulating language is spoken and little else except goodwill. This book has the capacity to guide you into this really foreign country, offering you several possibilities in the above situation, varying from the safe: 'take a cab but fix the price beforehand', to the more adventurous: 'take bus # 93 (red) to the metro terminal and continue your journey to Budapest by taking the blue metro line to the centre of town'. Whatever your choice, I found this is all excellent advice with no mistakes. The guide continues in this reliable way both in the capital and in the country side, but does more as it also describes Hungary's history and culture in its own words, not copying textbooks. Boxes with extra, spicy information are included.

Because this guide is so good on history, contemporary politics and culture, it doesn't cover every village in Hungary, as other guides in the same category and written for the same public do. This one maintains an enjoyable balance between tourist information, background knowledge and girth. Although its electronic variant as seen on Internet is weaker than its direct competitor, the paper variant is second to none, even superior.