39 of 40 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
recommended, May 17, 2007
This review is from: The Rough Guide to Spain 12 (Rough Guide Travel Guides) (Paperback)
I traveled for three weeks driving in southern and central Spain with this 2007 Rough Guide to Spain, a 2007 DK Eyewitness Travel Spain book, and a 2004 Frommer's Spain's Best Loved Driving Tours guidebook. While each had some information the others didn't, the Rough Guide was the most informative and most used...therefore the one I'd recommend taking.
Times for museums/attractions and prices (in Euros) was accurate. The cultural information helped understand their culture. The historical information helped also. I didn't depend on the specific accommodations listed...I would typically just go into an area with many listed places (typically tourist area with nice walking right outside the room) and ask around until I find someplace. [Note: This method can be a real problem during festivals (which Spain has no scarcity of...) when rooms may be in few supply....or in high season (I traveled in early/mid May...when the flowers were out in the countryside and it wasn't too hot).]
You won't find a book that has "everything" you want to know, so consider buying a couple (like I did) or just getting one and get the most out of it you can.
Whatever you do...enjoy your trip.
'Ta Luego.....
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27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Thorough, Detailed, May 19, 2009
My wife and I just returned from a trip to Spain. I have used the Rough Guides in the past, and between the reviews of others as well as my personal experience, felt it was the guide book to take with us. After spending two weeks with it, it served us well and I would recommend it. We also took a slightly older (2007) Fodor's book which someone lent us, and were thus able to compare. The RG was the winner.
Older versions of their books were highly geared to backpackers and travelers with low budgets. RG has done a good job of covering a wider swath of the traveling public, and we found an excellent selection of both budget and higher end places for lodging and dining. A few times we had no idea of where to stay or dine, and their recommendations were spot on.
From the touring standpoint, I found their recommendations had a tendency towards hyperbole. For example, I found a "not-to-be-missed" sight could indeed easily be bypassed, and we could have saved the time and trouble. That happened on multiple occasions. The "best example of Mozarabic architecture" would likely enthrall an enthusiast, but my reaction was a tad more muted. The RG's orientation is for the traveler who is interested in or able to focus on an area for a longer period of time, as opposed to Fodor, who might suggest hitting one or two major sights and then hit the road. Our goal and method of travel is somewhere in between, so having the balance of the detail in RG with the opinion of Fodor in counterbalance was helpful. Having two books to carry, especially the thick RG, was viewed as an opportunity for exercise, not a burden.
One area that I must scold RG for is their choice of print font size and printing colors. My eyes are not what they were, and even in daylight we sometimes found it difficult to read. Section titles are mysteriously printed in orange, making that information fade remarkably well into the page, thus even more challenging to read. The book is detailed, very well written, and lengthy; make no mistake. To keep it compact, the pages are thin. I like to highlight passages, and the highlighter bled right through the page.
It is a worthy travel companion.
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21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best guide for outside the major cities, May 18, 2008
This review is from: The Rough Guide to Spain 12 (Rough Guide Travel Guides) (Paperback)
My husband and I just got back from a 2-week trip to Spain where we covered about 1000 miles by car. This was the guide that we depended on when we traveled through the Pyrenees, Rioja and Basque regions. The other guidebooks have maybe one or two sentences on the picturesque little medieval towns that we passed through, where this one had recommendations for meals and places to stay off the beaten path. I was so glad to have this book or we would have missed out on many great experiences, including our stays at some small "casas rurales" (like bed and breakfasts) where we got to really speak to the locals and take in the day to day life in Spain. It's a big book to drag around, so I ended up tearing out the pages with the maps we would need each day and carried those around with me instead of the whole book. The best travel book purchase that I have ever made!
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