Customer Reviews

Seven Perfect Days in Colorado: A Guided Driving Tour

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

 

 

In Chicagoland's major suburban newspaper, the Daily Herald:
"Seven Perfect Days in Colorado," subtitled "A Guided Driving Tour," guides you on a seven-day, 950-mile trip that includes time in Denver, at Estes and Rocky Mountain National Park, a tour of the heart of the gold and silver country, crossing the Divide and visiting the National Mining Musrum, exploring a ghost town, hiking the Colorado Trail and driving across the Royal Gorge Suspension bridge, a stop at a Cripple Creek gold mine and time in and around Colorado Springs.
Half-week tours are also given.
This is a great book if you are visiting Colorado for the first time and wonder how you're going to see the best parts of a huge state in a reasonable time.
The authors take the traveler by the hand and tell you where to turn, what to expect to see as you drive, where to find camping areas and which museums are worth visiting.
The reader could take any one of the areas or days outlined and do it as a day trip. This slim volume will help with pretrip planning, then will fit in your glove compartment and come handy on the road.

I prefer World Travel. But if and when I get back to Colorado, perhaps to do some serious back-packing, I want this book with me. Jam-packed with touring information for one of America's most scenic states. The Ginnodos take you on a 7-day tour, suggesting exciting activities for each geographical region of the state. Also includes personal maps and comments about Colorado touring.This book is highly recommended for the America-trekking RV crowd.

A bit thin. Cover art and lay-out: very appropriate Colorado feel and look.

In the Chicago Tribune Travel Section: "This book contains something that many a big-name travel guide does not: the authors' first-hand experiences, cover-to-cover, of the places being written about. In their folksy style, they describe a guided driving tour through the state, much as your favorite aunt and uncle would: retelling interesting bits of history, advising you where to take a break and sharing their personal favorites."

Seven Perfect Days In Colorado: A Guided Driving Tour by Bill and Celia Ginnodo is a informed and informative, thoroughly "user friendly", and highly recommended day-by-day planner for developing an itinerary to explore the highlights of the state of Colorado which are readily accessible by automobile or RV. From admiring the beauty and ecosystem of the Rockies, to visiting a real ghost town, to visiting the museum of Denver, Seven Perfect Days In Colorado provides the invaluable and time-saving blueprint for a vacation excursion that will be as fun as it is educational!

Just back from 10 glorious days in Colorado, and by Day 2 it was clear that this book is NOT a very good guide. We received infinitely better advise by simply asking the locals. It completely misses some of the great spots in Colorado, such as Great Sands National Park, the Grand Juction Canyon, Colorado National Monument, the Indian ruins in the Southwest corner of the state; and it gets a little swept up in things that aren't at all spectacular if you've ever traveled or been to a good museum.

I suppose if you've lived your life in a trailer park, never been west and are older than my 70-year-old mother, you might like this book.

Buy a Frommers, log on to the national parks website, book hotels in Denver, Estes Park, Idaho Springs, Grand Junction, Breckenridge, Colorado Springs and Alamosa. If you have the time, add several days to/from/in the southwest corner (Durango or Telluride). The city websites, the park rangers, and the staffs of even modest hotels will tell you how to enjoy the most beautiful state in the country, no matter your level of sportiness. BTW - The Travel Channel site has very good recommendations for Colorado, especially for restaurants.

Note that this book has no index, and the websites it points to are ancient and not robust. The maps/directions are hard to extract, and you'll spend hours trying to figure out what roads they are turning you onto. You'll do much, much better with Frommers, Google and a modest GPS unit that includes plenty of hotels, restaurants and points of interest (Garmin Nuvi is my fav).

More than anything, get a general idea of what you want to do, get there, and ask the consistently friendly and helpful people of Colorado to advise you. You'll do much better than following the advise of this book.

I purchased this book for my sister-in-law who is planning to take a driving trip through Colorado. She was thrilled with the contents and will take several of their recommendations.

The book gives all kinds of ideas to make for a memorable trip, restaurants, hotels, off the beaten path types of things that you could not know about.

Great value!

From the first breathtaking view of the Rocky Mountains to the sunset stroll through the Garden of the Gods, our seven perfect days in Colorado were perfectly delightful. Whether you prefer leisurely strolls in museums or exploring the mountainside, this book gives you plenty of options. As we traveled along the suggested route, it was obvious that the Ginnodos had carefuly studied every detail. Their guided tour without the timetable helped us avoid crowds, learn about Colorado history, enjoy nature, and choose our own pace. This book accompanied our every move, acting as a reference and guide. It made a significant difference in how much we experienced and how deeply we experienced it. Don't leave for Colorado without it!

Are you ready for another visual feast? If the sun is shining - and it does so about 300 days a year in Colorado Springs - you'll want to take out that camera and turn on your memory machine. Early morning sun on the eastern side of the red rocks is beautiful, but we think the afternoon sun on the western side is spectacular. ~Bob and Celia Ginnodo

Guided driving tours are perfect for trips to new places because so much is hidden when you are traveling in a new state. You could easily drive by stunning locations that may require a little off the beaten track adventuring.

Bill and Celia Ginnodo are adventurous spirits who have created three tours. A Seven-Day tour begins in Denver and takes you into the mountains. A week later you end up in Colorado Springs. A Four-Day Northern Tour and a Four-Day Southern Tour are also featured. You can also make up your own tour and visit ghost towns, hike trails, walk around an alpine lake, descend into a gold mine or ride a narrow-gauge railroad.

Each chapter is filled with great advice for your tour and there are even humorous comments sprinkled throughout the insightful recommendations. The authors have also included historical information and a few maps.

A special section at the end of the book lists ideas for kid friendly locations like the Butterfly Museum and a Gold Mine. Other unique features:

What to Wear and Bring
For Your Health and Safety
Colorado History
Lists of Travel Books
Restaurants
Campgrounds
Hotels
B&Bs

If you are thinking of visiting Colorado for four to seven days, I think this book will make your trip a much more personalized experience.

~The Rebecca Review