There is no such thing as the perfect guidebook, but after 13 years of using them I've been most impressed by the Eyewitness series. I used the Rome book in college when I went there for 6 weeks, the London book when I lived in the UK for two years, and I bought the latest edition of the Rome and Florence/Tuscany books this year for my Italian honeymoon. I also brought along Rick Steves and Blue Guide to field-test them, but I used Eyewitness the most by a long shot. Rick Steves is very good for practical travel tips, but little else. Blue Guides are very good for historical/artistic/architectural detail, but they can be cumbersome and aren't the easiest to use while traveling. I made a point to notice which guides other travelers were using around Italy, and I saw Eyewitness guides far more than any other, carried in an amazing variety of language editions by travelers from all over the world.
Eyewitness guides are colorful, filled with photos, easy to carry, user-friendly, and they have great city maps. They provide a comprehensive overview that lets you decide what you want to see. They're also very durable and hold up extremely well in the rain. Foldout covers on front and back provide very handy bookmarks. They have their downsides too, of course: the restaurant and hotel recommendations are hit and miss (as with most guidebooks), the books are not always updated annually, and the short Italian dictionary in the back is all but useless.
This book will guide you to the places you most want to see in and around Florence. It won't tell you a lot about them when you get there, but for many travelers it's more than enough. I like to have more historical, artistic and architectural detail handy when I travel to a place like Italy, so I also travel with the much more detailed Blue Guides. If you're only going to bring one guidebook, I recommend Eyewitness.
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Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on July 2, 2007
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Reviewed in the United States on March 22, 2008
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Reviewed in the United States on April 8, 2005
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Reviewed in the United States on June 14, 2013
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Top reviews from other countries
Ralphie2
Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 31, 2014Verified Purchase
Penny Miles
Travelbook in good condition.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 30, 2017Verified Purchase
Amazon Kunde
Nice guide, excellent format
Reviewed in Germany on June 6, 2016Verified Purchase
