Rick Steves Italy (Travel Guide)

I ordered this book before my husband and I went to Italy. WOW did this come in handy!!!! The information that we needed was right at our fingertips. The places to see or restaurants to visit, stores to seek out, neighborhoods to walk!!! It was all there in book. It was very helpful for sure.

This book literally saved me thousands of dollars on a recent trip to Italy. I had considered using a tour group but was not prepared for the cost. I ordered this book ( Rick Steves Italy) because I had watched some of his adventures on television and I might see what the book could offer as far as planning a trip to Europe with an itinerary. After reading the parts of the book related to the areas I wanted to visit I then proceeded to plan my trip with airfare and hotels. This book will help you with every detail of planning an Italian vacation. It even has pull out maps to guide you. From the smallest province to the largest city/state. What areas to avoid and where the most authentic foods are. Options for travel from Rome to Florence to Venice. We used the Italo high speed train. Little things like not putting your hands on fruits and vegetables in a grocery store but instead pointing to let the merchant know which you want. Not ordering cappuccino for dinner because Italians drink cappuccino for breakfast. After breakfast it is espresso with lunch or dinner. Customs that we may not be aware of no matter how much you think you know. It’s helpful for attractions and how, when and where the best place to buy tickets. This book is the travel bible for an Italian vacation. Highly recommend!

Whoa... this lil' book is thick and chock full of not only helpful travel info and recommendations - but it's the micro details that make this book valuable. Such as location of laundermats in cities and towns and recommended roads to traverse and of course recommendations to local, vetted guides.We used the book this year for 'on our own' travel and this book made the trip soooo much more!

Comprehensive as I could possibly wish for from hotels, transportation, eating experiences. Granted, it takes time and effort to peruse the tome but foreknowledge of what to expect and the ability and confidence to make good choices due to this book were, as expected from other Rick Steves travel books, priceless.

So much good information - probably best single source of info for first trip to Italy.Helped me plan my honeymoon this May 2024 and helped me decide what to see and what not to see - going to Milan, then Venice, and Cinque Terre.Small negative: didn't include stuff in Bologna - but you know what - maybe it will be less touristy there - so this ultimately could be a good thing.Otherwise I also used Rick Steves for Scandinavia and that was excellent - I wouldn't use another primary guide for Europe. I'm used to his style/format and customize what we want and don't want to see/do. I love his city walk/guides - always underrated - simple/free thing to do. Also like supporting Steve since we got to see so many free episodes while younger and he does cool stuff like take seniors to go traveling to Europe with him - totally support that. I like that my guide book has a face to it - compared to Lonely Planet, Rough Guides and others.The pages are phone book/paper thin style which I love - because more info is packed into it and it's still relatively light - can call audibles while traveling or do more if I get bored or need to change plans for some reason. I can tear stuff out and write all over it and high light it and not feel bad.

I have always loved Rick's books and still do. I have osteoarthritis that impacts my mobility, so checked this book for information about accessibility issues at various sites. To my surprise there is very little to be found, and accessibility isn't in the index. Much could be said in a section addressing relevant issues, like where to rent or purchase mobility products such as canes, walkers and wheelchairs, and whether they can be stored or used on various modes of transportation and at various sites of interest. He makes reference to sites having multiple steps and so forth, but I was disappointed that accessibility issues weren't specifically addressed - he's been writing these books for years and taking people on tours, for heaven's sake, and many travelers have impaired mobility. I still love his books which are chock-full of useful information and tips.

Great book with a lot of information. You can use it to plan your own travel, travel with a group whatever your hearts desire.

Rick's books are the gold standard for making sure you see all the most popular tourist sites. I own a dozen of them and have gotten a lot of use out of them. Unfortunately, since they are widely used, the sites listed in the guidebook are now completely swamped with tourists and almost not worth seeing, even far into the shoulder seasons. Those of us who don't want to stand in long, long lines, need to find a different way to choose our travel destinations.