In Your Pocket Rome

I took this book on a recent 8-day trip to Rome. It is an outstanding guide to the historical/cultural sights, probably the best in print if you're limiting yourself to one.The city is divided into about 15 regions. For each, the book lays out a walking tour complete with an explicit map. Quite a bit of very helpful info is provided for each sight.If you have a lot less than 8 days, the book provides a rating of 1 to 3 stars for each sight, so you can make a bee-line to the 3 star sights and skip the walking tours.The book is weak on "the contemporary scene", bus routes, shopping, restaurants, and hotels. The focus is definitely on the cultural and historical sights. I recommend you also get a copy of Fodors or Frommers and xerox the chapters on these important practicalities. Great dining experiences can add a lot to the trip; Rome has plenty of mediocre tourist traps.Another book similar in scope and emphasis is "Blue Guide Rome" by Alta Macadam. It's also excellent. This author typically says a little more about each sight than does Michelin, but the city is divided into about 30 walking tours instead of 15 and no map is provided for the individual walks. If you don't mind carrying a small library, and I don't, take this along too and whip it out at the major sights to get an insightful second opinion.A big issue in sightseeing Ancient Rome is that there is usually relatively little left to look at, as the sites were used as quarries for more than a thousand years. Neither this Michelin Guide nor the Blue Guide provides sketches of reconstructions of the Ancient sites, and hence your imagination doesn't have much to go on. To rectify this, I recommend whipping out the "Oxford Archeological Guide to Rome" by Amanda Claridge, probably the best guide in English on Ancient Rome, but this book barely mentions any site newer than 500 AD and is not suitable as a general guide.

After living overseas for 6 years I have traveled far and wide. I have purchased several other guide book brands (Fodors, Eyewitness, Knopf), and while they have pretty pictures, they lack substance. If you are visiting Rome and want to know the history and small details The Green Guide is an absolute must. It's divided into logical catagories (take the time to acquaint yourself with the set-up of the book - you'll be glad you did) that are alphabetically listed. Sights are rated one, two and three stars and I've found that most ratings are fairly accurate. There are small, detailed maps in each section. You can also purchase a very detailed map book of Rome by Michelin - it's wonderful!The book is lighter than most of the current popular travel guides and chock full of great information. Michelin is always the guide I reach for once I'm disgusted with any other guide book - no matter where I'm visiting!Bon Voyage!