Rick Steves' Germany & Austria

Anyone who's familiar with Rick Steves, from his PBS show, to his syndicated travel column in newspapers, to all of his books, knows that when it comes to having a true European experience, you gotta "bring" Rick. He finds the best places, the best deals, and saves you time and money. Rather than include everything, he only points you to the best of what a particular country has to offer. And since his books are updated every year, the info is as up-to-date as publishing will allow. He saved the Italian town of Vernazza in the Cinqueterra by bringing in tourism, and that alone is worth a 5 star recommendation. If you're going to Europe and you want to experience it like a local, and save time and money to boot, order a copy of the appropriate guidebook. And if you're going to any major museums, get his "Mona Winks" as well. You'll thank him everytime you walk past all the "suckers" standing in line at some major attraction, while you saunter up to the front with your pass that you ordered ahead of time based on his info.

i ALWAYS buy rick steves' guidebooks when i go europe. thus far, i have his books for paris, london, switzerland and amsterdam. my boyfriend was somewhat skeptical at first, since he'd never heard of this line, but he became a rick steves fan, too, after all the memorable meals we had at the restaurants rick recommended. too bad rick steves only does europe; i'd love to see some guidebooks for asia and the middle east.

I've read many of his books cover to cover. Rick makes them fun and easy to read as well as packing in a wealth of information the other guide books just never cover. He tells you what you have to see in the area and then what he would veer off the beaten path for. We've taken his advice over and over again and he never disappoints. He'll take you to those small towns where authentic old Europe still exists and where you can truly relax. I can't recommend his books enough. We've had life altering moments on vacation that would not have occurred if we hadn't taken his advice to stray off the well-beaten tourist path. I highly recommmend the Italy, England and this Germany/Austria book. Reutte, Austria is a slice of heaven - don't tell anyone.

I moved to Germany 2 months ago and came prepared with three travel guides: 1. Eyewitness Travel Germany; 2. Frommer's Germany's Best-Loved Driving Tours; 3. Rick Steves' Germany and Austria 2006. Two months into our stay here we now almost exclusively use the Rick Steves' book..... It is fantastic! His opinionated travel advice always seems to be right on. I highly recommend this book or its upcoming update (2007) to any visiting or moving to Germany.

Will be bringing this with me in Sept. for a tour of Bavaria and Austria. Rick's books even have up to date hotel information. Can't wait to try his recommendations.