The Michelin Guide France 2008 (Michelin Guides)

I guess I'm stunned that some American readers of the Michelin Red Guides find the Michelin Guide to France useless because it's written in French. Hey, fellow Americans, guess what: the one on Italy in written in Italian, the one on Spain in Spanish, the one on Portugal in Portuguese, and the ones on NYC and Great Britain are written in English. Wow! How about that? Who'd a thunk it? I've been using the Michelin guides to all these places for 40 years. My French is poor, my other language skills non-existent. I wouldn't think of planning a trip anywhere that they had a guide without having a fresh copy in hand to pick out hotels and restaurants. You soon learn the coding system: three house units for a hotel in a major city is "1st class", like the tour groups take you to, and you'll probably run into some; in the country, 3 house units can be fine. Look for rocking chairs, especially in red, if you like peace and quiet. In fact, while the best hotels have more "house units" (up to 5), and there's a direct price correlation, the most attractive places and best values are sometimes two and often three or four house units in red. Truth is, any special indication within quotes in red, like "beau site" marks a hotel as something special and worth checking out in its price class. The hotel prices quoted are often lower than reality. Ever since the adoption of the Euro sparked instant 10% inflation in Europe, prices at the nicer places have been rising quickly. Sometimes the guides can't keep up. It's a good idea to plan on 10% over what they quote for a rack rate, remember VAT and service can add 15%-20% depending upon the country, and check the internet for special deals. Michelin is most controversial for its star rating system of restaurants. In truth, I regard them as highly reliable and usually plan my trips around them, but it's also worth checking Gault-Millau or another source as confirmation. Michelin is slow to drop stars, slow to add them, and that's worth keeping in mind. If simple, good food and not gastronomy is what you're after, pick any place with at least two sets of crossed knife and fork, and you won't be disappointed. You'll save a lot of money into the bargain. But you'll have to deal with the foreign language while you're there. In a word, don't leave home without it.

Latest version of this brilliant publication. It's perfect for finding that secluded gem of a place to stay or eat (or both!). And you know they check these places every year. Why almost? It doesn't include the cheapest hotels, which are often as good as more highly rated ones. Pay particular attention to 3 features: a) restaurants that have rooms attached, b) those establishments regarded as being particularly good value and c) the maps of towns that help navigation if just passing through.

This is a wonderful guide but be aware that it is written in French. There are lots of symbols to rate the restaurants and hotels but the written descriptions and comments are all in French. With some basic French and a good French-English dictionary, you will be able to decipher the reviews. Fortunately, about one third of English is based on French so many of the words are easily decipherable.