Swiss Information – Tourism & Products

Rick Steves Swiss Rail Pass

Most helpful client reviews

23 of 25 humans found the following review helpful.
Pretty Good Within Limitations
By J. Martens
I like the book and found it very useful, but do have issues with it. First, Trieste isn't covered. Granted, Trieste is not a hugely general tourist destination, but it is a great place to visit with much history.

The maps are readable for us older folks, but not actually very good. Streets are left out and featured places of interest are misplaced. A good example is in Verona where the "Devotional Column," which is all over the street from the arena, is shown over a block away. Take the book, but get a better map from the TI or elsewhere.

Verona likewise provides a good example of another deficiency. The suggested self-guided walk includes things of seemingly fixed interest, like the house of Juliet (completely invented for tourists--Juliet was fictional, and so never had a house) and leaves out the arousing and attention holding Roman theater, which is just a block off the suggested walk.

For Herculaneum, though, the tip on how to turn the lights on in the gymnasium was tremendously useful.

Hotel and restaurant reviews tend to not be utile in any guide book, so I don't blame Steves for this. Virtual Tourist and the like, with big numbers of reviewers, are much better. If these recommendations were removed, the book would be lighter, fit better in a jacket pocket, and yet be no less useful.

22 of 24 humans found the following review helpful.
Best Guidebook for Practical Information
By Katherine E. Porter
While Rick Steve's guidebooks aren't filled with finelooking pictures they are chock full of practical information. Example: In the Milan train station stand with your back to the tracks and the ATMs are on your right and the restrooms are on your left. With all the data on the Web it may still be difficult to find out if there is an English bookstore in town or a laundromat or where there are Internet cafes or free Wi-Fi. Rick Steves guidebooks will give you all that info and more. I never leave home without one.

15 of 17 persons found the following review helpful.
Awesome Guide filled with Secrets!
By J. Rivera
I went on my honeymoon to Italy and this book was the only thing I employed to guide me around Rome. Rick Steves is merely AWESOME! One example I do not forget was following his tip in regards to buying the Colosseum tickets on the Colina Palatina booth, in order to skip the HUGE lines on the Colosseum! I did just that and me and my wife went laughing ALL the way from the back of a 200 person line to the entrance and into the Colosseum! AMAZING! This book is filled with MANY, MANY mysteries like this and I couldn't find any circumstance on which Mr. Steves was wrong. If you are going to Italy, take this book with you and SAVE a TON of money! Highly Recommended!

See all 24 client reviews...