Rick Steves Italy (Travel Guide)

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!

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.

You can't go wrong with Rick Steves, by far the most well laid out and easy to follow information. I've never been to Europe let alone Italy, but I'm planning a trip next March and this book has been incredibly helpful. It will be in my bag for sure. It has such useful information from history and recommendations, to guides only someone whose been enough times could give. For example, before getting this book I was trying to see if it would be possible to take a quick day trip to switzerland from the lake como area. I googled it and in a round about way its doable, however, after reading this book there is a perfectly laid out way to make a trip with far less hassle, and in ways Google couldn't put together or that would take a ton of research and planning on your part. There are maps with self guided tours, and information on what you'll be seeing. It's a handy all in one trip to Italy guide that is well worth it. I've read reviews on other guide books and pretty much all of them have reviews that read "it's good, but not as good as Rick Steves"

I have researched my trip to Italy for years. Even though I had a really good idea of what cities and sites I want to see, this book has some great ideas, and includes history of each as well. It is divided into the major cities/areas of Italy. Each section includes detailed walks he has literally mapped out for you, in which you'll get to see all the major attractions. I was very nervous about getting around, and how to take the trains, but this book tells you exactly which train/bus lines to take into each area no matter where you're coming from. He lists all the official websites to buy attraction tickets so you dont get caught paying too much on 3rd party ticket sites. Hotel, restaurant, and shopping recommendations are included in each section as well. A Must Have for your trip planning. He suggests ripping the book into sections to take with you. That's exactly what I've done! Much easier to manage each area/section at a time rather than carrying the whole book throughout all of Italy. So worth the money.

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.

The usual excellent Rick Steves guide, however, it significantly understates how crowded places have become since the guide was written and also understates the importance of advanced ticketing, timed entry, and dinner reservations whenever possible. Varenna and Cinque Terra, in particular, had unexpected shoulder-to-shoulder daytime crowds in April 2025, so not even really the high season. Packed main streets and rail platforms, standing room only trains and ferries, all much more crowded than the book describes. The book cautioned about going to Cinque Terra when there was a cruise ship inport, but now there are almost always multiple cruise ships inport--so use that description as a baseline. Bellagio and Lucca were also more crowded in daytime than described, but still manageable.

Very detailed book with SO many helpful tips, maps, and even discounts you can apply for:). Very pleased with purchase.

Alsolutely fabulous travel book. It's extensive and even though it hasn't got the glossy photos of other travel books, the scope of the information makes up for them. Will definitely be buying more of Rick Steves books.

1200 pages of updated info(Nov 2022), well organized but easier to deal with when you add your own multicolored page tabs. I add them to various sections like the maps, walking tours, main sight descriptions, local transportation. any key pages I want for the day I read in advance and take a picture with my phone rather than carrying the book. I also have an older 2018 Best of Italy which contains much of this in 550 pages but fewer small towns and hotels-restaurants pre-covid outdated.

Pages 461-508 are missing from this book. Amazon won't respond to a request for replacement. The Rick Steves organization sent me back to Amazon. You would think they would be willing to replace a book that is missing 47 pages or to make the missing pages available online. Neither Amazon nor Rick Steves stand behind this product error.

This guide gives you an overview together with every little thing you need for planning a trip. How many days, transportation, hotels, restaurants, sights, tickets, reservations, just all you need in a clear and precise, well organized book.