Rick Steves Great Britain (Travel Guide)

We have liked using Rick Steves' travel books for years. They are typically excellent for doing research on attractions, places to eat and stay, and physical orientation, that is, walking maps and routes. This volume covers a LOT of ground, so our pointing out that there is no information on the city of Oxford for example, might seem petty... but Oxford is a neat place, if you manage to be staying in town. We stayed at the Randolph and thus were walking distance to nearly everything. If you watch Rick's episodes on this part of England, he says to flip a coin as to Oxford or Cambridge. With this book, he's made the choice for you. For a challenging goal such as Stonehenge, the book for a lone traveler is excellent. For another spot--Buckingham Palace--he minimizes how severe the security screening is (as extreme as at Heathrow!!), and how limited the food and beverage service is given the crowds. My tip? skip it. This hints that this is a part of the book he has not updated. There's no mistaking that Rick has real interest in his subjects, especially the stone age sites, and that gets through in the writing. A final note: On the topic of live theater in London, Rick gives some good advice, but he doesn't say that scrimping on ticket prices can result in an uncomfortable evening--and a poor to nonexistent view. We had tickets for "the Mousetrap" courtesy of our tour. The theater had not been remodeled since the last century, and once a family of full-size fellow Americans sat down in front of us, our view was canceled out for the whole performance. Live and learn, and safe travels!

There are many guides for the would-be visitor to Great Britain. Rick Steves's guide has a lot to recommend it. The author takes into account that the enterprising traveler is especially interested in useful, practical information, and there is lots of it here.It is important to note upfront that the guide doesn't cover everything. As another reviewer has noted, Cornwall isn't covered, and this reviewer notes that neither is Shetland, north of Scotland. The guide does cover the various portions of Great Britain that the author has visited and done his own information gathering. The level of detail on offer here reflects that, from London to the rest of England, and on to Wales and to Scotland. Northern Ireland is covered in a separate guide.The author discusses how to get to places and what to see, with specific suggestions on dining, accommodation, and movement. The maps are better than average, and the text includes a nice selection of black and white, and color, photographs. The enterprising traveler is encouraged to read the whole book before making hard plans and reservations. The likely reward is a better trip to one of the world's great destinations (yes, this reviewer is biased). Highly recommended.

I was overwhelmed trying to plan my recent 2 week trip to the UK. I wanted to go everywhere from Cornwall to John O'Groats and beyond. I wanted to visit several islands off the Atlantic coast of Scotland and I wanted to see Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Inverness plus spend 2 or 3 days in London. I needed at least 6 weeks, probably more, a car and a BritRail pass to see all these places.This book provides realistic itineraries within Great Britain and distinguishes between the "must sees" and the "worth it" destinations based upon Rick Steve's extensive travels.Also included are terrific restaurant, side trips and bed and breakfast suggestions. We had a wonderful meal at Number 27 in Inverness and tons of fun watching a shepherd with his sheepdogs and sheep.Pull out maps of Great Britain plus regional and city maps within the book are terrific.We had our own "must see" in London - we went by the Asher home where Paul McCartney lived when he wrote "Yesterday". The book also includes directions to Paul's current London home - we did not stop by. Bottom Line: This book helped us to realistically prioritize our UK "wanna sees" and ultimately feel like we went to as many of those places as time would allow. That's how I want to feel when I return from holiday.

We always use Rick Steves when we travel. This guide was very useful for our trip to Scotland.

Sizable book covering a lot. Interestingly enough, Oxford is barely mentioned, though there is a good selection on Cambridge.

I purchased this book when we planned our UK trip. It had lots of great advice on what to do, where to eat, and where to stay. The detailed descriptions were extremely helpful, and I felt the rating on the attractions was spot on. I felt it gave me a good idea of what I would enjoy and what might be outside my interests. It was very helpful every step of the planning process.The most helpful part was finding a place to stay, especially in London. I highly recommend this book and any other Rick Steves travel book.

Rick Steves gives us all the answers we need for a great vacation. We purchase a book for each country & we are given excellent choices on lodging, meals, sights to see, surrounding areas & transportation. Great history background & maps of cities & museums. A must have for a great vacation.

I found it very helpful to prep for upcoming trip.