Germany & Austria by Rick Steves’
Reviewed by Bridget
Ratings Explanation
Not Applicable
Synopsis
AmazingTravel Guide. Rick Steves’ travel philosophy is, “We travel all the way to Europe to enjoy differences-to become temporary locals. You’ll experience frustrations. Certain truths that we find “God-given” or “self-evident,” are suddenly not so true. One of the benefits of travel is the eye-opening realization that there are logical, civil, and even better alternatives. A willingness to go local ensures that you’ll enjoy a full does of local hospitality. A tight budget forces you to travel close to the ground, meeting and communicating with the people. Travel can make you a happier American, as well as a citizen of the world. It’s humbling to travel and find that other people don’t have the “American Dream”-they have their own dreams.”
“Experiencing this region’s culture, people, and natural wonders economically and hassle-free has been Rick Steves’ goal for more than three decades of traveling, tour guiding and travel writing. This book is your friendly Franconian, your German in a jam, a tour guide in your pocket. Germany and Austria are Teutonic twins, offering alpine scenery, dramatic castles, cobbled quaintness, and tasty wurst and strudel. But Germany is more of a mover and shaker, rattling Europe in the last century and leading the way for the new united Europe. Meanwhile, Austria is content to bask in its good living and opulent past as the former head of one of Europe’s grandest empires. Taken together, the two countries are intriguing and rewarding for travelers to explore.”
Our family recently returned from spending three weeks in Germany and Austria. We used Rick Steves’ guide religiously as we traveled through Berlin and Vienna. If you intend to see the “touristy” sites in Germany and Austria, this is an invaluable guide. We have found his recommendations for tourist sites, guides, lodging and food to be spot-on. We spent many hours reading this book aloud before our arrival at the upcoming destination. I appreciated reading the history synapses of each country. I felt we were in a position to better navigate and appreciate our experience. However, we spent much of our time in Northern Germany in Schleswig-Holstein, and Hamburg, as well as Graz, Austria, for which there were no recommendations. Although, we did use Steves’ philosophy of less money spent = a more adventurous travel experience.