There's Gold in Fodors Guides

Fodors Guides have reinvented themselves.

Long valued as the top-tier of international guidebooks, this popular travel guide series has donned a new personality.

Published in the U.S. by Random House, travelers who know have put their trust in these familiar guide books for generations, to help plan and navigate the cities, roadways, sights, and by-ways of Europe and the world.

First published in 1936, scores of travelers have made Fodors guides their guides, choosing them as the best travel guides for their own personal travel adventures.

Of the 300 destinations currently covered by a growing number of individual guides, the backbone series of Fodor's travel books is marketed as their Full Color Guides.

Morphed from the formerly basic [and bland?] travel series known as Fodor's Gold Guides, these popular Fodors travel books have donned an updated magazine style look to become Fodors new full color travel guides - a welcome change.

Constantly updated with new releases, Fodors Guides continue to number in the hundreds of volumes, covering at least 7500 destinations around the world. 

Researched and written by local experts, these super informative books are loved for their in-depth coverage and accurate detail. 

Complete with built-in ratings, they give you the insight and tools to discover which sights, restaurants, hotels, and attractions will make your trip to an unfamiliar destination an adventure to remember.

Fodors Guides - Essential Europe

Meanwhile, the familiar format of Fodors Guides remains packed with expanded coverage and savvy advice for their long-standing guidebook destinations.

For example, Fodor's Essential Europe bulges with details of major cities and regions in 24 countries throughout the Euro-Continent.

The introduction provides an overview, including photos of major landmarks and attractions that draw you into Europe's rich history.

Each destination begins with its own historical overview, followed by descriptions of local current-day venues. This particular guide provides details for seasonal events, including schedules, approximate costs, and open/closing times for major sights, landmarks, and attractions.

Also included are schedules and contact information for local transportation routes for bus, rail, and river.

You can see what's important in which museum - and if it happens to be closed for remodel - a schedule for re-opening.

Included are mini-guide planners for well-known architechtural landmarks, like the Alhambra in Granada, the Duomo in Florence, or La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona.

These provide reliable information for how and when to visit these popular attractions; the best way to navigate crowds; and guidance to understand their historical significance.

There are suggestions for visiting historically picturesque towns, such as Georgian-style Bath, medieval Bruges, and 'noble' Sintra, putting their archi-tecture, locations, and historical importance into easy-to-understand context.

You’ll find the must sees of great art and the museums that house them: the Vatican, the Louvre, the Prado, the British Museum, and Trinity College.

You can review Europe's major geographic spectaculars: the caldera of Santorini, the limestone hills in the Cotswolds, the tulip fields of Holland – just to name a few.

Of particular interest in this far all-encompassing Fodors travel guide, are the brief In Focus primers.

Depending on your destination, these brief commentaries cover such diverse and tourist-friendly topics as

• how to choose a pub;
• how to see Westminster Abbey;
• how to find the best tapas; or
• who’s who in Renaissance art?
  
  

Other Fodors Guide Series

Always highly rated by Fodors Guide fans are their unique full-color books  especially helpful for planning shorter, city-based Euro-trips: their series known as 25 Best.* 

Spanning the continent with Europe’s greatest cities, you’ll find destinations ranging from Dublin’s 25 Best to Madrid's. From Berlin's 25 Best to Milan’s. From Edinburgh’s 25 Best to Rome’s.

Also included are a selection of Eastern Euro-cities, like 25 Best of Budapest, Prague, or Istanbul.

As their names would imply, these small, approximately 120 page books deliver the best things to do when focusing your travel time in a specific city.

Each city guide includes several maps for orientation and to help you plan for the best use of your time. These include a map of the local underground system [metro, tube, etc.] and a full-size, pullout map for general navigation.

These city-focused Fodors Guides provide current, up-to-date suggestions for shopping, eating, and entertainment, each arranged by geographic location.

For a more focused coverage of the art, history, culture, and architecture of Europe, Fodors Exploring series is what you want.

Though limited in the number of published destinations, this 'cultural' travel guide series offers ideas geared toward European travelers wanting a close-up, one-on-one, personal travel experience.

You'll find suggestions for city walks and scenic drives - with tips on how to explore more of each destination.

This series is written with a contemporary slant, both in the destinations covered and the sidebar information that compliments noted points of interest.

A final Fodors travel guide series, See It, highlights city, country, and regional desti-nations.

The books in this travel guide series are color-illustrated and filled with practical travel information, including reviews for hotels, restaurants, shops, and nightlife, with recommendations and current pricing.

Sights and attractions are rated for historical interest, photo significance, and kid friendliness, so you can tell at a glance, if they’re worth your time.

Loaded with pullout maps, these Fodors guides concentrate on regional high-lights and specialties, with recommendations for local walks, drives, eating choices, and things to do.

In short, if you want a cover-it-all, best of Europe guidebook, compiled, written, and edited by contributors who live what they write, Fodors Guides remain popular for a reason.  They work!

Check them out at your favorite bookstore, or follow our links to Amazon, where you'll find the greatest variety of Fodor's travel books.

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* Some time ago we came across a notice that Fodors Guides was no longer pub-lishing their 25 Best guidebook series. To date, we've had little problem finding these titles online. In fact, a search of Amazon's listings shows almost 300 titles, with many destinations updated as recently as 2015. 

Since the 'notice of demise' was put forth by a guidebook competitor, I now consider the announcement suspect.  

Numerous hard copy books are available for just over $10.00 USD online, while some titles are available for download only.

For more info on choosing the best Europe guidebook, see:

 Choosing A Good Travel Guidebook Over A Mediocre One, and

Which Travel Guide For Europe Is Best?  

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