Rick Steves Budapest

The book was in great condition, received timely and full of great information (as is usual, with all Rick Steves' travel books).

I've used Slick Rick's books for three trips: Spain, Prague, and Budapest and found this edition to be the most insightful. (Probably because he has a co author on this one). The book does a good job making sure you know enough about the layout of the city, where the more important monuments, attractions, and must-sees items are at. I'd say slightly above average against many of the travel books you can buy. The add value with Rick's book is that he goes into details with some places (even more so then the literature provide by the actual sight). For example, the "House of Terror" description were so insightful and over and beyond what the on site literature had to offer. The subway system can be difficult to read in Budapest especially since the end lines are not shown on a lot of the map around the city. Rick's basic diagrams were easy to read and got up around without having to use too much brain power. The MOST HELPFUL tips Rick has to offer are with places to eat at. A great vacation either be amplified or damped by the food you eat. Also, the process of finding a good restaurant can add even more stress for the ordinary travelers. All of the places we visited in Budapest per he recommendation were unique with good food and prices in tow. I'm a fan of his book even thought he can get a little too historical, political, and philosophical at times. Aside from that aspect, his suggestions never disappointed.

This is an excellent guide. It was very helpful in navigating me through my first (and hopefully not last!) trip to Budapest. The walking tour guides, especially, were very helpful for prioritizing. So were the restaurant recommends. Even the hand-drawn mass-transit map was indispensable. (His thermal bath explanations -- an essential part of any Budapest trip I agree -- were not as useful though, in part because they have a new system using wristbands.) Why minus one star? His occasional political asides are irritating and grating. This detracts from the book. He should just focus on the travel info and this would be five-star all the way.

We have used Rick Steves' books before, but the ones he wrote on Eastern Europe are even more useful than the others. He had several walking tours we enjoyed. Now that we are home, when we look at our pictures, often we are standing there with Rick's book open as we are looking at a particular sight. Well done, Rick!

I have found that this travel book provides the needed info to get around Budapest without overwhelming the traveler.