Comments on: Italy, Instructions for Use: The Practical, On-Site Assistant for the Enthusiastic Traveler

By: A. Urquhart

A. Urquhart — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 01:35:12 +0000

This guide book was a lifesaver. Especially critical was being aware of the letter combination sounds. Without this knowledge you might receive something completely different than what was intended. The hints that were given when dining out were extremely helpful. The Italians were very patient, kind, and understanding when we attempted to “communicate”, but the guidebook provided us with a certain comfort level that allowed us to verbalize words and phrases without being embarrased. I would definitely recommend this book for a first time visit to Italy! Rating: 5 / 5

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 23:42:54 +0000

Nan went to Italy and fell in love. With this book as your guide, you will too. Rating: 5 / 5

By: a reader

a reader — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 23:38:34 +0000

Pretty disappointing. The book is about 3 x 5 inches and maybe a quarter of it is taken up by vocabulary that is easily available in other guidebooks or on the web. The rest of the information is either common sense or easily available (e. g. , rules for riding the train). Instaed of this, I recommend either a good guidebook (Rough Guide, Lonely Planet, or Rick Steves) and some of the betetr web sites (trip advisor, slow travel) Rating: 2 / 5

By: Nicholas Capozzi

Nicholas Capozzi — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:48:13 +0000

This is a total misnomer,it says on it’s cover it will help even experienced travlers, NOT. There is nothing different about this 14. 95 hand book except the size it’s only about 100 pages and many with not much on them. Don’t waste your time and money, there are many many better books on the market for the same price. I’m going to list it on another auction page for 5. 00 that is all it;s worth. Rating: 2 / 5

By: CK

CK — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:09:40 +0000

Unless you really are an inexperienced traveler, and an American who thinks that staying in a hotel room that does not have an ensuite is unthinkable, this book is not for you. There is little here that you could not find in a good ordinary guide book. Nan is also inclined to romaticise. For example her notion that Italian drivers belong to a sort of community of the road and that they have a highly developed perception of what is going on around them that allows them to drive the way they do with impunity is simply not borne out by their shocking road accident statistics. And after 4 weeks driving on Italian roads my observation is that they are often simply just impatient and reckless. Rating: 1 / 5