Lonely Planet Italy (Travel Guide) Paperback – May 16, 2023

Quick delivery and exactly as described. Love the Lonely Planet travel books!

Easy buy, quick delivery, as described...

First time I’ve bought this type of travel books, I like the idea of main and key interest places to visit with a combo of history of the places. What I think they could do better is to bring more info about food, accommodations and tips to not fall on the classics tourist traps.

I've used Lonely Planet guidebooks for more than 20 years. I especially appreciate that they have always covered towns and areas that the Rick Steves guidebooks do not. When it came time to prepare for our fall trip to Italy, Amazon told me that there was a new version, so I preordered it. When it came, I was very disappointed. Unlike previous guides, the book was picture-heavy, as through a new designer had taken over the franchise, and extremely light on the details that all the previous versions had. Sections on accommodations, eating and nightlife have been replaced with brief sidebars or footers that simply have the names of restaurants or hotels and a short description. I could find no transportation information at all (the getting there and getting around sections).In short, I found the update to be a "downgrade". I returned the book to Amazon and purchased the 15th edition, which I'm pleased with.

We get the Lonely Planet for every trip!

This new Lonely Planet guide is somehow thicker, heavier and less informative than before. Where the old guides included at least five or six restaurants per neighborhood, the new guide includes maybe three short blurbs (without addresses). Major anttractions are described in one long-ish paragraph without any of the deep historical background that the old guides used to contain. Would you like to know the best way to get tickets to a particularly popular cathedral, or how to plan your visit once inside? This book will not tell you. The brief sidebar on the Uffizi, for example — one of the world’s best-known museums — does not cite any major artworks by name. “It’s hard to pick just one highlight,” the book says. Maybe so, but that’s the whole reason I bought a guidebook! I had to find out on my own that the Ufizzi has Botticelli’s “The Birth of Venus.” Seems like a painting worth mentioning in a guidebook on Italy, no? I am sure the Lonely Planet is feeling pressure from the internet, where recommendations and information are often free. It is probably increasingly difficult for paper-bound guidebooks to compete. But giving readers incomplete information and letting them find the rest on their smartphones seems like the wrong way to go. Lonely Planet used to feel far more knowledgeable, savvy and hip than any blog or website. I hope they figure out a better way to move forward.

Not great for detail or individual sites and guidance in cities you might be staying in a while. I left mine in the free library at one of my Italian hotels because I didn’t feel like lugging it around. Buy the city/region guides instead.

Wow, what a disappointment! I have been a fan of Lonely Planet guides for almost 2 decades and I absolutely hate this new one for Italy. Completely lacking in what I usually like to see - practical info on options to get from place A to place B, lists of recommended restaurants and accommodations with their websites and approx price range and websites for recommended guides/tour companies. I find the new overall format just unreadable.