Frommer's^« Europe 2004

by Darwin Porter; Danforth Prince; George McDonald; Hana Mastrini; Sherry Marker; Joseph S. Lieber; Christina Shea; Suzanne Rowan Kelleher; Herbert Bailey Livesey

• ISBN13: 9780764539022
• ISBN10: 0764539027
• Edition: Map
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-01-01
• Publisher: Frommers

Summary

You2ll never fall into the tourist traps when you travel with Frommer2s. It2s like having a friend show you around, taking you to the places locals like best. Our expert authors have already gone everywhere you might go-they2ve done the legwork for you, and they2re not afraid to tell it like it is, saving you time and money. No other series offers candid reviews of so many hotels and restaurants in all price ranges. Every Frommer2s Travel Guide is up-to-date, with exact prices for everything, dozens of color maps, and exciting coverage of sports, shopping, and nightlife. You2d be lost without us! Whether you2re a first-time visitor doing the grand tour or a seasoned traveler planning a multi-country itinerary, Frommer2s Europe is a must. Inside this concise, user-friendly volume are all the highlights of the continent. We2ve included a wide array of options, from grand hotels to charming and affordable guesthouses, from five-star dining rooms to simple cafes-the very best in every price range. There2s something here for every taste, interest, and budget. Just because we2re covering such a wide territory doesn2t mean that we2ve skimped on the details. You2ll find an astounding depth of accurate, up-to-date information, including exact prices, open hours, metro stops, credit cards, and more. We2ll take you to the legendary cultural capitals of Europe, where we offer complete sightseeing, shopping, and nightlife coverage and review the best accommodations and dining in all price ranges, from the Ritz on down. But we don2t stop there. We2ve designed easy-to-follow itineraries that explore the most unforgettable parts of the European countryside. Frommer2s Europe takes you to the vineyards and chateaux of the Loire Valley, the lovely villages of Oxford and Stratford-upon-Avon, the hill towns of Tuscany, and the spectacular scenery of the Alps. It2s all accompanied by detailed maps. You2ll also find the latest trip-planning advice on everything from bargain airfares to rail passes, money-saving tips, and a color fold-out rail map that makes trip-planning a snap!

Author Biography

<b>Darwin Porter</b>, a native of North Carolina, was assigned to write the very first edition of a Frommer's guide devoted solely to one European country. Since then, he has written many best-selling Frommer's guides to all the major European destinations. In 1982, he was joined in his research efforts by <b>Danforth Prince</b>, formerly of the Paris bureau of <i>The New York Times</i>, who has traveled and written extensively about Europe. <p><b>Suzanne Rowan Kelleher</b>, is a freelance travel writer and the former Europe Editor of Travel Holiday magazine. She has traveled extensively in Ireland, is married to an Irishman, and currently lives in County Dublin. She is the author of <i>Frommer's Ireland</i> and a co-author of <i>Frommer's Europe from $70 a Day</i>. <p>All four of <b>Joseph S. Lieber</b>'s grandparents emigrated from Eastern Europe at the turn of the 20th century, settling in New York City, where he was born and raised. Mr. Lieber lived in Hungary for several years in the early 1990s. He presently practices law in Boston and is the co-author of <i>Frommer's Budapest & the Best of Hungar y</i> and <i>Frommer's Europe from $70 a Day</i>. <p><b>Christina Shea</b> served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Hungary and subsequently directed Peace Corps language-training programs in Lithuania and Kyrghyzstan. She's the author of the novel <i>Moira's Crossing</i> (St. Martin's) and a co-author of <i>Frommer's Budapest & the Best of Hungary</i> and <i>Frommer's Europe from $70 a Day</i>. <p><b>Herbert Bailey Livesey</b> is a native New Yorker. After an early career as a university administrator, he decided to devote himself to writing full-time. He's the author or coauthor of 10 travel guides (including <i>Frommer's New England, Frommer's Canada</i>, and <i>Frommer's Montréal & Québec City</i>), a novel about deep-sea sportfishing, and several books on education and sociology. His articles have appeared in <i>Travel & Leisure, Food & Wine</i>, and <i>Playboy</i>. <p><b>George McDonald</b> has lived and worked in both Amsterdam and Brussels as deputy editor of the KLM in-flight magazine and as editor-in-chief of the Sabena in-flight magazine. Now a freelance journalist and travel writer, he has written extensively on both the Netherlands and Belgium for magazines and guidebooks. He's the author of <i>Frommer's Amsterdam</i> and <i>Frommer's Belgium, Holland & Luxembourg</i>, and a co-author of <i>Frommer's Europe from $70 a Day</i>. <p><b>Sherry Marker</b>'s love of Greece began when she majored in classical Greek at Harvard. She has studied at the American School of Classical Studies in Athens and studied ancienthistory at the University of California at Berkeley. Author or coauthor of a number of guides to Greece (such as <i>Frommer's Greece</i> and <i>Frommer's Greek Islands</i>), she has published articles in <i>The New York Times, Travel & Leisure</i>, and <i>Hampshire Life</i>. She's also the co-author of <i>Frommer's Europe from $70 a Day</i> and has written books on a variety of subjects, including a history of London for young adults. <p><b>Hana Mastrini</b> is a native of the western Czech spa town of Karlovy Vary who became a veteran of the "Velvet Revolution" as a student in Prague in 1989. She began contributing to Frommer's guides while helping her husband, John, better understand his new home in the Czech Republic.

Table of Contents

List of Maps	p. viii
What's New in Europe	p. 1
Planning Your Trip to Europe	p. 4
Visitor Information	p. 5
Number, Please: Calling Europe	p. 8
Entry Requirements & Customs	p. 12
Money	p. 14
The World's Greatest Financial Merger: The Euro	p. 15
When to Go	p. 17
What Time Is It, Anyway?	p. 18
Europe Calendar of Events	p. 19
Active & Other Special-Interest Vacations	p. 24
Health & Insurance	p. 26
Tips for Travelers with Special Needs	p. 28
Planning Your Trip Online	p. 30
Vigilance Overseas: Leave the 10-Gallon Hat at Home	p. 31
Getting There	p. 32
Flying for Less: Tips for Getting the Best Airfares	p. 35
Getting Around	p. 37
Train Trip Tips	p. 39
The Rules of the Road: Driving in Europe	p. 41
Tips on Accommodations	p. 43
Austria	p. 45
Vienna	p. 45
Native Behavior	p. 46
Fast Facts: Vienna	p. 52
Coffeehouses & Cafes	p. 59
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 62
Wine Tasting in the Heurigen	p. 70
Salzburg	p. 71
Fast Facts: Salzburg	p. 75
Cafe Society	p. 80
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 83
Innsbruck & Tyrol	p. 89
Fast Facts: Innsbruck	p. 90
Belgium	p. 103
Brussels	p. 103
Rules of the Road	p. 108
Fast Facts: Brussels	p. 109
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 119
Bruges & Ghent	p. 129
The Czech Republic	p. 142
Prague	p. 142
Fast Facts: Prague	p. 148
Native Behavior	p. 151
Kavarna Society	p. 158
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 160
West Bohemia & the Spas	p. 170
Spa Cures & Treatments	p. 173
Denmark	p. 192
Copenhagen	p. 192
Fast Facts: Copenhagen	p. 198
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 208
Copenhagen's Little Mermaid	p. 209
Native Behavior	p. 211
England	p. 217
London	p. 217
Discount Passes for Public Transportation	p. 221
Fast Facts: London	p. 222
Where to Have a Cuppa Tea	p. 239
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 243
The Pub Crawl, London Style	p. 257
Oxford & Stratford-upon-Avon	p. 260
Calling on Churchill at Blenheim Palace	p. 265
A Visit to Warwick Castle	p. 273
Stonehenge & Bath	p. 275
Two More Magnificent Houses: Longleat House & Stourhead	p. 287
France	p. 289
Paris	p. 289
Fast Facts: Paris	p. 295
The Top Cafes	p. 313
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 314
Native Behavior	p. 329
The Loire Valley Chateaux	p. 332
Provence & the Cote d'Azur	p. 347
Germany	p. 383
Berlin	p. 383
Fast Facts: Berlin	p. 390
Cafe Society	p. 397
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 401
Native Behavior	p. 403
Come to the Cabaret!	p. 412
Munich & the Bavarian Alps	p. 415
Fast Facts: Munich	p. 420
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 428
What's Brewing at the Beer Halls?	p. 436
Outdoors in the Bavarian Alps	p. 438
The Romantic Road	p. 447
Greece	p. 465
Athens	p. 465
Fast Facts: Athens	p. 473
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 490
Delphi & the Northern Peloponnese	p. 501
The Cyclades	p. 524
Fast Facts: Mykonos	p. 530
Fast Facts: Santorini	p. 538
Hungary	p. 548
Budapest	p. 548
Fast Facts: Budapest	p. 556
Native Behavior	p. 559
Coffeehouse Culture	p. 565
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 566
Music for a Summer Evening	p. 573
Ireland	p. 579
Dublin	p. 579
Fast Facts: Dublin	p. 585
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 598
Native Behavior: The Art of Pouring Guinness	p. 602
Traditional Irish Entertainment	p. 609
Kerry & the Dingle Peninsula	p. 611
Italy	p. 632
Rome	p. 632
Fast Facts: Rome	p. 636
The Cafe Scene	p. 646
Native Behavior	p. 656
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 656
Florence	p. 671
Fast Facts: Florence	p. 675
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 685
Highlights of the Tuscan & Umbrian Countryside	p. 693
Venice	p. 704
Fast Facts: Venice	p. 708
The Cafe Scene	p. 713
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 717
The Netherlands	p. 726
Amsterdam	p. 726
Fast Facts: Amsterdam	p. 733
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 746
Checking Out the Red Light District	p. 753
Environs of Amsterdam	p. 759
The IJsselmeer	p. 762
Delft & Leiden	p. 763
Norway	p. 766
Oslo	p. 766
Fast Facts: Oslo	p. 772
Bergen & the Fjords	p. 783
Portugal	p. 793
Lisbon & Environs	p. 793
Fast Facts: Lisbon	p. 798
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 811
The Quintessential Lisbon Experience: Fado	p. 818
The Algarve	p. 822
Scotland	p. 838
Edinburgh & Environs	p. 838
Fast Facts: Edinburgh	p. 843
Native Behavior	p. 849
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 853
Britannia: The People's Yacht	p. 858
Tayside & Grampian	p. 864
Playing the World's Oldest Course	p. 876
Spotting Nessie	p. 885
Spain	p. 889
Madrid	p. 889
Fast Facts: Madrid	p. 894
Tapa to Tapa to Tapa	p. 904
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 909
Barcelona	p. 920
Fast Facts: Barcelona	p. 926
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 937
Andalucia & the Costa del Sol	p. 948
Splendid Strolls	p. 954
Sweden	p. 970
Stockholm & Environs	p. 970
The Stockholm Card	p. 973
Fast Facts: Stockholm	p. 974
Native Behavior	p. 980
Sightseeing Suggestions for First-Time Visitors	p. 986
Switzerland	p. 995
Geneva	p. 995
Fast Facts: Geneva	p. 1000
Exploring Geneva's Parks & Gardens	p. 1010
Bern & the Berner Oberland	p. 1014
Glaciers in the Sky: A Trip to Jungfraujoch	p. 1027
Appendix	p. 1037
Metric Conversions	p. 1037
Clothing Size Conversions	p. 1038
Index	p. 1039
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