travel guidebook issued by a german publisher

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The travel guidebooks we still love

A decade ago it looked as if guidebooks would not survive the digital age. But well-written, authoritative titles have defied the odds and continue to thrive - they ignite the imagination

I t was 2011 when a friend of mine returned to the UK having travelled overland from Thailand, and casually mentioned that he had made the entire journey using just his iPhone – no maps, and certainly no guidebook. When he needed to make a detour around Myanmar, to find out what time the main post office closed in Delhi, or to book a cheap hotel room in Istanbul, he turned to travel forums, Google and TripAdvisor.

It was around the same time that articles began appearing in the press, proclaiming the death of the guidebook. After reaching a peak in 2005, sales declined by an estimated 40% in the UK and US between 2005 and 2012. Seeing the writing on the wall, several independent guidebook publishers sold up to multinational media companies, including Lonely Planet, which was bought by BBC Worldwide for around £130m. Less than three years after completing the purchase, the BBC’s commercial arm sold it off for just £50m , acknowledging it had not been a sound investment. In 2012 Frommer’s, the bestselling travel guide brand in the US, was sold to Google , which said it would stop publishing printed editions.

It seemed guidebooks had had their day. Their golden age of the 1990s, when backpackers galore set out with a well-thumbed copy of Alex Garland’s The Beach and a Lonely Planet guide, were over. But as Mark Twain might have observed, reports of the guidebook’s death are greatly exaggerated. While the mainstream brands have suffered in the digital age, it turns out there is another side to the story. Certain guidebooks have simply refused to die.

The titles defying the odds are the products of small, independent publishers and passionate authors. Bryn Thomas, founder of Trailblazer Guides , cites two of his titles as internet-resistant: The Adventure Motorcycling Handbook and The Trans-Siberian Handbook, the latter now in its 30th year and its tenth edition, with 140,000 copies sold.

“As the original author I’d like to say it’s all down to me,” he says, with a smile. “But it’s probably more to do with having employed like-minded authors to keep it updated by travelling the rails again for each update.”

Thomas believes the success of a guidebook lies in the authorial voice. “It takes a certain kind of author, someone verging on the obsessive but who can also convey the information in an entertaining and readable way. A proper author, not a group or committee. Someone with deep knowledge and solid opinions you can trust – a true guide.”

It’s these kinds of titles – guides to once-in-a-lifetime trips – that are proving to be the most resilient. Travellers may no longer bother buying a guide for a weekend city break or even a fortnight’s summer holiday, but if you’re planning the Big One, a trip that involves many months or even years of preparation, it’s still a crucial bit of kit. The purchase of the guidebook is often a significant moment – it marks the commitment to the idea, the moment the dream becomes a reality.

There are many, often uncontrollable factors that determine the success of a title. Hugh Brune, head of sales and marketing at Bradt Guides , cites the company’s Iran guide as both its bestselling and worst-selling title, depending on the prevailing diplomatic situation. Thomas at Trailblazer is also keen to point out another factor: the increasing demand for trusted curation amid the dubious quagmire of Google reviews and TripAdvisor ratings. He gives the example of a burger bar which is currently TripAdvisor’s No 1-rated restaurant in Paris. “It is obviously not the best restaurant in Paris,” he says wryly. “But their PR company is clearly doing a great job of getting people to ‘like’ them.”

While guidebooks for grand or specialised adventures may top the list, they are not the only success story. While the pandemic has skewed domestic sales towards UK-focused books in the past year, David Mantero, head buyer at Stanfords travel bookshop in London, reels off a diverse list of consistent top sellers: “ Japan by Rail has become something of a classic for us. Reeds Nautical Almanac – it’s a must in that scene. And the Wainwrights.”

“The Wainwrights” is a reference to the seven-volume Pictorial Guide To The Lakeland Fells , the much-loved illustrated walking guides to the Lake District created by Alfred Wainwright between 1955 and 1966. With sales of over two million, they serve as the perfect example of Thomas’ “authorial voice” theory.

Andrew Dawson, publicity officer for the Wainwright Society , agrees: “The descriptions of the fells are written as if Alfred Wainwright is talking to you personally and willing you on to the summit,” he says. He also believes that a recent boom in their popularity reflects the growing need to reconnect with the tangible in an increasingly virtual world.

“The Wainwright books are a thing of beauty in themselves. It’s like the resurgence in the popularity of vinyl records. Yes, we all love to download music but nothing can replace the feeling of a real record. Same for the books. Digital mapping, apps, GPS are fantastic but what can beat walking a Wainwright fell and literally following in his footsteps while reading his quirky descriptions?”

One criticism of guidebooks in the pre-digital age was that they carved a predictable trudge on which backpackers bounced between the same hostels and cafes, experiencing nothing remotely resembling a lonely planet. The titles that have survived are of a different breed, as much works of art and storytelling as a simple “where to” guide.

When it became clear that Google had no intention of printing further Frommer’s guides, company founder Arthur Frommer bought the brand back. The guidebooks – which his daughter Pauline Frommer, who is the company’s editorial director, has described as “not meant to be encyclopaedic but curated … built to guide the reader to the most authentic, invigorating travel experiences possible” – have now re-established themselves among the leading travel titles.

While travellers no longer need to carry around half a kilo of paper to find the railway station in a faraway city, they will always crave a spark of inspiration and a connection with the like-minded. This is where these specialist titles excel – they’re not for admin on the road, but something to ignite the imagination. They’re browsed for pleasure during pre-trip dreaming and planning, when we read the words of others who have gone before, and think, yes, I’m going to do this too.

These human-scale books, written and published by people who genuinely know and love their subject, are perfect for travel’s post-pandemic recovery.

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How travel guidebooks charted and changed the world

May 4, 2020 • 8 min read

Brendan Sainsbury reflects on the history of travel guidebooks © Brendan Sainsbury / Lonely Planet

Referenced by generations of globe-trotting travelers and kept on bookshelves as dusty, dog-eared souvenirs, guidebooks have played an influential role in dissecting and shaping travel culture for over 200 years.

In contrast to the inherently fleeting attractions of the internet, these well-thumbed relics of grand tours and budget backpacking jaunts retain a nostalgic and romantic allure that’s hard to replicate online. Open a furrowed Lonely Planet and dozens of memories come pouring out: the faded coffee-stains, the cheap hostel reviews marked in yellow highlighter pen, the scribbled phone number of a gap-year sociology student you met in Cuzco in nineteen-ninety-something but never reconnected with.  

The travel guidebook takes shape

The exact origin of guidebooks is murky. Travel memoirs have been written for as long as humans have been exploring the globe. However, what separates modern guidebooks from old-fashioned travelogues like The Travels of Marco Polo is the inclusion of practical information written with the intention of encouraging readers to follow in the writer’s footsteps.

An early pioneer of the art was Mariana Starke, an aspiring British poet and playwright who shared the same publisher as Jane Austen and Lord Byron. Starke’s 1802 book, Travels in Italy Between the Years 1792 and 1798 comprised a collection of travel memoirs that dispensed of overly romantic first-person descriptions of nature in favour of solid factual advice. Eager to smooth the passage for travelers brave enough to circumnavigate the battlefields of revolutionary France, Starke wrote up her observations of Italian churches and villas using a subjective rating system based on one to five exclamation marks.

Starke’s book languished as a little-used guide for over a decade, primarily because Europe was still embroiled in the Napoleonic Wars and worryingly short of congenial hotels. Things changed in 1815 when the Congress of Vienna ushered in a protracted period of peace, and European ladies and gentlemen of means, inspired by the poetic prose of writers like Byron, expressed an increasing desire to travel abroad.

As the map of Europe had been largely redrawn since Starke’s 1802 guide, the author – by then well into her 50s – produced a more comprehensive update. Published in 1820, Information and Directions for Travellers on the Continent covered Europe from Portugal to Russia and was stuffed with pithy advice on “tolerable” inns, how to hire a horse carriage and the variable state of the continent’s post-roads.

Starke’s second book struck a chord, not just with the public, but also with its British publisher, John Murray, a foresighted man who knew a ground-breaking idea when it landed on his desk (he later went on to publish Charles Darwin’s The Origin of Species ).

Guidebooks grow into a business

Inspired by Starke’s musings, Murray decided to get in on the travel guidebook business himself. In 1836, his Handbook for Travellers on the Continent ignited one of the world’s first guidebook series and quickly established a prototype for all books that followed. Murray borrowed several ideas from Starke, including organizing subsections into itineraries, sightseeing spots, and inn listings.

Quality was Murray’s hallmark. Demanding high standards of his writers and researchers, the “Murray Handbooks” with their trademark red covers and gold lettering were produced by a capable pool of scribes, some of whom were noted literary figures. Richard Ford, a graduate of Trinity College, Oxford, undertook two years of arduous research on horseback in Spain.

The resulting 1845 Murray’s Handbook to Spain quickly morphed into the Odyssey of travel guidebooks. By turns witty, opinionated, exhaustive and erudite, Ford’s book and sometimes prejudicial views on Spain helped put the country on the travel map. His priceless essays on Spanish music provide some of the earliest insights into the nascent art of flamenco, while his expert ruminations on art and history helped kick-start a love affair with Spain among British travellers that endures to this day.

Baedeker guidebooks’ beginnings

The rise of the Murray Handbooks in Britain coincided with the birth of another brand in Germany. Bookseller and publisher Karl Baedeker launched his first book, the inauspicious Travels along the Rhine from Mainz to Cologne , in 1832 based on information taken from an existing guide he had bought from a bankrupt publishing house. After refining his vision with ideas poached from Murray, the so-called “father of modern tourism” quickly hit on what became his best-selling formula: a guide that encouraged the burgeoning European intelligentsia to travel independently without an expensive assemblage of servants and paid guides.

Some of Mr Baedeker’s working methods are familiar today. He undertook his meticulous research covertly usually traveling on his own. “The entire contents of the book are based exclusively on personal experience,” he wrote as a foreword to all his early editions. With the books fanning out to cover multiple countries including France and Britain by the 1840s and 50s, personal research became a tall order. Baedeker, who was proficient in ten languages, did much of it solo and ultimately overreached himself. He died aged 57 in 1859, reputedly from overwork.

Murray Handbooks was sold off in 1900, but Baedeker, under the direction of Karl’s son Fritz, continued to flourish, publishing an astounding 233 guides to over 40 countries between 1900 and 1914. Faultlessly accurate, though jarringly un-PC by modern-day standards, many of the books went on to become classics. The Palestinian guide was mined extensively by TE Lawrence (of Arabia) during his archaeological digs in the Middle East, while the encyclopedic 1929 Egyptian tome is widely considered to be one of the most accomplished guidebooks ever produced. Today, rare first editions of classic Baedekers can fetch up to US$5,000 at auction.

So ubiquitous were the company’s books that they were often name-checked by contemporary novelists and playwrights. EM Forster converted them into a simile ("their noses were as red as their Baedekers") while TS Eliot referenced them in a poem ("Burbank with a Baedeker: Bleistein with a Cigar"). By the 1920s, the verb “to Baedeker” had become a synonym for ‘to travel’.

Events took a sinister turn in World War II when the Nazis used Baedeker’s 1937 Great Britain guide to pinpoint monuments in historic British cities for devastating bomb attacks. The so-called “Baedeker raids” were carried out in retaliation to the British bombing of Lübeck in March 1942. “We’ll go out and bomb every building in Britain given three stars in the Baedeker,” Nazi propagandist Gustav Braun von Stumm is said to have proclaimed. Cultural sites in Exeter, Bath and York were all subsequently hit. Reprisals were swift. The following year British bombers destroyed Baedeker’s publishing house in Leipzig.

Travel comes to the masses

With the onset of mass tourism in the 1960s and 70s, guidebooks proliferated, most notably at the budget end of the market. Mega-brands grew from humble DIY roots to feed a new generation of freewheeling explorers christened “backpackers.” Arthur Frommer’s self-published GI’s Guide to Traveling in Europe (1955), a thin volume initially tailored for American soldiers, morphed into Europe on $5 A Day . Let’s Go guides arose from an idea hatched at Harvard University in 1960. The books, written by students for budget-seeking Americans, served as a fertile breeding ground for young authors, some of whom later graduated to careers in screenwriting, journalism and politics, including travel essayist Pico Iyer.  

The biggest new innovators, Lonely Planet, emerged after founders Tony and Maureen Wheeler turned a cheap trip across Asia into a multimillion-dollar travel business whose guidebooks were so influential they became known as travel “bibles.” The Wheelers’ initial 1973 book, Across Asia on the Cheap packed more than a dozen countries into just 94 pages and included gems of hippy-era budgetary advice (“In Afghanistan in particular you can get stoned just taking a deep breath in the streets”). Within two decades, the company had remapped the world, catering to a new generation of time-rich, cash-poor twenty-somethings with a penchant for banana pancakes.

Like the Baedekers before them, Lonely Planet guidebooks were occasionally name-dropped in works of literature. Alex Garland’s 1996 novel The Beach , set in Thailand, alludes to a whole culture of Lonely Planet travelers inadvertently reshaping the destinations they passed through. In the process they created what became known as the “banana pancake trail,” a network of cheap guesthouses and cafes in Southeast Asia whose spiritual home was Bangkok’s Khao San Road.

The books also attracted notoriety. In the 1980s, Lonely Planet’s Africa on the Cheap was banned in Malawi for its criticisms of the country’s president, Dr Hastings Banda. Twenty years later, during the Iraq War and its aftermath, the US military allegedly used Lonely Planet’s 1994 Middle East guide for information on the economy, government, and important embassies and buildings. “It’s a great guidebook,” reflected US Ambassador, Barbara Bodine in 2007, “but it should not be the basis of an occupation.”

In the shortened attention-spans of our modern interconnected world, the guidebook’s obituary has been written at regular intervals since the turn of the 21st century. Yet despite existential threats from blogs, booking websites and, more recently, pandemics, there’s something fundamental about guidebooks that still resonates. Standing the test of time, they act as poignant reminders of our life on the road, each one telling a unique and deeply personal story.

You might also like: How to prepare now for the trip of your lifetime (once the pandemic is over) Missing your backpacking days? Why not adopt a hostel? History’s most famous explorers and their epic journeys

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DK Eyewitness Germany (Travel Guide) Paperback – 2 Mar. 2023

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Whether you want to wander the cobblestone streets of a medieval village, seek out the coolest districts in Berlin, or check off a bucket list of iconic landmarks, your DK Eyewitness travel guide makes sure you experience all that Germany has to offer. Synonymous with art and culture, Germany is bursting with world-class museums, trendy galleries and creative hubs. But travel away from the towns and cities and you'll discover some of Europe's finest lakes, no fewer than 16 national parks and a coastline ripe for outdoor adventure. Our newly-updated guide brings Germany to life, transporting you there like no other travel guide does with expert-led insights, trusted travel advice, detailed breakdowns of all the must-see sights, photographs on practically every page, and our hand-drawn illustrations which place you inside the country's iconic buildings and neighbourhoods. Inside DK Eyewitness Germany you will find: - A fully-illustrated top experiences guide: our expert pick of Germany's must-sees and hidden gems. -Accessible itineraries to make the most out of each and every day. -Expert advice: honest recommendations for getting around safely, when to visit each sight, what to do before you visit, and how to save time and money. - Colour-coded chapters to every part of Germany, from Berlin to Munich, Saxony to Hesse. - Practical tips: the best places to eat, drink, shop and stay. - Detailed maps and walks to help you navigate the region country easily and confidently. - Covers: Berlin, Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Saxony, Thuringia, Southern Germany, Munich, Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, Western Germany, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland, Hesse, North Rhineland-Westphalia, Northern Germany, Lower Saxony, Hamburg and Bremen, Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Only visiting Berlin or Munich? Try our DK Eyewitness Berlin or DK Eyewitness Munich and the Bavarian Alps. About DK Eyewitness: At DK Eyewitness, we believe in the power of discovery. We make it easy for you to explore your dream destinations. DK Eyewitness travel guides have been helping travellers to make the most of their breaks since 1993. Filled with expert advice, striking photography and detailed illustrations, our highly visual DK Eyewitness guides will get you closer to your next adventure. We publish guides to more than 200 destinations, from pocket-sized city guides to comprehensive country guides. Named Top Guidebook Series at the 2020 Wanderlust Reader Travel Awards, we know that wherever you go next, your DK Eyewitness travel guides are the perfect companion.

• Print length 512 pages
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Princeton University Library

Travel: literature and guidebooks.

• Travel narratives

Finding guidebooks

Contemporary guidebooks, murray's handbooks for travellers, blue guides, guides joanne/hachette/guides bleus, touring club italiano, cook's tours, greatest hits.

• Special Collections

To find guidebooks, it is easiest to search by corporate author, e.g. do an author search for "Karl Baedeker Firm". You can also find guidebooks by doing a subject search for the country and "guidebooks", e.g. "south africa guidebooks"

http://www.baskes.com/travelguides.htm A union list of the holdings of the Newberry Library in Chicago and the holdings of collector (and Newberry trustee) Roger Baskes.

For contemporary guidebooks (Frommer, Fodor, Rick Steves, Lonely Planet, Rough Guides, Let's Go, Insight, Moon etc.), search by place and publisher. Note that we do not buy these comprehensively, and that many are in Marquand and do not circulate. We now have a complete set of current Lonely Planet and Rough Guides, shelved near the Dixon room. Also, try the Princeton Public Library or a bookstore.

The travel book: guide to the travel guides. Jon O. Heise. New York: R. R. Bowker Co., 1981. RECAP Z6011 .H4 [we do not have the 2nd edition, 1993]

Baedeker began publishing guidebooks in German in 1832, and the firm continues today. Guides were also published in French and in English.

For a list of all the guides, see:

Baedeker's guidebooks: a checklist of English-language editions, 1861-1939 . Gretton, John R.  Dereham [England]: Dereham Books, 1994.

Baedeker’s Reisehandbücher, 1832-1990: Bibliographie 1832-1944: Verzeichnis 1948-1990: Verlagsgeschichte mit Abbildungen und zusätzlichen Übersichten . Alex W. Hinrichsen. RECAP Z6011 .H48 1991

http://www.bdkr.com Very useful web site, aimed at collectors. Checklists that replicate much of Hinrichsen's bibliography, and also an online version of the introduction.

To see what Princeton University Library holds, search the Main Catalog for Author=Karl Baedeker (Firm)

Note that Lexis-Nexis University Publications of America sells Baedeker guides in microfiche collections by country or as a complete set. Princeton does not hold this microform set. There is also a guide to the set, Baedeker's handbook(s) for travellers: a bibliography of English editions published prior to World War II . Greenwood Press, Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1975. Princeton does not have this guide, but it is widely available. 

There are other German-language guidebook series, most notably Meyers Reisebucher, on which see: Wegweiser durch Meyers Reisebücher, 1862-1936 : Bibliographie . Werner Hauenstein ; mit Abbildungen, Tabellen, Register und einer Einführung von Alex W. Hinrichsen. Stadtoldendorf : U. Hinrichsen, 1993. RECAP: Marquand Lib. use only: Z6011 .H36 1993s

Murray's handbooks for travellers were published from 1836 to 1901 (when the series was sold to another publisher). For a good short description of this guidebook series, see the entry "Murray Handbooks" in Literature of travel and exploration: an encyclopedia .

For a comprehensive list, see:

A bibliography of Murray’s handbooks for travellers and biographies of authors, editors, revisers and principal contributors. W. B. C. Lister; with an introduction by John R. Gretton. Dereham [England]: Dereham Books, 1993. Annex A, Forrestal (TEMP): Z6011 .L577 1993

Provides a brief biographical information about the authors and editors of each guide. The introduction by J.R. Gretton is also quite helpful.

To see what Princeton University Library holds, search the Main Catalog for Author=John Murray (Firm). In addition, we have microfiche of the entire set:

Murray's handbooks for travellers MICROFICHE 1480 Printed guide: (FilmB) G150.M87

The English-language Blue Guides were written for many decades by the brothers James & Findley Muirhead, who had previously worked for Baedeker. Their first independent guide is the guide to London published in 1918. The guides are still being published. These guides emphasize art and architecture.

For a complete list, see http://www.blueguides.com/our-guide-books/archive-blue-guides-since-1918/

To see what Princeton University Library holds, search the Main Catalog for Title=Blue Guide

The premier French-language guidebook series began in 1853 and is still publishing. The early guides were written by Adolphe Joanne and covered the various regions of France; there were also guides organized as itineraries along railway lines. The Guides Joanne were rebranded as the Guides Bleus in 1919, after an agreement between Muirhead (which had acquired the Murray guides) and Hachette.

To see what Princeton University Library holds, search the Main Catalog for Title=Guides Bleus or Author=Joanne, Adolphe Laurant

For a complete list of the pre-1919 guides, see:

Les guides-Joanne: genèse des Guides-bleus: itinéraire bibliographique, historique et descriptif de la collection de guides de voyage, 1840-1920 . Hélène Morlier; ouvrage illustré de vignettes, cartes et plans mis au net par Christophe Bailly. Paris: Sentiers débattus; Saint-Germain-la-Blanche-Herbe: IMEC, 2007. Firestone Library (F) G156 .M675 2007

There is a brief English-language summary at the back of the book.

Michelin guides were originally distributed free by the tire company to drivers. The red guides describe restaurants and hotels, and introduced the now-famous system of rating restaurants with stars; the green guides describe "points of interest." 

There is also a series of guides to French cities published immediately after World War I.

To see what Princeton University Library holds, search the Main Catalog for Author=Pneu Michelin (Firm)

Le Guide vert Michelin: l’invention du tourisme culturel populaire . Marc Francon. Paris : Economica, c2001. Firestone G156.5.H47 F725 2001

Il Touring club italiano. Stefano Pivato. Bologna : Il mulino, c2006. Firestone G155.I8 P56 2006

To see what Princeton University Library holds, search the Main Catalog for Author=Touring club italiano

Search for Author=Thomas Cook Ltd. to find guides published by Thomas Cook, which organized tours for middle-class travellers within the UK and to the Continent, India, the US, Australia, New Zealand, and the Near East, starting in the mid-19th century.

The history of tourism: Thomas Cook and the origins of leisure travel. London: Routledge/Thoemmes Press : Thomas Cook Archives, 1998. Firestone G155.A1 H58 1998 (a 4-volume compilation)

Thomas Cook: 150 years of popular tourism . Piers Brendon. London: Secker & Warburg, 1991. Firestone G155.G7 B73

Appletons is the premier series of guidebooks to America, and published in America, in the 19th century. There is no convenient way to find them systematically in the Main Catalog. Titles include:

General guide to United States & Canada Handbook of American Travel Railway & steam navigation guide Companion handbook to US & British provinces General guide: western & southern states General guide: New England, middle states Appletons’ guide-book to Alaska and the northwest coast Appleton’s southern and western travellers’ guide Appletons’ guide to Mexico: including a chapter on Guatemala: and an English-Mexican vocabulary

The WPA guides: mapping America . Christine Bold. Jackson : University Press of Mississippi, c1999. Firestone E175.4 .B65 1999

The American Guide Series

To find these guides in the Main Catalog, do a keyword search for "federal writers project guides"

For a complete list of the guides, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Guide_Series, or American Guide Series: Works by the Federal Writers Project. Marc S. Selvaggio. Berkeley, Calif.: Schoyer's Antiquarian Books, 1990 [Princeton does not have a copy].

1936, on the continent; the entertaining travel annual . Eugene Fodor. London: W. Aldor, 1936.

An official guide to eastern Asia; transcontinental connections between Europe and Asia . Prepared by the Imperial Japanese Government Railways. Tokyo, Japan, 1913-17. v. 1. Manchuria & Chōsen.--v. 2. Southwestern Japan.--v. 3. Northeastern Japan.--v. 4. China.--v.5. East Indies. Firestone Library (F) DS504 .I474 1913

Across Asia on the cheap: a complete guide to making the overland trip . Tony Wheeler. [Paddington, N.S.W.]: Lonely Planet, 1973.

The G.I.'s guide to travelling in Europe . Arthur Frommer. [Oberammergau, Ger. : Arthur B. Frommer, 1955.]

Europe on 5 dollars a day; a guide to inexpensive travel. Arthur Frommer. [New York, Trade Distributors: Greenberg, 1957.]

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• Last Updated: Dec 19, 2023 2:19 PM
• URL: https://libguides.princeton.edu/travel

Insight Guides Germany

This Insight Guide is a lavishly illustrated inspirational travel guide to Germany and a beautiful souvenir of your trip. Perfect for travellers looking for a deeper dive into the destination’s history and culture, it’s ideal to inspire and help you plan your travels. With its great selection of places to see and colourful magazine-style layout, this Germany guidebook is just the tool you need to accompany you before or during your trip. Whether it’s deciding when to go, choosing what to see or creating a travel plan to cover key places like Berlin, Lake Constance and Frankfurt, it will answer all the questions you might have along the way. It will also help guide you while exploring Hamburg or discovering Munich on the ground. Our Germany travel guide was fully-updated post-COVID-19. 

The Insight Guide Germany covers: Berlin and the Eastern States, Munich and the deep South, Frankfurt and the seven states, Hamburg and the coast.

In this guide book to Germany you will find: 

IN-DEPTH CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL FEATURES  

Created to provide a deeper dive into the culture and the history of Germany to get a greater understanding of its modern-day life, people and politics. 

The top attractions and Editor’s Choice featured in this Germany guide book highlight the most special places to visit.

TIPS AND FACTS

Up-to-date historical timeline and in-depth cultural background to Germany as well as an introduction to Germany’s food and drink, and fun destination-specific features.   

PRACTICAL TRAVEL INFORMATION 

A-Z of useful advice on everything, from when to go to Germany, how to get there and how to get around, to Germany’s climate, advice on tipping, etiquette and more.

COLOUR-CODED CHAPTERS 

Every part of the destination, from Berlin and the Eastern States, to Munich and the deep South, has its own colour assigned for easy navigation of this Germany travel guide.

CURATED PLACES, HIGH-QUALITY MAPS

Geographically organised text, cross-referenced against full-colour, high-quality travel maps for quick orientation in Dresden, Leipzig, and many other locations in Germany.

STRIKING PICTURES

This guide book to Germany features inspirational colour photography, including the stunning Cologne Cathedral, and the spectacular Schloss Sanssouci.

FREE EBOOK 

Free eBook download with every purchase of this travel guide to Germany to access all the content from your phone or tablet, for on-the-road exploration.

Description

Book details.

This title is a part of Insight Guides Main Series

Inspirational, lavishly illustrated travel guides to countries and regions that provide all you need for every step of your journey. With in-depth features on culture and history and stunning colour photography throughout, they are perfect for inspiration as well as a souvenir of your trip, while detailed place chapters and travel tips make it ideal for trip planning.

In-depth coverage of the destination's history, landscapes, wildlife, people and culture, from the arts to sports.

The destination’s top ten attractions and editor’s choice of what to see and do at the beginning of each guide

Practical travel information includes when to go, getting there, getting around, entry requirements, food and drink highlights, and everything you need to know about local culture

Colour-coded chapters travel around each city or region in a highly-readable descriptive style, featuring fascinating historical information as well as detailed information on points of interest, backed up by handy tips on what to look out for when you’re there

Colour-coded detailed maps with key sights marked up by number and corresponding to the places chapters

Beautiful, inspirational full-colour photography throughout brings the destination to life and makes the book a memorable souvenir of a trip

Printed on paper from responsible sources verified to meet FSC’s strict environmental and social standards

Free eBook with each purchased printed guide

Format: 152 x 228mm

Price: £14.99-£18.99 | $22.99-$26.99

Extent: 248–464 pages

BOOK DETAILS

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You can pay with credit card : Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and via PayPal .

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If you’ve ordered an ebook, it will be delivered to you via email immediately after your purchase.

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Please be aware that the delivery times are based on when your item was dispatched and not when you ordered your item. Unless stated otherwise, we intend to send items on the next available business day.

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Germany (Eyewitness Travel Guides) Paperback – September 1, 2003

Purchase options and add-ons.

• Print length 576 pages
• Language English
• Publisher DK Eyewitness Travel
• Publication date September 1, 2003
• Dimensions 1 x 5 x 8.75 inches
• ISBN-10 0789494272
• ISBN-13 978-0789494276
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• Publisher ‏ : ‎ DK Eyewitness Travel; First Edition (September 1, 2003)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 576 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0789494272
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0789494276
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.88 pounds
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 1 x 5 x 8.75 inches
• #148 in German Travel Guides
• #787 in General Europe Travel Guides

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The Best Berlin Guide Books for Every Traveler [2024 Update]

Although I visited Berlin last summer, I didn’t get to explore the city as much as I’d wanted, and I’m looking forward to re-visiting the German capital this summer.  So, I recently sat on my balcony with a can (or two…) of German radler and a pile (or two!) of Berlin travel guide books for a marathon trip-planning session.

In addition to learning a lot about Berlin and discovering some amazing “must-see” attractions in Berlin, I quickly became an expert on Berlin guide books.  I learned exactly which book had the best walking tours, the best photos, the best budget travel advice and the best background information.

If you’re planning a trip to Berlin, don’t just wing it!  Berlin is too big, too exciting, too diverse and too interesting to be explored and enjoyed without a plan.  Instead, invest in one, two or three of these Berlin guide books, which will help you maximize every minute of your time in Berlin.

I’ve noted exactly which Berlin travel guide books you should buy, borrow (from the library) and skip , so you can find the perfect book for your travel style.  Read on for the complete guide!

( Wondering about radler ? Radler is the German word for cyclist, or the English word for “delicious beverage”.  Okay, that’s a lie.  Radler does mean “cyclist”, but it is actually only one specific kind of delicious beverage – a fifty-fifty blend of beer and lemonade or lemon soda.  If you’ve ever had a shandy, it’s the same thing, but more German.  I’ve been told it goes by the “cyclist” moniker because it’s perfect for hydrating after a long bike ride.)

Lonely Planet Germany – The Best Berlin Guide Book for Trips Across Germany

The Lonely Planet Germany is a massive, countrywide guidebook clocking in at 848 pages.  The guidebook’s Berlin section spans seventy pages at the front of the book.  Coverage begins with two detailed maps of the city, and then segues into comprehensive listings of sights, hotels, dining options, nightlife, shopping and general tourist information.

One-, two-, and three-day itineraries are suggested, and there are two-page spreads dedicated especially to the Berlin Wall and Museum Island.  There is also an additional twenty-page guide to destinations around Berlin, like Potsdam, Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp and Spreewald.

The Lonely Planet Germany would be my top choice of guidebook for anyone visiting Berlin and then going on to explore other parts of Germany, because it is the most thorough Germany travel guide book on the market.  However, it is also thick and heavy, so consider buying the Kindle edition rather than the cumbersome paper copy.

Buy, borrow or skip?  Buy it, but consider the electronic version.  I bought the Kindle edition, which I can read on my phone as I’m out and about in Berlin.

National Geographic Walking Berlin – The Best Berlin Guide Book toCarry Around the City

I didn’t expect much from this little Berlin travel guide book.  However, in the end, National Geographic Walking Berlin – The Best of the City turned out to be my favorite Berlin travel guide!

Unlike the hulking Lonely Planet, this guidebook is five inches wide, seven inches tall and less than two hundred pages.  It slips easily into a small purse or daypack without adding much weight.

I loved this book because it’s organized into thirteen different walking tours, each with an easy-to-follow, full-color map, lots of color photos, and interesting information about the things you can expect to see along the way.

This book completely aligns with my travel style, which is heavy on the wandering around and exploring at a leisurely pace, and light on the rushing from tourist attraction to tourist attraction.  With this book in my purse, I can quickly learn about the things I stumble upon and the lesser-known places nearby that I might otherwise miss.

Buy, borrow or skip?   I bought this book and brought it with me to Europe!

Insight Guides Explore Berlin – Best Berlin Travel Guide Book for People Who Are Too Cheap to Buy the eBook

At first, I had a hard time finding anything that differentiated this book from some of the other Berlin travel guide books.  However, as I was skimming through a second time, I noticed that the Insight Guides Explore Berlin guidebook has one very unique feature: a free eBook !

By downloading the Insight Guides app (available from the App Store and Google Play), scanning a QR code from inside the physical book and registering with Insight guides, you can access a free digital travel guide to Berlin.  The process of downloading the book was a little bit confusing, but once I’d figured it out I was pleased to discover that you literally get the entire book for free!  The electronic version is effectively organized (hyperlinks help you navigate between references to the same things) and contains all the same full-color photos.

Buy, borrow or skip?   Borrow, obviously!  Sign this book out of your local public library, scan the code inside and use the digital version for free!  (I clearly don’t have a future in book sales…)

Interlink Cultural Guides Berlin – The Best Berlin Travel Guide for Readers

I was not expecting this!  The Interlink Cultural Guides Berlin travel guide book reads more like a first-year college textbook than a typical travel guide.

This Berlin guide book contains almost 240 pages of dense text, supplemented with only a handful of photos (in fact, the first photo doesn’t appear until page 26).  The book is divided into chapters including Geography & Topography, Landmarks, Leisure & Pleasure and Spending Power.  Each chapter then includes several sub-chapters focusing on a very specific aspect of Berlin.  For example, the Geography & Topography chapter is further divided into Water: Rivers, Water: Canals, Water: Lakes, Green Spaces: Forest and Hills, and Green Spaces: Parks.

Similar to a textbook, this Berlin travel guide also features a short glossary of common German terms that you’ll read throughout the book (from alt to Westen) and a reference list of books and websites that can provide more information for inquisitive readers.

Buy, borrow or skip?  Voracious readers and academic travelers should definitely buy this one, while others should borrow it and just read the sub-chapters pique their interest.

Eyewitness Travel Berlin – The Best Berlin Guide Book for Visual Travelers

The motto at Eyewitness is “the guides that show you what others will only tell you”, and that’s especially true in the case of their Berlin travel guide book.

Eyewitness Travel Berlin was updated in spring 2023.  The new edition contains almost 300 pages of full-color photographs, annotated diagrams and easy-to-follow maps.  These stunning images are supplemented with text, but it’s clear that visuals are the focus in this book.

This is a fantastic book to rifle through in the days leading up to your trip.  It’s impossible not to be inspired by the images inside, from the double-page photograph of the illuminated Brandenburg Gate to the illustrated cross-section of the Marienkirche church.  However, the book is weighty and wouldn’t be great for carrying around Berlin during a day of sight-seeing.

Buy, borrow or skip?   Borrow this one from the library if you’re considering booking a trip to Berlin.  By page ten you’ll have whipped out your credit card and you’ll be comparing flights online!

The Rough Guide to Berlin – The Best Berlin Guide Book for Budget Travelers

I’ve always had a soft spot for Rough Guides.  Sometimes, they feel like the neglected younger sibling of the Lonely Planet series. However, when you actually crack one open, you realize that Rough Guides have stayed true to their budget travel roots (unlike some “other” travel guide book series…).

The Rough Guide Berlin is an excellent example of a guide book that really caters to budget travelers.  It has more than three hundred pages of affordable travel advice, including a full-color guide to seventeen “can’t miss” spots in Berlin, customized itineraries (including one focused on budget travel, and another on the city’s nightlife) and well-curated directories of affordable accommodation and restaurant options.

Although the full edition was last updated in 2016, a brand new pocket edition was released in March 2020.  Check it out if you want a smaller, more current publication from this great series!

In my opinion, the only downside of The Rough Guide to Berlin is the editors’ choice to put all of the maps at the back of the book.  This makes it harder to visualize which attractions are close together, or what would be the best walking route between different sights.

Buy, borrow or skip?  Budget travelers should buy this one. By following the tips for smart, inexpensive travel in Berlin, you could easily save the equivalent of the price of the book in your first few hours in Berlin.

Rick Steves Germany – The Best Germany Travel Guide Book for Your Grandmother

The latest version of this Germany guidebook was published in December, 2022.  Click here to order the latest edition.

Rick Steves is a pretty cool guy.  He’s dedicated his life to encouraging Americans to explore Europe in a way that embraces and shows respect for the local people and culture.  So, I always feel a bit sad that I can’t personally get behind his guidebooks.

First, the good stuff. The Rick Steves Germany guidebook is updated every year, so you never have to worry about outdated information.  As well, it’s even longer than the Lonely Planet Germany guidebook (it’s more than 1050 pages long!) but, thanks to its tissue-thin paper, is smaller and lighter than its counterpart.  The Berlin section in this book is about 130 pages long.

So, why don’t I love this Germany travel guide book?  Well, there are two huge reasons.

First, Rick Steves books have the worst maps of any guidebook I’ve ever seen.  Each map is hand-drawn in a simple style, and they often leave out smaller streets and lesser-known landmarks.  There have been several occasions where I’ve planned a walking trip based on a Rick Steves map, thinking my destination is only five or ten blocks away, and later discovered that the map didn’t include dozens of smaller streets along the way.  His maps are so confusing!

Second, I find that the travel tips in Rick Steves guidebooks cater more to older, less-able or less-experienced travelers. For an experienced traveler the tone can be a bit patronizing, and for a younger traveler, trendy or up-and-coming attractions are only ever mentioned in passing.

Buy, borrow or skip?  Borrow this Germany travel guide book from the library before your trip, or buy it as a gift for your grandparents if they’re heading to Germany.

Frommer’s Berlin Day by Day – The Best Berlin Travel Guide Book for Short City Breaks

Another pleasantly purse-sized Berlin travel guide book, Frommer’s Berlin Day by Day is a good option for travelers taking a short city break in Berlin.

The book opens with one-, two- and three-day itineraries, each with a full-color map, descriptions of the highlights you can expect to see, recommendations for where to eat and some color photographs.  Next, there are recommendations based on particular interests (including beer, art and East German history) and six easy-to-follow neighborhood walking tours.

The last half of the book is a typical travel directory of hotels, restaurants, nightlife, day trips and travel directories.  There’s also a quick list of useful German expressions at the back of the book.

Overall, Frommers Day by Day Berlin is a solid Berlin travel guide book.  However, I still prefer the National Geographic Walking Berlin, mainly because its maps have more details and it contains significantly more color photographs.

Buy, borrow or skip?   I’d recommend borrowing this Berlin guide book from your local public library.

Eyewitness Top 10 Berlin – The Best Berlin Travel Guide Book for Travelers with a Short Attention Span

TikTokers take note – The Eyewitness Top 10 Berlin is the Berlin guidebook of your dreams, and it was just updated in late 2023!

Unlike Eyewitness’ comprehensive Berlin city guide (discussed above), this unique book has fewer than 200 pages, divided into almost 100 “Best of Berlin” lists.  The book begins with one hundred fascinating facts, divided into the top ten things to know about each of Berlin’s top ten tourist attractions.  The next section is more topical, featuring two-page spreads like the Top 10 Historic Buildings in Berlin and the Top 10 Festivals and Fairs in Berlin. Finally, it closes with the Top 10 highlights in each of Berlin’s ten most interesting districts.

Buy, borrow or skip?   This is a great Berlin travel book to gift to the non-reader in your life who needs to be convinced to join you on a trip to Berlin.  It’s as breezy and skimmable as a gossip magazine, so buy it as a gift for them!  If you’re already sold on a trip to Berlin, borrow this from the library and flip through it on your coffee break at work.

Fodor’s Berlin – The Best Berlin Travel Guide Book for People Who Hate Trip Planning

Where some other Berlin travel guides have attempted to include everything under the sun (or should I say, everything under the Reichstag dome?), Fodor’s Berlin offers a much more curated look at Germany’s capital city.

This short Berlin travel book opens with a “Best of Berlin” section before transitioning into a neighborhood-by-neighborhood guide to the city.  This content makes up the first third of the book, and the latter two thirds are a typical travel directory. Fodors’ correspondents often give their highest ratings to expensive service providers.  For example, one of their recommended restaurants has prices starting at € 115 for dinner (!) and the ultra-expensive Hotel Adlon is one of their top picks for accommodation in the city.

Buy, borrow or skip?   I think that most readers of my blog can skip this Berlin guide book.  It doesn’t offer anything unique compared to the other Berlin travel guide books I’ve recommended, and constantly reading about experiences that are out of your price range isn’t very much fun!

Heading to Berlin? Check out my list of the 25 Best Things to Do in Berlin (no Berlin guide book required!).

There are lots of cool hotels in Berlin, but there’s one in particular that strikes the perfect balance of design, affordability, comfort and luxury.  Read about my stay at Casa Camper Berlin .

Traveling on a tighter budget?  I know a central Berlin hotel with comfortable private rooms at hostel prices!  Read about my six-night stay at Hotel 38 Berlin . 

There is an alternative to expensive hop-on, hop-off bus tours of Berlin that still lets you see the city from the second floor of a double-decker bus.  Read about the secret €3 Berlin sightseeing bus tour .

Then, check out my guide to finding the best vegetarian food in Berlin (and the rest of Germany too!).

Browsing for Berlin guidebooks later?  Pin this post to your trip-planning board!

20 Solo Female Travel Quotes to Inspire Your Next Journey

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Travel guidebook issued by a German publisher Crossword Clue

Definition of "baedeker".

a travel guidebook, especially one published by the firm founded by Karl Baedeker.

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