The Rough Guide to Poland - 6th Edition - Jonathan Bousfield, Mark Salter

Poland is a huge country and extremely diverse but this guide helps capture almost all of it. With the English language only really spoken in the main cities it is well worth reading this before you step on the plane and keeping it by your side during your travels.

It is fairly up to date but there are new hotels and hostels opening all the time so don't expect the accommodation section to be completely up to date - there are plenty of good places that aren't listed but will probably be included in future editions.

In Very Good Company (8/8 people found this helpful)

Bousfield's and Salter's "Poland" is a very good travel companion to everyone around in Poland; the book is full of practical and historical information (which is very accurate, as far as I could ascertain) and written with a good dose of wit.
And mind, I am saying this as a German and can tell you that the English-speaking world should be proud of guides like this one. German travel guides come, in most cases, with many high-res photos but with only very superficial practical information and with much condensed information on people, places and monuments. So the near-absence of photos and plates in the Rough Guide to Poland is to be welcomed because the visitor needs to get to know a place by being said something about it; there is actually little need for visual presentation in a travel guide (if you want to get to know Poland via colour plates, buy yourself an illustrated book and stay at home...). To sum up: A very good travel companion and enjoyable to read. - And yet another advantage of being German and having a British travel guide at hand in Poland: The dreadful episodes of WW II and the countless Nazi crimes are presented and commented upon in Bousfield's guide in a very objective and straightforward manner, quite different from the self-abasing (yet ultimately slightly hypocritical) manner to be found in many German guides to Poland. There is, therefore, much painful objectivity in Bousfield's book, yet lacking the appaling effect of the German "Schuldkomplex" - and this is much to the credit of his guide as well. So, in case you are German (or Austrian or Swiss for that matter) and reading this, get yourself this guide rather than any of "our" travel handbooks and find about about Poland!

A decent guidebook, though it could be improved (2/2 people found this helpful)

Quite a useful guidebook, certainly comprehensive and containing plenty of information about places. I didn't like the layout, with the practical information in the front and the hstory in the back, and would have preferred more integration of the practical information with the place descriptions, especially when covering such a large country as Poland. It was also quite hard to locate things quickly, which can be a hassle when standing outside a sight trying to find out some information fast. The photographs are black and white and not great, and the subject matter is sometimes poorly chosen.

But it did cover everywhere I wanted to go, even the very remote places, and contain a reasonable amount of information about the country and the sights. The writing style is accessible and easy to read. The maps aren't bad and can be followed, though some of them lack detail and are a bit small. The front introductory and highlights section is a good feature, especially if you're still at the planning stage of your trip. I found all of the information to be accurate and most of the descriptions so as well. The history section is very imformative.

On the whole, it was a usable and helpful guidebook, even though some things could be improved, and it would be worth taking with you on a trip to Poland. However, if you're only visiting a single city (e.g. Krakow), you might be better off with a city guide that will be lighter to carry.

Essential companion (14/14 people found this helpful)

I opted for the Rough Guide after reading the negative reviews of the Lonely Planet, and was not disappointed. There is a wealth of historical and cultural information as well as the usual accommodation, restaurant and sights. All the info was well presented and structured and easy to read considering the sheer amount.

I was travelling with 2 Poles as well as other Brits and they were impressed with the accuracy of the guide, even learning something themselves! We tried several of the recommended restaurants in Krakow and found all the descriptions to be accurate, and also some fantastic nightspots that we would never have found otherwise. The guide even told us how many trains a day ran, which was handy when half the party missed the train back to Warsaw.

A great guide, the only downside being that my travelling companions got mildly annoyed by my constant 'interesting' titbits.

The Rough Guide to Poland - 6th Edition

Jonathan Bousfield, Mark Salter

Reader Reviews:

Essential before you go and while your there (0/0 people found this helpful)

In Very Good Company (8/8 people found this helpful)

A decent guidebook, though it could be improved (2/2 people found this helpful)

Essential companion (14/14 people found this helpful)

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