Scotland for Dummies, Second Edition

Rating:
Summary: Never left the hotel without it!
Review: I purchased 3 books prior to my first trip to Scotland in November, 2004. I actually purchased Scotland for Dummies to be funny! My family was hysterical when I showed them my purchase. However, once we got there, the laughter was replaced with "where's the Dummies book?" We truly didn't go anywhere without it. (Although, to avoid being spotted as a "tourist", they made me hide it. :) ) The maps were SO helpful. We did purchase a road map once there, but used it along with this book. The information about tourist attractions was invaluable. Where to find restaurants and which ones to avoid was great. Once in Scotland, I never touched the other two books purchased. If you're only going to buy one book, this is the one. Read the others at the library before you go.

Rating:
Summary: anyone can do this!
Review: I traveled to Scotland with a friend(who happens to be an experienced traveler; and i'm not!) in the summer of 1997. Deb planned everything and i coughed up the money and was just along for the ride. Which by the way, was most exceedingly pleasant! I recently purchased this book as I am planning a return trip with my sister in the summer of 2005. Reading this book was like experiencing the '97 trip all over again! Any advice given in this book should be well heeded; it absolutely does not steer you wrong. From "what to pack" to "where to eat" this read has instilled in me the confidence that i can do this trip without being led by the hand of a more seasoned traveler. I will be packing a couple of different maps but this will be the only tour book i pack!

Rating:
Summary: great summary for a first-time visitor with limited time
Review: I visited Scotland in November 2003, and I found this book to be extremely useful. The book layout is clear and easy to read. The "top 10 lists" really help in deciding what to see. No extraneous photographs or excessive historical backgrounds. The book has very good general travel tips as well. The author doesn't assume you know everything about traveling to the UK. One suggestion: if touring Glasow or Edinburgh on foot or by car, buy a good city map. The city maps in the guide don't quite cut the mustard.

Rating:
Summary: Plain Language Planning Not Dumb At All!
Review: One of the things I love about the "For Dummies" series of books is that they explain complicated topics in a manner that the average person can understand. In this case, a vacation to a country of such contrasts as Scotland (where else can you have snow-capped peaks *and* palm trees ... no kidding!) calls for a book that "tells it like it is." David G. Allan's "Scotland for Dummies" is precisely that book. Allan gives readers the advantage of his experience as a traveller to all of Scotland's varied regions, sharing what's a hit and what should be missed. Particularly useful are the "heads up" bits ... quick blurbs that give warnings about peculiarities that might be encountered along the line. Jeff and I found the information in this book invaluable in our honeymoon planning.

Rating:
Summary: Plain Language Planning Not Dumb At All!
Review: One of the things I love about the "For Dummies" series of books is that they explain complicated topics in a manner that the average person can understand. In this case, a vacation to a country of such contrasts as Scotland (where else can you have snow-capped peaks *and* palm trees ... no kidding!) calls for a book that "tells it like it is." David G. Allan's "Scotland for Dummies" is precisely that book. Allan gives readers the advantage of his experience as a traveller to all of Scotland's varied regions, sharing what's a hit and what should be missed. Particularly useful are the "heads up" bits ... quick blurbs that give warnings about peculiarities that might be encountered along the line. Jeff and I found the information in this book invaluable in our honeymoon planning.

Rating:
Summary: great summary for a first-time visitor with limited time
Review: This book was the most helpful piece of information for our trip to Scotland. It not only helped you while you were in the country, but helped you get there. We found that the places they reviewed were well worth it and that we ended up in a few we didn't even realize we had gone to. For instance, we lost a friend after the Tatto and ended up with the Edinburgh police force. Once we found our friend they mentioned a pub they were going to so we went and the next day I was looking through the book and there it was on pubs to visit. Buy the book it helped us get everywhere we wanted to be.

Rating:
Summary: You need this book
Review: This book was the most helpful piece of information for our trip to Scotland. It not only helped you while you were in the country, but helped you get there. We found that the places they reviewed were well worth it and that we ended up in a few we didn't even realize we had gone to. For instance, we lost a friend after the Tatto and ended up with the Edinburgh police force. Once we found our friend they mentioned a pub they were going to so we went and the next day I was looking through the book and there it was on pubs to visit. Buy the book it helped us get everywhere we wanted to be.

Rating:
Summary: A Must Read
Review: While I have not gone to Scotland yet to put all the wonderful information into practice, this is a wonderful book! I found it very easy to read, it gave all kinds of websites to visit, and the overviews were very interesting. I felt like I could plan my whole trip just from this book.
I highly recommend it.