I've always used Rick Steve's free online resources + free downloadable podcasts when planning European adventures.

However, after using his Iceland guidebook, I'll certainly be purchasing his travel guides when offered for my next adventure! (In fact, a friend who joined me on this Iceland trip purchased 2 of his guidebooks upon our return, for use on her upcoming UK trip.) I read this one cover-to-cover and it was super helpful for our Icelandic road trip.

The guidebook is well organized and easy to read. With poor cell reception in some areas, we were grateful for the maps - not only to navigate the island, but also to figure out how to get to certain restaurants and attractions within each town.

He also includes some off the beaten path tips, such as directions for how to take the scenic route (only adding on 15 minutes) between Reyjavik and the Golden Circle. We never would have found tips like this online, and some of these moments ended up being our favorite things all trip.

Well done Rick Steves!

My husband and I just got back from an 11-day trip to Ireland. We bought this book and the Frommer's Day by Day guide, but the only guide I used the entire time was Rick Steve's. Whether you're planning a trip for 3 days or 3 weeks, Rick Steve's has all of the information to guide you through a fun, interesting and relaxing trip.

Following the outline he provided at the beginning of the book, we flew into Dublin and made our way in a clockwise circle around the entire island. All of the places we stayed that Rick Steve's recommended were fantastic except for the place we stayed in Belfast (The Windermere Guesthouse). One of the best parts about his book was the detailed information on each locale. He not only recommended restaurants and sites, but provided walking tours, advice on times to go, places where you would get more immersed in local culture and recommended lengths of your visit and places to stop on your drive between overnight stays. He even gives you plenty of cultural information such as rules of the road, how much to leave for a tip, where you're most likely to find live, authentic Irish music, and more.

The tone of the book is light-hearted but informative. It felt a lot like getting advice from a well-traveled friend. If you're interested in reading up on the history of Ireland, Rick Steve provides a nice chapter at the end of the book that gives you a good overview of the island's turbulent history. Even if you're not much into history reading, you can get a good feel for what was going on through the centuries from each of the descriptions of his recommended sites.

All in all, I would highly recommend this book for anyone going to Ireland (north or south) for any length of time. We relied entirely upon this book and the recommendations he gave to give us for the most comprehensive visit to Ireland possible in the time we had. And we had an amazing time.

I read a bunch of sites and bought a few guide books before my Iceland trip but the one that had the most practical, useful information and turned into the only one I used and referenced the whole trip was the Rick Steves Iceland guide. I had broad strokes ideas about what I wanted to see but I appreciated his book that let me know about a cattle farm where we could grab some food or a swimming pool on our way from one site to the next on the Golden Circle. I don’t think I would have gone to the Snæfellsnes Peninsula if I hadn’t read Rick’s guide and it had some of our most picturesque views of the trip. It was seriously a perfect help. I didn’t consult it for hotels (I literally just googled “best hotels in Iceland” for that) but it came in handy for everything else. I absolutely recommend a trip to Iceland and I recommend pairing that trip with this book!

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Can't wait to get my hands on the 2013 or 2014 one and take it to Ireland!

Took a two-week trip in July and heavily relied on Rick Steves’ book for our itinerary/sightseeing ideas, B&B choices, and travel tips. Guidance for driving the Ring of Kerry was excellent. When our Cliffs of Moher walk from Doolin was canceled due to weather, we were ready with alternative plans in the Burren for our one day in County Clare, thanks to this book.

A few things like open hours were different than what was listed in the book but that’s not surprising. Just make sure to double-check when you’re there. Also Kells Priory had an excellent free guided tour of a tower that was not mentioned in the book, maybe it’s brand-new. But overall I felt well-prepared for the trip.