[.ca] Eyewitness Travel Guides St Petersburg (ISBN 0789497271)

Ideal for a short visit or for travel planning:
If I was taking just one guide, 'Eyewitness Travel Guide to St. Petersburg' would be my first choice. Although it is starting to age (published in 1998) it is a good visual and historic guide to St Petersburg, with enough color photographs to both inspire and guide you. As other reviewers have noted, this book is ideal to use to review with a tour guide the sights and areas that you want to see because of its diagrams, pictures and suggested itineraries. It is also ideal for the cruise ship visitors who will be in St. Petersburg for less than three days, as the photos give a good appreciation to the visitor of what there is to see, especially in a limited amount of time. The history and art sections are reasonably good for a guide book. The restaurant and hotel suggestions are a bit stale, and the pricing is out of date (although the range of pricing is still reasonably accurate).

Excellent Book - Great Photos - No Brainer:
For background information I have travelled to Russia (in a cold October) and I own 20 Eyewitness books but I have never visited St. Petersburg. I confess that up front but all I need is the book to do the review, since I have used many DK books elsewhere. I love these books. I really like the Paris book, Rome, and the one for Prague, and Stockholm, and South Africa, and .... The new India book is exceptional and it works well for Moscow and St.Petersburg. You get all the detailed material similar to other great travel books plus you get great visuals. On a cold day back here in the USA (or Canada) or elsewhere, have a glass of wine and sit in a nice chair or in the garden on a warm day and read this book. For a moment you will be back in traveling. The photos are that good. These are the best all round travel books and are very good for cities. As I said, the photos and descriptions and the cutaway drawings are excellent and more than make up for any lack of small detail. But there is lots of detail here. The book includes the history of the city and many details on the art, art galleries, parks, culture, historical figures, cutaway views of historical buildings, and many other things of interest. The history is summarized at the beginning of the book with historical time lines and cross referenced to the culture and political figures. A solid effort - lots of stuff to see and absorb. It has the other things too such as maps, accommodations, transportation, and the rest. You will be (very much) pleasantly surprised with the depth and quality of this book and it makes a nice souvenir to refresh your memory when you get home. Again just great colors and photos.

Beautiful pictures, great background make this guide a must:
I travelled to St. Petersburg in November 2002 and found this guide to be of great assistance in planning what I wanted to see, getting background information and in follow-up reading after I returned. The pictures are beautiful, and the background information is extensive and helpful in understanding what you are going to see. There are extensive maps and diagrams to sites such as the Hermitage Museum and background information that was very helpful. For example, I read about the top sights in the Hermitage so I could be sure to look for them in my quick guided three hour tour. I also knew something about the murder of Rasputin before I toured the Yusupov Palace where the murder took place. The one drawback is that the 1998 publication date makes this book not very useful in information on new hotels, restaurants or prices. For example, there was nothing about the relatively new "Vodka Museum" which is near St. Isaac's cathedral, where my friends and I had a fun visit. Compare guidebooks and I think you will see that this one is by far the best for detail, pictures and general information. Highly recommended.

A good book, replaced by a newer edition.:
Greetings, This book has been replaced by a newer edition (published at a cheaper price!). Look up 0789497271. It is still a great guide for your journey of Discovering Russia.

A good book, replaced by a newer edition.:
Greetings, This book has been replaced by a newer edition (published at a cheaper price!). Look up 0789497271, or look under "Our Customers' Advice" above. It is still a great guide for your journey of Discovering Russia. It is always best to get the most current guidebook, as attractions, hotels, restaurants and transportation options do often change--AND THEN VERIFY THAT INFORMATION! Marc David Miller, Discovering Russia, New York