Dana Facaros

This guide, like others in the Cadogan's range is chock full of information, and not photos. If you are looking for maps (other than a Metro and RER railway map inside the back cover and the walking maps) and colour pictures you are advised to look elsewhere.

After opening chapters looking at `Paris in a Weekend' ,practicalities, history, art and architecture and several short pieces on topics such as dog poo and modernism (well worth reading - very entertaining, but make sure your spectacles show more prescription is up to date - the print in this section is very small!), the guide really gets into its strength.

The bulk of the book is built around 11 different walks, in 11 different neighbourhoods. All are thoroughly described with an accompanying easy-to-follow black and white map. Each walk has an indication of how long it will take (excluding museum visits), suggestions for restaurants and cafes on the route and comprehensive information on the sites.

This makes the book perfect for a visitor spending an extended time in Paris, who wants to discover the city the best way possible, or for the repeat visitor who has the good fortune to be able to return to Paris time and again.

After the Walks, the museums of Paris are listed and cross-referenced to where they occur in the Walks text. The Louvre and Musee d'Orsay are described at length. A section then follows on peripheral attractions - lying further afield than central Paris. There are listings for restaurants, accommodation and nightlife venues.

The writing in Cadogans tends towards the opinionated, witty, slightly ironic (but not smart-alec) and drily understated British style. It appeals to me in the same way as Rough Guides do.

This is not a book for the first-time short-term visitor intending to see the "Top Five" and then move on. There are plenty of other guides catering to that market, and fulfilling their brief admirably (try Rick Steves, Let's Go, Frommer, Lonely Planet for example). But if you want a book with some substance and detail which will be just as rewarding a read back at your hotel as accompanying you on your on-foot rambles around this beautiful city, then I can't recommend it highly enough. show less

We used this guide more as a source for background information on places we visited, than as a directory of where to stay, eat and drink. We found it perfectly good for the former purpose; no idea as to its suitability on the latter count. Occasionally the writer(s) get carried away and say some rather strange things.. It's got pretty good maps, too.

I went to Barcelona in May 2006, and in the planning of the trip I consulted four guide books:

Lonely Planet's Barcelona City Guide
Dorling Kindersley Eyewitness Barcelona and Catalonia
Cadogan Guides Barcelona (Dana Facaros and Michael Pauls)
Time Out Barcelona

All of them were good. I took two with me: Lonely Planet and Eyewitness.
The reasons I chose those two:

Eyewitness unfailingly has a good quality map, which in my view is LP's downfall. Eyewitness always includes a Street Finder show more Index which LP does not, and LP often misses out on streets other than the major ones, which can be very frustrating, especially in a city like Barca where there are many alleyways. I never use Eyewitness for hotels - the information is scant and usually more expensive than my (more Lonely Planet) budget, but it has fantastic colour photos and cutaways of buildings, and illustrations which place buildings within their streetscapes. It's a nice book to read on the bus or train going somewhere.

LP specialises in listings, which seemed to be more up-to-date and comprehensive than either Time Out or Cadogan, It also had a good Excursions section which helped a couple of times when I travelled beyond the city. I also liked a couple of the walking routes they recommended. Information on matters such as public transport is comprehensive and detailed. I like the chapters on history, architecture and food as well.

Time Out's great strength was in helping to plan. It had a huge array of hotels, and if you were especially interested in nightlife, I would take Time Out. I was there primarily for a conference, and many of my evenings were organised. And I'm also night a great nightclubber, perhaps contrary to Barca lifestyle!! If you are - consider Time Out. Its maps were pretty good, but not comprehensive for the area I was staying in, beachside Barceloneta.

That is where the Cadogan guide excelled. Its maps were so good that I pulled them out of the book and took them with me. I would have taken the whole book, but for the weight in my suitcase! Its info about places and sights seemed accurate and comprehensive. show less

Excellent guide to an area not well covered by specialist guides.