Amsterdam, Bruges & Brussels Guidebook
Best ways to improve this book:
We believe the book is excellent as it is.
Michael Jones in Coquitlam, BC Canada 10/08/2011
Add some information on art nouveau walking tours in Brussels, which is one of the major centers of art nouveau architecture. The walking tours map from the Flanders TI is excellent.
Kate McCain in Philadelphia, PA USA 09/10/2011
More information on Ghent and Brussels. I based in Brussels and explored Bruges and Ghent as day trips. I found I enjoyed Ghent far more than Bruges and even returned there for an extra day.
Melinda in Santa Ana, CA USA 09/10/2011
Hours/fees have changed at many churches/museums in Brugges
Clownis in Clomper, Ca USA 07/17/2011
We almost felt as if Rick Steves had not taken this trip or satyed at the hotels. We have used his books extensively on many Europen trips and have never been disappointed. This time however we found many things way off base and in fact would not recommend someone traveling this tour to use this book.
Kathleen in De Pere, WI USA 05/05/2011
Accurate info would be helpful. I realize that the guidebooks are not responsible for poor service or "bad herring", but not getting any service at all is a surprise to us. Bruges folks seem to be intolerant to tourists and if that is the case, then I would discourage anyone from visiting the city by making this known.
Lance Stronk in Northfield, CT USA 04/28/2011
Keep it as is. We have used many of the books and know we can rely on them.
Sandra Momyer in Valley Forge, PA USA 11/20/2010
My friends books had a guided walk in Bruges to the windmills - very beautiful, I'm glad I didn't miss it.
Shawn Broda in Downers Grove, IL USA 11/19/2010
My mom and I tried to find the scenic polderland bike ride, and were lost for almost an hour before we found it. It was so beautiful and so worthwhile, it would be extremely helpful to have more concise directions. They are quite vague in our edition of the book (forgive me if they have already been changed for newer additions).
Amelia in Salt Lake City, UT USA 10/25/2010
Perhaps the suggestion is there, but we had to learn from experience that some places may close on a religious holiday, Pentecost, for us. Aalmsmeer was closed on that Monday. We wasted a morning riding a local bus to the flower market only to find it closed. Also, we had arrived in Amsterdam area a few days too late to find Keukenhof open. Maybe next time!
Elizabeth Harris in Los Angeles, CA USA 09/19/2010
Perhaps the suggestion is there, but we had to learn from experience that some places may close on a religious holiday, Pentecost, for us. Aalmsmeer was closed on that Monday. We wasted a morning riding a local bus to the flower market only to find it closed. Also, we had arrived in Amsterdam area a few days too late to find Keukenhof open. Maybe next time!
Elizabeth Harris in Los Angeles, CA USA 09/19/2010
Drivers seem to be consistently overlooked, e.g., there is no explanation for how to arrive in Brussels by car (page 382). The maps of Brugge were very frustrating--not enough detail and hard to find restaurants. Recommend you use the same map for each city and then overlap the various details (lodging, restaurants) so we're not having to reorient ourselves each time we switch to a new section. Information about chocolate shops should be a separate section. I found myself flipping to figure out where I should go.
Rebecca in Washington, DC USA 08/28/2010
Allow longer recommended times for viewing the museums. The suggestions are geared for a whirlwind stroll-by viewing at most. (We find this applies to all of Rick's books.)
Tom Bruno in Whitefish Bay, WI USA 08/08/2010
The lace shop in Bruges, which you indicated was open from 10-13 on Sundays was locked up tighter than a drum. When I asked at the Volksmuseum next door, they were surprised that I (or the A/B/B book) thought it might be open. I only bought carpets in Turkey because Rick said that this was a good place; I relied on him for lace in Bruges and left empty-handed.
David W. Madsen in Seattle, WA USA 07/16/2010
maybe expand to include more of the Netherlands and Belgium. There's a bit more out there that people would enjoy.
Matt Rogers in San Diego, CA USA 07/01/2010
Update it more often, and correctly! Our edition was bought in 2009, I believe it is the most recent.
Inge Adams in Kelowna, BC Can 06/08/2010
The maps could include more cross-street names and be a bit larger.
Susan in Longmont, CO USA 06/04/2010
Impress upon the reader the necessity of buying a lot of chocolate. I bought a small amount from Dumon & am still having withdrawal pangs. OMG!
Jan in Rhodes, CA USA 06/01/2010
Add Peppino's Italian restaurant in Amsterdam on Leidse Kruisstraat near the Leidsplein. We had an excellent inexpensive home-made Italian meal there.
Add Carlito's on Hoogstraat in Bruges where we add twice. Again, another inexpensive excellent home-made Italian meal.
Add Sole d'Italia on Rue Gretry near Rue des Bouchers and Todt's on Rue de Rollebeck near Place du Grand Sablon in Brussels are both inexpensive good restaurants.
Add Little Italy in Delft. Yet another excellent inexpensive restaurant in charming Delft.
Barbara Murphy in Chicago, IL USA 05/11/2010
I visited The Hague and was looking forward to touring The Peace Palace. Your directions were great regarding which tram to take to The Peace Palace. When I arrived I was disappointed to learn I needed to make a reservation for a tour ahead of time (either online or by phone).
Carrie Kleinjan in West Chester, PA USA 04/17/2010
We had several remarkable meals here. The best of all was at a restaurant called Alberto's - a Uroguayan steakhouse located at Korte Leidsedwarsstraat 26 - right in the Leidesplein area. I am from Kansas City and I know my way around a steak - but this was the best steak I have ever had! I had the Loma carrasco - about 27 Euro and it was an unusual cut and cooked to perfection. The atmosphere was very quaint with dark wood, fireplace, reddish walls and very friendly waitstaff. Meal included a "jacked" potato which is just a baked potato with sour cream and a salad. The salad was nothing special, but the steak was awesome! Everything was 17-30 euros and there was a nice kid's dish for 10.50. Wine was excellent. We had a nice meal at Cafe Luxemborg - the french onion soup is to die for there - cooked in red wine with a bit of tomato paste - unusual treatment and very good! In general - I would say that you almost can't go wrong ordering soups and stews here, but don't expect to get good salads like we have in America. Salads are just not great here - avoid them in general and be adventurous witht the soups. Had awesome pumpkin soup, carrot, etc...
Marie Griffin in Leawood , KS USA 03/15/2010
Better restaurant listings/recommendations for Amsterdam. Your other guide books have been more helpful.
Lydia Engelhardt, MD in Mount Pleasant, SC USA 01/29/2010
A lot of it seemed outdated. Prices, especially, had gone way up!
Alisa in New York, NY USA 01/27/2010
Awesome book. I used it for the Brussels and Brugges portion and it was positively on point. I couldn't have planned a better trip without it. Only some of the prices have gone up, but otherwise thank you so much!
Simone in Queens, Ne USA 01/15/2010
Maps! I have always had great success using Rick's maps (Germany, Florence, Rome). Found the Brussels and Bruges maps not detailed enough. May be worth taking up two pages and having better maps.
Monica B in Zionsville, IN USA 11/29/2009
Alternative suggestion for transit into Amsterdam from Schiphol. If you will be going to the museum district/VondelPark area/Leidseplein, a quicker route, rather than the longer ride to Centraal, is the train from the Airport to Amsterdam South (WTC) - it's only one stop, and then Tram #5 from the rail station up to the most convenient stop. Note that the #5 has a zone change in this direction, so that 3 strips are required, although the trian fare is cheaper.
Larry Plotkin in Elkins Park, PA USA 10/22/2009
As with other books, better driving instructions would help, especially for entering central city locations.
Ron in DeWitt, MI USA 10/14/2009
As with other books, better driving instructions would help, especially for entering central city locations.
Ron in DeWitt, MI USA 10/14/2009
The people were extremely friendly and most spoke great English. We enjoyed spending a lot of time talking to locals everywhere we went. Could you encourage travelers to get past their fear of strking up conversations with locals?
Laralyn Sasaki in Columbus, Oh USA 10/09/2009
You might want to add the IJ Brewerey in Amsterdam. Good beer and located by or in old windmill
Jeannine Willis in Houston, TX USA 10/07/2009
It is very well researched and has a lot of useful information. Walking tours are good as are museum guides. You can get up to speed quickly in a new town. Perhaps add some more information about trains and clarify maps some.
Craig in New York, NY USA 10/04/2009
Add Café Terrastje at Genthof 45, just up the street from The Royal Stewart. Although the menu is a little bit limited, the food is great and reasonably priced. The owners, Patricia and Ian, are as hard-working as they are convivial. The vibe is cool and the music is really top notch.
Bill in Miami, FL USA 09/24/2009
Warn travelers about taxi rip-offs. Include Vondelpark Museum B&B in your recommendations.
Susan in Ledford, MT USA 09/21/2009
The description of how to find the TI in The Hague was confusing, which is unfortunate because it was perhaps the best TI with friendly staff and a small store selling items like umbrellas (that we needed). The description starts with riding the tram, but then switches mid-paragraph to describing how to find it walking from the train station on foot.
Mike in LA, CA USA 09/18/2009
maybe add a chocolate section for Brugges? There were A LOT of local tiny stores that were amazing!!
Carla in Hollister, CA USA 09/17/2009
dd information about organized bicycle/boat tours. These are the absolutely best ways to see the country, I believe. I have done four of them now, two with Cycle tours of Holland. Much of Holland is missed when traveling by train or car.
Jan Larson in Worthington, MN USA 08/26/2009
dd information about organized bicycle/boat tours. These are the absolutely best ways to see the country, I believe. I have done four of them now, two with Cycle tours of Holland. Much of Holland is missed when traveling by train or car.
Jan Larson in Worthington, MN USA 08/26/2009
In the opening pages there is a color map of Amsterdam with a legend that could be improved. In the legend the places are in alphabetical order, which is fine; people can search thru a list of names faster if it is in alphabetical order to see if something they are looking for is present.
However right next to the places are the numbers for the labeled spots on the map, and these are in numerical order. This makes things difficult to find on the map. If you find location 23 then 22 and 24 are nowhere near it, because they correspond to a place near 23 in the *alphabet* and not on the map. It would be a lot quicker if you look for a site, find out its number 23, and then scan the map until you find the 20's and know that 23 is going to be in the immediate vicinity.
Mike in Los Angeles, CA USA 08/26/2009
Spiral bind so it can be opened flat. Also consider slightly smaller size so it can be carried in a back pocket.
Richard Becker in High Point, NC USA 04/02/2009
3 updates to the Amsterdam book as of our visit in Feb 2009. 1) The Green Lantern fondue restaurant is closed. 2) The Anne Frank House is now 8.50 euros. 3) The Van Gogh museum is now a whopping 15 euros per adult ticket. You can only use a credit/debit to buy tickets if your total is more than 25 euros. But it was open until 10 PM on a Thursday, AND as an added bonus they have Starry Night on loan from NY until the summer.
Heather in London, UK 02/24/2009
Great book! The train tour from Amsterdam to Haarlem was a bit difficult to follow.
Dave W. in Seattle, WA USA 01/20/2009
MAPS!!!!!!!!!!!If it were possible to list the names of most of the streets that you pass on these walks, it would save so much time and I would not have to back track/argue with travel partner!!!! I will always use your guidebooks, they are the best of what is out there. But the maps of your walks every year that I go to Europe (four years in a row) create momments of frustration because only a few street names are listed. Meeting other travelers carrying "the blue bible" shared simular frustrations.
Kelly in Gulfport, Fl USA 01/03/2009