The Bottom Line
In a day when travel writing too often focuses on luxury, Ask Arthur Frommer offers suggestions you can act upon rather than dream about. Reading Frommer's travel advice is like sitting down with a trusted, well-traveled friend who wants to help map out your next journey.
Frommer's strong opinions and conversational writing style make the book a fun, easy read. At times, his opinions meander into the political realm, but there are enough direct budget travel hits to merit buying, reading and re-reading this collection of wise money saving travel tips.
Pros
- Pages packed with practical advice for budget travel
- Highly readable style; sections are one page in length or less
- Brief but prudent advice for destinations around the world
Cons
- Some sections bog down with "tirades" that can be distracting
- Bland layout and photography
- Prices and Web site recommendations are perishable
Description
- The first 11 chapters deal with practical tips on airfares, hotels and smaller items like mobile phones.
- The 12th chapter is "These are a Few of My Favorite Places." How well-traveled is Frommer? It takes 130 pages to cover them.
- Frommer says he has tested many online fare aggregators, and on page four he names his top pick.
- Frommer: home exchange is "the single most sensible, logical and intelligent method of vacationing." He offers exchange tips.
- Each page is packed with URLs for finding relevant Web sites to aid in your search for affordable travel.
- Chapter 14 (Problems, Pitfalls and Controversies) is subtitled "my tirades about travel, in a number of fields."
- 484 pages, Wiley Publishing, Inc., Hoboken, N.J. 2009
Guide Review - Book Review: Ask Arthur Frommer
One day nearly 25 years ago, I opened a book I had purchased on impulse. Even then, author Arthur Frommer was famous for writing the book "Europe on $5 a Day." My version promised a per diem of $50.
I couldn't put the book down because it appeared to be written for travelers like me who lacked resources to spend on luxury travel. He demonstrated how a trip abroad was not just for the wealthy. I loved that idea.
Now the head of a travel media empire, Frommer writes with unrivaled authority on these matters. Not all of Ask Arthur Frommer deals in bare-bones budget travel. But if you're looking for the 10 most likely travel spots to see Paris Hilton, don't buy this book. Likewise, the layout and photography are rather ordinary.
I doubt Frommer is concerned about winning awards in any of those areas.
He is concerned about wasting frequent flier miles. He examines online aggregator searches. He advises buying discount theme park tickets online. He talks about eating what locals eat.
In short, he embraces topics upon which About Budget Travel and many other online resources focus every day -- topics still largely ignored by so-called mainstream media.
Frommer also sells destination guidebooks, but thankfully there is no cross-promotion here. One chapter offers brief advice on many destinations, perhaps in an attempt to whet your appetite for more research.
One warning: Frommer has a penchant for self-described "tirades." His political views (whether or not you agree with them) can distract at times. One example is his plea for more federal Amtrak funding (see p. 101-108). A brief aside on the topic is one thing -- but seven pages?
So it is when you invite Arthur Frommer into your home. He quickly becomes a confidant who shares sound budget travel advice and throws in a few unsolicited opinions at no extra charge.
