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Rick Steves’ Travel Blog

Here you can browse through my blog posts prior to February 2022. Currently I'm sharing my travel experiences, candid opinions, and what's on my mind solely on my Facebook page. — Rick

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The German Sense of Humor

I’m just kicking off my summer trip starting in Germany. I’ll be posting daily for the next 45 days starting with this little video clip illustrating the unique sense of humor of the German people.

This trip will be really fun: Ten days in Germany filming our one-hour Martin Luther and the Reformation special for public television (due out in time for the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in 2017). Then it’s three weeks researching in London and south England, and then three more weeks in Germany filming three new episodes of “Rick Steves’ Europe” (covering the great German cities of Nürnberg, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Leipzig, Würzburg, and Dresden). But for now, watch this video clip and join me for a beer with two friends in Wittenberg.

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Cultural Encounters Without Any Clashes

Tomorrow I kick off my summer trip series — reporting from Germany. But today you can drop by our Travelers Café for two great travel blogs. Cameron Hewitt is in France and my kids are in Vietnam.

I remember as a guide I’d have tourists forever complaining about the rude French. They’d say how at the post office it took forever, there were no smiles, and no one spoke English. I had to remind my travelers that small-town French postal clerks are just as speedy, cheery, and multilingual as postal clerks are back in the USA. Cameron shares a smart and insightful essay on the American challenges when it comes to enjoying the French — and finishes by noting how he kept thinking, “To not get along with the French, you pretty much have to be a jerk.” He also reports on duck, goose, and foie gras.

My children, Jackie and Andy, are now in Vietnam. Jackie just reported on “Ho Chi Minh’s Waxy Body and The American War.” The line to see Ho’s body is longer than the line at the Louvre. For an American millennial to get a firsthand look at what we call “the Vietnam War,” and learn about it from the other perspective, is a rich and challenging travel experience. She then goes out to discover and drink all the “gross things they soak in firewater.”

On the same blog, Andy shares more of his videos. Check out “A Night Out in Hanoi,” an evening fueled by special snake alcohol and in search of a good, dog spring roll.

The streets of Hanoi

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Happy Fourth of July from Vietnam!

Andy Steves Vietnam

 

I was wondering what to post to celebrate the Fourth of July and then my son sent me what I consider the most patriotic message I’ve seen in ages. (As a father, to see his son become a responsible adult not afraid to get out of his comfort zone and challenge norms at the expense of comfort, makes it a late Father’s Day gift as well.) Sure, Andy swallowed their propaganda, but doesn’t propaganda shape the way we see our world too? Andy and his sister Jackie are midway through 30 days of SE Asian fun (posting daily in our Travelers Café).

Until today, I’ve never thought of Andy as very political. Andy shares a literally life-changing experience with this inspirational post. And he shares it out of love and appreciation for our country on the day we celebrate our freedom. It’s young people who get out and understand our world that will shape the character of our nation in the future. Check this out starting with his comment and then the video clip. (Then, feel free to share any travel/parenting insights or comments you might have.)

Andy writes:

War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City

As we celebrate the birth of our great nation today, my experience a few days ago in Vietnam really made me appreciate the responsibility we all have as Americans to stay involved and engaged in the serious issues that we face as a nation today. It’s so important to remember the lessons learned from our past conflicts, and I think it’s our patriotic duty for all of us to actively question our government. So much money and so many under-the-surface interests are flexing their lobbying muscles for contracts in DC that ignore human costs on the other side of the world. The only tool we have to protect our society from these forces is our beautiful (and more fragile than we might realize) democracy. Stay engaged and vote with this little clip in mind. Happy Fourth of July!

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Let’s Take a Road Trip

Traveling by car is often the best way to discover off-the-beaten-path destinations and engage more easily with the locals. Auto Europe has earned a reputation that I trust when I’m planning a European road trip — so I’m delighted that they are now a sponsor of my Rick Steves’ Europe video podcasts.

Auto Europe knows the value of smart and reliable service. They also know the value of a good guidebook. So, to celebrate our partnership, Auto Europe is offering a free Rick Steves eBook with any car rental. I think I feel a road trip coming on.

Rick Steves driving

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Thought-Provoking Posts Fill Our Travelers Café

Wow, there’s lots going on in our Travelers Café – where I enjoy highlighting travelers I find particularly inspirational.

My traveling alter ego, Beacon Bell, just biked across the USA from the East Coast to Seattle on nearly zero money and reports on his adventures. His latest post: Having a “zero day” doing absolutely nothing in Bozeman, Montana, and actually considering it a trip highlight (so different from me…yet so intriguing).

Beacon Bell

Cameron Hewitt reports from Sarlat, in France’s Dordogne Valley: It’s market day and the world is a wonderland of tapenade, fruitcake, and wheels of cheese the size of tire trucks.

Nicolina has finished her Hearts of India art tour: Read about her finale in Delhi, how she turned a five-hour layover at the Istanbul airport into a life-long memory, and her homecoming in NYC.

Jackie Steves and her brother Andy report from Bali: They’re luxuriating in a posh “yoga” hotel and climbing a volcano for the sunrise. From here, my kids head for Vietnam.

Enjoy these as a traveler’s amuse-bouche in my Travelers Café before I fly to Germany to begin part two of my 2015 travels. Coming up: 45 days of travel in Germany and England with daily posts from the road. Thanks for traveling with me!