Shortcut Guide

For nearly 150 years, Switzerland has been a destination for immense numbers of tourists, who flock here to enjoy a nation of vacation riches. Though others may prefer to lie on a Spanish or French beach or tour a cultural capital like London or Paris, a steady multitude of other tourists go each year and in every season to experience the awesome views of the Swiss Alps, to ascend the mountains in funiculars or swoop down from them in skis, or to luxuriate in the superb amenities of Swiss resorts or to shop the boulevards of Swiss cities. Such names as Geneva, Zurich, Lucerne, Basel, Mont Blanc, Zermatt, set travelers to dreaming; and for them, our Shortcut Guide to Switzerland will prove a much-appreciated source of valuable information.

We call this a "shortcut" guide because that's exactly what it is: a very direct take on what's best in Milan and the Lakes…and what can be skipped. Our author Michelle Schoenung is a long-time resident of Milan and she provides a concise but enjoyably erudite introduction to the highlights of this great city: LaScala Opera House, the Last Supper by DaVinci, the world-famed Duomo Cathedral, its magnificent fashion industry on display in elegant glass-fronts up and down elegant boulevards. Icing on the cake: the glorious Lake District of resort hotels and country restaurants near Milan, of which Lake Como is only one of numerous awesome vistas. This smaller-than-pocket sized book includes: -Dozens of evocative color photos-Detailed maps- Exact pricing, opening hours, and the other important details that will make your trip smoother and less hectic. -Candid reviews from an author who has visited every hotel, restaurant, attraction, shop and nightspot in the guide-and many more! -so that you can spend your time in the top ones-Information for all sorts of travelers from backpackers on a budget to honeymooners looking to splash out.

An essential stop for any visitor to Hawaii, the "Big Island" of Hawaii features the unforgettable active volcanoes of Volcanoes National Park (a World Heritage site), ranches tended by Hawaiian cowboys, beachfront hotels of every size, historic local towns, superb shopping, and more. And this pocket-sized Shortcut Guide covers the best of them. It gets immediately to the point, and confines itself to the vital facts about lodging, dining, sightseeing, sea-bathing, golfing, and shopping, supplying the exact amount of detail that many readers regard as sufficient. The price of each book is refreshingly low, the usefulness excitingly high.

In a small-format paperback, Shortcut Guides supply the single most essential facts about a popular destination, all at a remarkably-low price, and yet for a heavily-illustrated book with maps. And because they are written by top experts who know what the tourist needs, they can serve either as your sole guidebook or as a fast-consulted supplement to a lengthier one. The heavily-visited, pleasure-filled Andalucia is the southernmost region of Spain, on both the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, covered with beaches and sunshine, with history and flamenco, resorts and fine dining. This Shortcut Guide will instantly transport the reader to the pleasures of Seville, Granada, Cordoba and more.

The current growth of tourism to Sicily is so great, and the need for easily-consulted travel information so acute, that guidebooks to Sicily are presently appearing on numerous lists of travel best-sellers. The Shortcut Guide to Sicily will surely be among the most popular sources of recommendations and advice on this uniquely-Italian experience. From the museums, marketplaces and cathedral churches of Palermo to the mountain-side resorts and nightlife of Taormina, from the ancient Greek temples of Agrigento to the Roman-era culture, statues and streets of Siracusa, our Shortcut Guide covers them all in colorful (and intensely practical) prose.

Regarded by many visitors as the most beautiful island of Hawaii, Kauai is currently receiving an awesome number of pleasure-seeking tourists, who delight in its fauna, flora and other wonders of nature. This ShortCut Guide to Kauai, confined to essential facts, covers both the sights and the practicalities, and squeezes in a surprising amount of recommendations for lodging, dining, sightseeing, sea sports, sea-bathing and relaxation. Authors of the book are natives of Hawaii, who have responded to the challenge of conveying advice that is easily and quickly consulted and yet colorfully described. It is a standout in the Frommer's travel series.