The Rough Guide to Andalucia [Paperback]

This is a review of the 6th edition (May 2009) of the Rough Guide to Andalucia. This latest edition is an improvement on what was already an excellent guidebook.

The colour section at the front of the book very sensibly focuses on the highlights of the region for those making a brief visit, or are visiting Andalucia for the first time. Lavishly illustrated with photographs, it covers cultural events and pleasures of the table as well as locations. It also includes a useful couple of pages on "When to go", an important consideration for a region with such a range of climatic variations.

This is followed by an invaluable detailed 37-page "Basics" section, covering practicalities such as transport options, accommodation types, food and drink, travelling with children, personal safety and health care.

There then follows the main body of the guide which takes up an astonishing 500 pages, an impressive piece of work that covers all the region's eight provinces in considerable detail, each province prefaced by a few pages of introduction to its highlights. I now live in Andalucia and yet I refer to the guide continually even for the province in which I live. I am constantly astonished to find information on out-of-the-way places that I know and that receive very few foreign visitors. As before, there is ample detail there for those who want to concentrate on the major attractions, as well as a massive amount of information on the lesser-visited parts of the region. This truly is a book for those who enjoy getting off the beaten track, be that in a city like Córdoba or in a rural backwater, as well as meeting the needs of those who want to visit a major attraction such as the Alhambra.

This main body also contains information that (indirectly) addresses an accusation that is often made against guidebooks; that they attract a disproportionate number of visitors to a small number of hotels, bars and restaurants. I'll take Seville as an example of what I mean. There are 46 accommodation recommendations for Seville, grouped by neighbourhood, with something to suit all budgets. There are 33 restaurants and an astonishing 49 tapas bars listed. (These figures far exceed those provided by another well-known guide to the region.) This has two consequences: (a) the owners of the guidebook are not going to be concentrated in a few select locations; (b) there is ample scope for those who want to get away from the well-trodden tourist trail. Each entry has a description, price guide and, in the case of restaurants and tapas bars, specialities.

Throughout the main section there are guided walks through city neighbourhoods, historical accounts and interesting anecdotes. There is even a page dedicated to "Red" Marinaleda, a village in Seville province with a radical town hall and social policies to match, a place little known outside the immediate area. Gibraltar is also covered.

Given the multiplicity of bus companies operating in Andalucia (and the rest of Spain), the guide wisely provides summaries of bus routes, frequency and journey duration. To try to do more would be confusing and would, in any case, be quickly out-of-date. Accommodation is simply price-banded; this is a good idea as accommodation in many places in Andalucia fluctuates widely according to season.

Overall, the writing style is eminently approachable, neither unnecessarily dry or overly academic, nor irritatingly patronising. In short, it's a "good read". One factor often overlooked by readers until it's pointed out to them is the use of colour and mix of font styles and sizes in the text. This makes the guidebook especially user-friendly, something that many of the Rough Guide's competitors have woefully neglected.

Finally, there is an expanded 50-page "Contexts" section that deals with the history of the region; flamenco styles, personalities and recordings and then an extensive list of books for background reading. At the back there is a comprehensive index, with sub-indices for cities and larger towns.

City maps can always be improved upon; finding some way of simplifying the labyrinthine old quarters must be a cartographer's nightmare. However, every city has a tourist office with excellent free maps for visitors. These can be used in conjunction with the Rough Guide's maps that show the sightseeing destinations, hotels, bars and restaurants included in the text.

In summary, I unreservedly recommend this guidebook to anyone with an interest in Andalucia, to a prospective visitor and to someone who wants to buy just one book on the region.

Bought this latest (April 2009) edition to replace my 2003 edition, believing that it would be good to have up to date recommendations for restaurants and tapas bars etc. Although visiting within 3 months of publication, many of the recommendations (in Seville and Cadiz)were already out of date. Obviously cannot blame Rough Guides or the author (it is otherwise an excellent buy), but worth bearing in mind if like us you walk halfway across a city in search of a highly recommended tapas bar only to find that it closed in February.Since the core of the guide relates to historical and geographical data that does not change, it might be a good idea for Rough Guides to publish short supplements re restaurants etc, updated say every 3-6 months?

I used this guide during a recent trip to Andalucia and chose it for the same reason as Sam (see other review). I found it an extremely useful guide for planning an itinerary, and I did not happen upon any major inaccuracies. I guess if you're the kind of person who gets worked up about having to 'waste' an afternoon in Granada (sounds like heaven), or taking a wrong turning on a walk, then you're probably going to be quite hard to please. I took numerous wrong turns and wasted time in some fabulous places, I recommend you buy this book and do the same.