Spartacus International Gay Guide, 2013-2014 (English, German, French and Spanish Edition)

If you are not an internet cruiser and traveling, you need this for planning purposes!Purchased this while planning a trip to Europe to replace my c. 1987 edition. That was 25 yrs ago, and that edition was very useful - especially in cities and countries that are not gay meccas. This edition has some updated material especially useful for such areas. Yes you can get similar info on line but it lacks the practical info you need to know if you are new to an area. My interest and commentary addresses Euopean destinations, and I often go to establishments in non-gay areas and like the more "rural rustic" types over 50. In that regard this guide is useful. You just have to go to the places listed and "network" to find what you really want. Nothing new there.Although he spends way too much time talking about gay lib political stuff (this is a guide primarily for travelers - so, who cares?) I do appreciate his comments on those (particularly European) areas not in gay meccas, that are not "open gay friendly" and some discretion is needed. How true that is! Particularly in Europe, where, lately, there has developed, some reactionary behaviour to the recent onslaught of gay marriage legislation (not surprising, really); here he does a useful commentary - not seen in other guides. In addition, if you are "conservative" gay, it is important to note that the gay establishments in European countries like Italy Poland Ukraine and the Balkan countries among others, can often be "too gay." In this regard, the former edition was more astute at listing non-gay bars (hotel bars in particular) and some other places where men could be met. There are less of those listings in this edition - I presume due to such potentially available guys now primarily using the net to meet. He has largely dropped the terms "twinks" and "sissies" which are useful to describe primarily gay scenes in the above mentioned countries.If you are like me, and don't plan to use the internet for meetups, and prefer to meet guys face to face in a "g" or "NG" bars (or elsewhere), this guide is still indispensible, but as far as Europe is concerned, less complete(?) then the former edition - for whatever reason; less such listings then previously in the countries mentioned, but that may be the dour reality in Europe. It certainly is the case in the "flyover country" of the US (where, incidently, as before, listings in this guide are incomplete and not updated - use some other guide for that).Loses one star for too much gay partnership talk for what should be a travel guide. I am not traveling to settle down and get married for petesakes. Save that stuff for another guide.Yes, "fine print" I affirm that I am over age 13 and, as such, am qualified to comment on this product.

There are numerous reviews of this book here on Amazon and I can hardly add anything more!! I plan to make a trip to Italy in March 2014 and I ordered this guide at the behest of a good friend in Austria whom I plan to meet in Rome during my stay. He suggested this book because it is a comprehensive guide for the gay man who is planning to travel and "see the sights" in foreign countries. I also purchased the well known Damron Gay Men's Guide as a companion piece and I can tell you that between the two books, you will not miss anything GAY during your travels. I plan to live it up to the fullest and these two books will help you get the most from your trip!!!!! ENJOY!!!!!!!

This is an annual purchase for me. Yes, I know there is the internet to track stuff down---but do a test and try and rely on that and see how reliable it is (not). I still find after over a decade of annual purchases that Spartacus remains the best annual guide available. As I've said before, the cost remains about the same for 2 drinks in any major city on the planet (low 20s). For those which have said to me that 23-ish is way high for 2 drinks...my advice to you is NEVER move or you'll have sticker shock at going out. The rest of you know where I'm coming from. Grab the guide and go explore!

I used to buy this series each year and watched the price go up while the useful information decreases with each edition. While European countries are well covered the needed info on Africa, the Middle East, South Asia are virtually absent because of draconian government laws outlawing gay life. At the back of the book there are scores of countries that the editors listed as " no information". While listings of Gay information in Germany, France, Spain, the US etc. easily (and at no cost) available via the web, the really needed information on the more vague places is skipped. I think this was my last purchase of the Spartacus Guide.

I liked the lay out with details of each country, city and province, along with weather patterns, cultural expectations of a tourist, population and other general statistics

Exactly what the star rating indicates - it's ok. I thought the content was a little thin, the price a little thick and the best I can say is it got all the countries right.

It's interesting. A new perspective on traveling . For what I bought it for its great. If I could travel and really thourghly check it out I might change the rating .

Awesome! Everything you need in a world wide gay guide! Very comprehensive and thorough. Don't leave home without it! Bon Voyage

Never leave home without consulting the guide for local information. Very useful and has been for many years. Just update over a few years and not annually as not many changes.

the ever reliable Spartacus guide for gay people. contains a lot of very useful information for the gay traveller. I have used this guide for many years and I find that in an ever changing world this is about as good as it gets

good

great booktells me everything about gay holidaysplaces to go places to and countrys to avoidand the best hotels

An invaluable resource for the Gay traveler! Offers positive tips and areas for caution. Although not every country is included there are enough to satisfy most tastes!