interview
Before that trip, he thought he had seen everything that he
wanted to see in the world. But looking back, he realizes he
had really seen nothing. And that’s when his life on the road
began. As an 18-year-old college student, Steves’ myopic
point of view of the world began to change as he traveled to
Europe on his own in the summer, funding his own trips by
teaching piano lessons during the school year. World renown
cities with their famous landmarks and monuments first out-
lined his itinerary in Europe, but he soon learned that how he
took in the sights would dictate his experiences on his trips.
With a journal to jot things down, Steves ventured onto an
unknown land, at least to him, at his own pace. And with the
sheer amount of things to see and do, traveling in Europe
became part of his education—and ultimately his vocation.
Today, Steves is known as one of the most respected guide-
book authors in America with over 50 books to his name,
a travel TV and radio host and the owner of Rick Steves’
Europe, a business he started in 1976, which has grown from
a one-man operation to a company with a staff of 100 full-
time, well-traveled employees based in Washington State.
On a gorgeous morning in sunny South Florida, I find Steves
visiting La Posada, a Kisco resort-style senior living commu-
nity in Palm Beach Gardens, whose tradition is to enhance
the lives of its residents by providing cultural experiences,
bringing in captivating and distinguished personalities.
Steves is friendly, greeting everyone at the grand door of the
community center with a great smile and a firm handshake.
Before we begin our chat, he decides to check out the room
where he will be sharing stories with the Posada residents
about his travels and offering advice on how to travel more
thoughtfully to any destination. Technology is his friend, so
he checks the mic, the laptop which has been set up for him,
and to his satisfaction, everything seems to be in sync.
“My name is Rick Steves and I write travel guidebooks,” he
says nonchalant as we sit down to chat. And when I tell him
that travel is a passion of mine and that I lived in Madrid,
Spain for six years before coming to the States when I was
child, he responds with a booming smile that offers a
foretaste of Steves’ many likable qualities.
He’s not different from what you see on TV or hear on the
radio. Direct, witty, full of words that seem to say more
than said. He begins to talk about his experiences as an
18-year-old when he decided to take off to Europe. Even as a
teenager, he felt confident, and soon he started to see other
people making the same mistakes he had made the year
before. What sort of mistakes? I ask him.
“Oh, I remember standing and changing some travelers
checks in Oslo,” he says. “I had five twenty dollars travelers
checks I wanted to exchange. I got my crowns and I counted
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them and noticed I was short fifteen dollars. I was like, what’s
going on? And they said, ‘well, we’re in Norway; we charge
four dollars per check, not per transaction.’ I had four fees
instead of one!”
Steves had four checks of twenty, instead of one check for
one-hundred. So, the next time he went with a check for
one hundred dollars. And so, he got fifteen dollars more for
his dollar to crown exchange. Now, the next time he was in
Oslo, he saw a lady in front of him with five twenties. So, he
thought, “If I had written a book and she would have read it,
she would have saved herself some money.” And that is a tiny
example, but there are all kinds of the same kind of things
that happen to people—the kind of stuff he teaches in his
travel guidebooks.
Figuring out how to make traveling better for people is
what Steves does best. Like, why is Versailles so crowded on
Tuesday? Steves says that’s because it is the only thing that’s
opened. So, he learned not to visit Versailles on Tuesdays.
“A lot of people end up going on Tuesdays because of tour
scheduling. But it is a miserable crowd, and there are ways to
get around those crowds,” he says.
According to Steves, there are two IQs of European
travelers. The ones who wait on lines and those who do
not wait on lines. His goal is to help his travelers get around
those lines.
For the past thirty years, Steves has been spending four
months in Europe visiting the places, taking careful notes,
and when he’s ripped off, he celebrates. “They don’t know
who they just ripped off! And so, I am going to learn that
scam and put it in my books the next time around.” Of
course, I tell him that the greatest revenge is that they also
get to read about it. “Yeah, that’s right!” He laughs, getting
into another reason why he writes travel guidebooks.
He realizes that Americans are always trying to learn
smarter ways to save money. But he has to be honest with
them: “Time is a very expensive commodity also.”
Arthur Frommer wrote “Traveling Europe on Five Dollars a
Day,” which was Steves’ inspiration. This book is all about
saving money.
Steves’ first book was “Europe in 22 Days,” followed by
“Britain in 22 Days,” and “France in 22 Days.” Steves’ intent
was to let Americans know how to use their time smartly—
cutting through the superlatives. He says he’s tired of hea ring
people say, “I can spend a lifetime in France.” Of course you
can spend a lifetime in France, but according to him, Ameri-
cans have the shortest vacations in a rich world.
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