• Download a free companion podcast at Frommers.com

Looking for a travel guide that goes where other guides fear to tread? One that rides roughshod over ad-copy puffery to smartly deliver the real scoop on a destination's sites and attractions? One that dares to be honest, hip, and fun? Look no more. Frommer's Irreverent Travel Guides are wickedly irreverent, unabashedly honest, and downright hilarious, and provide an insider's perspective on which attractions are overrated tourist traps and which are the secret gems that locals love. You'll get the lowdown on restaurants, lodging, and shopping, and even find out what the locals think of you. "Like being taken around by a savvy local," said the New York Times. "Hipper and savvier than other guides," concurred Diversion magazine. Never shy about confronting the issues, the Irreverents are guides to real travel in the real world.

 Includes information only a local would know, such as:

• Hotels for the well-heeled and the sensibly-shod
• Where to see monks’ bones, "talking" statues, and lesser-known Michelangelos
• Attractions to line up for–and those to skip
• Where–and when–to enjoy a proper cappuccino
• Shops to scour for the latest bags, boots, and papal vestments
• The best piazzas, outdoor cafes, and discos for people watching, wine sipping, nightclubbing, and doing as the Romans do
• How to tell a friendly hand gesture from a not-so-friendly one
• Charming outdoor spots and special museums that are far away from the crowds and motorinos