Frommer's () is a travel
guide book
A guide book or travel guide is "a book of information about a place designed for the use of visitors or tourists". It will usually include information about sights, accommodation, restaurants, transportation, and activities. Maps of varying det ...
series created by
Arthur Frommer in 1957. Frommer's has since expanded to include more than 350 guidebooks in 14 series, as well as other media including an eponymous radio show and a website. In 2017, the company celebrated its 60th anniversary.
Frommer has maintained a travel-related blog on the company's website since 2007.
History
In 1957, Arthur Frommer, then a
corporal
Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...
in the
U.S. Army, wrote a travel guide for American
GIs in Europe, and then produced a civilian version called ''Europe on $5 a Day''. The book ranked popular landmarks and sights in order of importance and included suggestions on how to travel around Europe on a budget. It was the first travel guide to show Americans that they could afford to travel in Europe.
Frommer returned to the United States and began practicing law. During that time, he continued to write and also began to self-publish guidebooks to additional destinations, including New York, Mexico, Hawaii, Japan and the Caribbean. In 1977, Frommer’s trademark was sold to
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster LLC (, ) is an American publishing house owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts since 2023. It was founded in New York City in 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group US ...
, Inc.
Pearson bought the reference division of Simon & Schuster in 1998 and sold it to
IDG Books in 1999.
John Wiley & Sons
John Wiley & Sons, Inc., commonly known as Wiley (), is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Publishing, publishing company that focuses on academic publishing and instructional materials. The company was founded in 1807 and pr ...
acquired IDG Books (renamed Hungry Minds) in 2001. Arthur’s daughter, Pauline Frommer, was writing her own series of travel guidebooks and continuing the Frommer’s travel legacy.
On August 13, 2012, it was announced that
Google
Google LLC (, ) is an American multinational corporation and technology company focusing on online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, consumer electronics, and artificial ...
was acquiring Frommer's for an undisclosed sum. In April 2013, it was announced that the Frommer's brand had been reacquired by Arthur Frommer and his daughter, Pauline Frommer.
In July 2013, Arthur Frommer struck a deal with
Publishers Group West to distribute and promote Frommer's books.
The Frommer's guides today are among the most trusted and beloved in the world. Over 75 million Frommer's guidebooks have been sold since the line's founding.
Guidebook series
More than 75 million copies of Frommer's guide books have been sold since 1957.
Over 350 titles are available in the following series:
* Frommer’s Complete Guides
* Frommer’s EasyGuides
* Frommer's Day by Day for over 70 travel destinations
* Frommer’s Portable Guides
* Frommer’s Irreverent Guides
* Frommer’s Memorable Walks
* Frommer’s PhraseFinder & Dictionaries
* Frommer’s Driving Tours
* Pauline Frommer’s Guides
* Frommer’s National Park Guides
See also
*
Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet is a travel guide book publisher. Founded in Australia in 1973, the company has printed over 150 million books.
History
20th century
Lonely Planet was founded by married couple Maureen Wheeler, Maureen and Tony Wheeler. In 19 ...
In popular culture
Frommer's guidebooks are represented in the 2004 comedy ''
EuroTrip'' when one of the main characters, Jamie, uses it to guide a group of teenagers around
Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
. Jamie later gets a job with Frommer's at the end of EuroTrip. In the opening scene of 2003's ''
Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle'',
Cameron Diaz enters a Mongolian beer shack holding a Frommer's guidebook. A copy can also be seen near the beginning of the 2008 film ''
Jumper''. Frommer's guides have also been a plot point on the TV series ''This is Us" ''and have been used as clues on "Jeopardy" a number of times. Complete references from the Frommer's Guide book for Traveling around the world can be seen in the movie ''
Last Stop for Paul''.
References
External links
*{{Official website
Travel guide books
Book series introduced in 1957