A Travel Guide to the Middle Ages: The World Through Medieval Eyes

Price: $18.99 - $1.99
(as of Oct 11, 2026 06:02:15 UTC – Details)

“[An] immensely entertaining history.” —The New Yorker
A captivating journey of the expansive world of medieval travel, from London to Constantinople to the court of China and beyond.

Europeans of the Middle Ages were the first to use travel guides to orient their wanderings, as they moved through a world punctuated with miraculous wonders and beguiling encounters. In this vivid and alluring history, medievalist Anthony Bale invites readers on an odyssey across the medieval world, recounting the advice that circulated among those venturing to the road for pilgrimage, trade, diplomacy, and war.

Journeying alongside scholars, spies, and saints, from Western Europe to the Far East, the Antipodes and the ends of the earth, Bale provides indispensable information on the exchange rate between Bohemian ducats and Venetian groats, medieval cures for seasickness, and how to avoid extortionist tour guides and singing sirens. He takes us from the streets of Rome, more ruin than tourist spot, and tours of the Khan’s court in Beijing to Mamluk-controlled Jerusalem, where we ride asses across the holy terrain, and bustling bazaars of Tabriz.

We also learn of rumored fantastical places, like ones where lambs grow on trees and giant canes grow fruit made of gems. And we are offered a glimpse of what non-European travelers thought of the West on their own travels.

Using previously untranslated contemporaneous documents from a colorful range of travelers, and from as far and wide as Turkey, Iceland, North Africa, and Russia, A Travel Guide to the Middle Ages is a witty and unforgettable exploration of how Europeans understood—and often misunderstood—the larger world.

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0C97G1ZR6
Publisher ‏ : ‎ W. W. Norton & Company
Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
Publication date ‏ : ‎ April 23, 2024
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 8.9 MB
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 362 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1324064589
Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Best Sellers Rank: #13,823 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store) #6 in History of Medieval Europe #10 in Travel Writing #13 in Travel (Kindle Store)
Customer Reviews: 4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars (274) var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
Customers find the book informative, with one describing it as an amazing collection of medieval travel guides and narratives. However, the readability receives mixed reactions, with some finding it a good read while another customer notes it’s too academic for an enjoyable experience.