Rick Steves' Europe - outstanding PQ

[kstuart]

For anyone who might be interested in a half hour travel show to fill those extra periods in your evening, Rick Steves' Europe on HDNET (9422) is recommended.

First off, the PQ is outstanding, the HD camera that is used by his cameraman is clearly state of the art (for a couple of years ago anyway). You can see this by comparing to the following travel show on HDNET - "Smart Travels". While Smart Travels is HD, the PQ is clearly a level or two below the window-like quality of Rick Steves' Europe.

In terms of content, Steves does a good job of balancing obvious tourist sites with interesting little-known spots. He clearly has a great love of history, and often visits sports of historical and artistic interest.

The show can be seen M-F at 10am ET as well as showings on the weekend.

 

[Sicemdawgs]

This is a great show. "Switzerland's Jungfrau Region" was a really good one.

Unfortunately, I have seen all the episodes they play. They are all from 2004. Hopefully, they will get the rights to some new episodes very soon.

 

[kstuart]

This is a great show. "Switzerland's Jungfrau Region" was a really good one.

Unfortunately, I have seen all the episodes they play. They are all from 2004. Hopefully, they will get the rights to some new episodes very soon.

This is not true. They are currently showing episodes from the "2006-2007" season. Today's episode (Milan) shows "New." in the Guide with an "original air date" of today. Of course, Guide listings info is often wrong. But the last few episodes say "c2006" at the end. From ricksteves.com : (the episode you mention is referred to as "Best of Alps")

Rick Steves' Europe TV Shows

Season1 — 2000-2001

101. Portugal's Heartland
102. Paris: Grand & Intimate
103. South England: Dover to Lands' End
104. Heart of England and South Wales
105. Caesar's Rome
106. Germany's Black Forest and Cologne
107. Scotland's Islands and Highlands
108. Surprising Bulgaria
109. Rome: Baroque, After Dark
110. Eastern Turkey
111. London: Royal and Rambunctious
112. Slovenia and Croatia
113. The Best of Sicily
114, 115 & 116. Travel Skills Special (three episodes)
Season 2 — 2002-2003

201. Venice: Serene, Decadent and Still Kicking
202. Venice Side-Trips: The Best of Veneto
203. Florence: City of Art
204. Siena and Assisi: Italy's Grand Hill Towns
205. Cinque Terre: Italy's Hidden Riviera
206. Amsterdam and Dutch Side-Trips
207. Prague and the Czech Republic
208. (HD) Dublin
209. (HD) South Ireland
210. (HD) The Best of West Ireland
211. Berlin
212. (HD) Germany's Romantic Rhine and Rothenburg
213. (HD) Munich and the Foothills of the Alps
214. (HD) The Best of the Alps
Season 3 — 2004-2005

301. (HD) The Majesty of Madrid
302. (HD) Highlights of Castile: Toledo and Salamanca
303. (HD) Normandy
304. (HD) Belfast and the Best of Northern Ireland
305. (HD) London
306. (HD) Highlights of Paris
307. (HD) Belgiums
308. (HD) Provence
309. (HD) French Riviera
310. (HD) Poland Rediscovered
311. (HD) Budapest
312. (HD) Lisbon and the Algarve
313. (HD) Sevilla and Andalusia
"Classic" Shows — 1995-1999 (re-released fall 2005)

101C. Alps of France and Switzerland
102C. Alps of Austria and Italy
103C. France's Alsace
104C. Spain's Costa del Sol
105C. Copenhagen and Ærø
106C. Stockholm and Helsinki
107C. Oslo, Bergen, and the Fjord
108C. Northwest England
109C. Great Side Trips from London
110C. Athens and the Peloponnese
111C. Greek Islands
112C. West Turkey
113C. Central Turkey
114C. Istanbul
115C. Egypt
116C. Israel
Season 4 — 2006-2007

401. (HD) England's Bath and York
402. (HD) North Wales
403. (HD) Edinburgh
404. (HD) Naples and Pompeii
405. (HD) Italy's Amalfi Coast
406. (HD) Milan and Lake Como
407. (HD) Tuscany's Dolce Vita
408. (HD) Italy's Great Hill Towns
409. (HD) Vienna
410. (HD) Salzburg and Surroundings
411. (HD) Special Episode: The Making of Rick Steves' Europe
Rick Steves' European Christmas — Nov. 2005 (PBS)

1 hour special
90 minute virtual pledge special
Viva la France — March 2006 (APT)

90 minute virtual pledge special

Unfortunately, HD-Net is not showing the "Making of" episode - which I was hoping would have some info on the HD cameras, etc.
HD-Net finishes the 2006-2007 episodes on Friday, June 1st, and then on Monday, June 4, they have a new schedule, with an early morning showing and a late morning showing, starting at the beginning of HD eps with Dublin again. According to the list above, 30 of the shows are in HD, and he does roughly a dozen a year. The recent ones that are dated 2006, say "filmed in April" and "filmed in August", and the blog on his web site states that they are in Spain filming new episodes right now...