"Discover Salem: Your Guide to the Witch City" by Ron Martin

                                               I just picked up "Discover Salem:  Your Guide to the Witch City" by Ron Martin.  This book is readily available on Amazon for a little over $10.  If you have any interest in Salem at all, this is the book to get.  I totally wish that this book would have been available before our first trip to town many years ago.

AND....  this is a simple, fun to read, honest travel guide.  In fact, I would love to see more travel guides written in this style.

"Discover Salem" is separated into chapters about what you will want/need to do while you are in town.  There are separate entries on shopping, getting around, the witch trials, ghosts, Nathaniel Hawthorne, places to stay, etc.  In each section, Ron discusses all of the current options (though, he notes, businesses come and go in Salem constantly), and he tells you what he thinks about each one.

He's careful about his recommendations too.  He knows that some people may be on a tight budget- so he notes the hidden places to find cheap eats, and he also openly discusses some of the more economic hotels- some might pass on them, but they might be perfect for the traveler watching their pennies.

Ron is not a local, but he is an established expert tourist on the town- he makes his pilgrimage yearly in October.  October is a very busy month for the Witch City, as MANY visit at this festive time.  The author devotes an entire section to surviving during that crowded and chaotic month.

Ron talks a lot about his favorites (tours, souvenir shops, restaurants, hotels, witch shops, etc) but he knows that the perfect time in Salem for one reader, might not be the perfect time in town for another.  He makes suggestions for the history lover, those interested in ghosts, witches, or seeing filming locations.  He knows that what I want to see while in Salem will likely be a bit different from what another might want to experience.  

Oh, he also lets you know all that neighboring Danvers has to offer as it has major ties to the events of 1692 too.  Sadly, Danvers is often neglected by tourists (and travel books), but it packs just as much of a witch trials/historic wallop as Salem!

I really enjoyed this book and plan to keep it around for reference before my next trip.  It gets my highest possible recommendation!