My only personal thought is to use as many resources as you can to plan. A lot of places have Tripadvisor forums as well as other old school forums or other pages on the Internet where you can get deeper options than many guidebooks can provide, as well as other opinions of many other people. The biggest issue with Rick Steve is that a single opinionated guide is misinterpreted as a bible. I don't think one single guidebook suffices that well these days.
I have not traveled in Europe for a while, but in most places I have found it fairly easy to escape the crowds. Most of the crowds focus on the top spots; usually it seems like the crowds fade considerably even by walking a short distance a way.
It helps some to have some activity in mind other than "see stuff take pictures", something that fits your interest. Sure, some of these activities can also be crowded, but there is a better chance of much of the crowd being locals.
I have not traveled in Europe for a while, but in most places I have found it fairly easy to escape the crowds. Most of the crowds focus on the top spots; usually it seems like the crowds fade considerably even by walking a short distance a way.
It helps some to have some activity in mind other than "see stuff take pictures", something that fits your interest. Sure, some of these activities can also be crowded, but there is a better chance of much of the crowd being locals.