Karl Baedeker 'father of modern tourism'. In 1846, Baedeker introduced his famous 'star' ratings (for sights, attractions and lodgings) in the third edition of his "Handbuch für Reisende durch Deutschland und den Oesterreichischen Kaiserstaat" - an idea based on the Murray guides star system. This edition was also his first 'experimental' red guide. He also decided to call his travel guides 'handbooks', following the example of John Murray III. Baedeker's early guides had tan covers, but from 1856 onwards, Murray's red bindings and gilt lettering became the familiar hallmark of all Baedeker guides as well, and the content became famous for its
Baedeker Mairs publishing group, were merged and housed together in Ostfildern/Kemnat as "Karl Baedeker GmbH" with a branch in Munich. The ownership of the new venture was split down the middle between Langenscheidt and Mairs. In 1997, Mairs Geographischer Verlag, now known as , became the 100% owner of Verlag Karl Baedeker, along with all rights attached to Karl Baedeker's name and firm. The new English Baedekers produced by MairDumont dispensed with the "Allianz" logo in the title, with the German editions doing the same in 2013. This marked the beginning of a new era in the appearance and content of