I was sent to Leeds for work and pleasantly surprised at how vibrant the city centre was. It's a shame so many travellers go from London to Edinburgh and never stop to appreciate the very different culture that is Northern England.
Posts: 66 | Location: Ireland | Registered: 28 July 2005
Originally posted by autumnleaf: Some of the cities on the "not so visited" list are a bit confusing. I mean: Paris, France? I don't know a lot of people who haven't been to Paris.
Well, I haven't been to Paris so it wasn't me, but I definitely am guilty of misreading the question. I thought it was favourite cities, not favourite cities not so visited. I'm guessing the person who nominated Paris made the same mistake I did.
Originally posted by autumnleaf: Some of the cities on the "not so visited" list are a bit confusing. I mean: Paris, France? I don't know a lot of people who haven't been to Paris.
Well, I haven't been to Paris so it wasn't me, but I definitely am guilty of misreading the question. I thought it was favourite cities, not favourite cities not so visited. I'm guessing the person who nominated Paris made the same mistake I did.
The title of the thread is 'favourite cities not so visited'.....?!
For all of you who come to Italy & go to Rome/Venice/Florence & are pissed off with all the tourists... come & see a 'real' Italian city : Torino... what a beautiful city...surrounded by mountains, incredible architecture... great food & wine... no english spoken...
Napier in New Zealand was a pleasant stop. Wasn't expecting much but it turned out to be a nice place to spend a couple days. Someone posted Portsmouth, New Hampshire, US and I'd second that. At first glance it looks "touristy" (local tourists that is) but if you spend time there as I did, you realize its not quite so. There are tons of locals and I especially like the Portsmouth Brewery. If your ever there, go downstairs and play suffle board. Its a blast, especially after a few strong ales.
I'm really looking forward to Halifax, Nova Scotia in a couple weeks. Going there on my honey moon.
I mean, are we going to contribute to ruining these places by encouraging people to trample them? If it's just the BnA folks, that's one thing. And fortunately, the list of "great cities not so visited" has grown gloriously long. But look at all the lurkers on this website. The anonymous. The faceless. The cheaters.
I say they are denied entry to any of these suggestions.
Querétaro, Mexico.
Great Colonial city a couple hours from DF. Amazing architecture. Lively. Rich with history. Music and art everywhere. Friendly people. Almost ignored by foreign travelers, though there are many Mexican visitors.
Posts: 4927 | Location: Michoacán | Registered: 27 May 2004
Siwa, Egypt. An Oasis in the middle of the Egyptian desert, chock full of fresh-water springs, olive and date gardens, and amazing culture. The food is pretty good as well.
It was incredible, truly the highlight of my trip.
I highly recommend to visit Groningen in the Netherlands for a day or 2 (I just moved into there and i immediatly fell in love with the city...). The city center is beautiful and everything is easy to walk. There are a lot of interesting things to see and it has a very vivid nightlife because there live many, many students. It's 3 hours by train from Amsterdam.
Originally posted by Not the first Travis: I almost regret starting this thread....
I mean, are we going to contribute to ruining these places by encouraging people to trample them?
You are right. I take back my suggestion that people whould go to Olomouc. Olomouc is in fact a dump, a nasty horrible place with scowling people and expensive beer and no old buildings whatsoever. If Leif were ever to visit Olomouc, he would write the "don't go" article to end all don't go articles. Any rumours that Olomouc is actually a smaller, friendlier, and less toursity version of Prague are pure fabrication. Lies, I tell you. All lies.
Posts: 66 | Location: Ireland | Registered: 28 July 2005
Not quite unknown cities, but great places to hang: La Paz, Bolivia (Saltena con carne for breakfast) Mendoza, Argentina (giant great steaks and "senior turista" wine for lunch AND dinner, the later not starting until 9PM) Darjeeling, India (finally cool, nobody bothers you and tibetian bread)
Posts: 68 | Location: over the rainbow | Registered: 06 August 2005
Montreal is entirely overrated. What's so great about it? I lot of it is dirty, indutrial and touristy. The Latin Quarter is totally contrived. It is not so much a European city as it is mimicking one.
On the flipside, Ljubjana, Slovenia is the best surprise I ever got. Beautiful, pristine and clean. And virtually no tourists. Plecnic's architecture is amazing, there are lovely churches, a castle and a river that goes through the center of the town. And there is stunning mountain scenery if you go out in the country.
Posts: 3 | Location: East Coast | Registered: 05 October 2005
Sevastopol, guys: beautiful Crimean coastline and mountains, friendly city, Greek and Turkish antiquities, great fun any time of year, overlooked by Soviet planners (except for those pesky Black Sea Fleet warships), excellent wine--and cheap!
Lee
A life well lived must accept some risk.
Posts: 807 | Location: Indiana, US | Registered: 27 July 2005
Although Copenhagen is wonderful, it's crawling with tourists in the summer - so for a change of pace, nip across the channel to Malmo - it has some decent restaurants and a pretty city centre - the castle houses a decent art gallery and museum - it makes a nice day trip - take the train if you can.
Actually come to think of it, it's probably a 'second city' thing - Turku, Cork, Lyons and even Birmingham are great cities in their own rights - just not as well endowed as the capitals.
================ fan-o-the-year - Mwhahahahahaha!
Posts: 611 | Location: Coventry, UK | Registered: 09 October 2005
If you liked Tokyo, you'll like Seoul. And it's cheaper there, although things are not as cheap as it used to be...
And Metz, France is a real charm. I used to go there just about every weekend because it was so close to where I lived in Germany (about an hour and half drive).
Nic
Attitudes are contagious, mine might kill you.--Despair.com
Posts: 639 | Location: Korea | Registered: 05 October 2005
Originally posted by Aqua_Moonshade: My hometown, Seoul, Korea!
If you liked Tokyo, you'll like Seoul. And it's cheaper there, although things are not as cheap as it used to be...
Nic
Yeah. I don't know if Seoul quite qualifies as an unvisited city, but it certainly is a fun place and worth checking out if your in that general area. Great food and one of the cheapest places to have a drunken-passed-out-in-the-street-and-have-no-idea-how-you-got-there episode. hahah.
Seriously though, if you go there, be sure to check out Bongweonsa temple. It's a nice Buddhist temple on the side of the mountain, and then its an easy hike to the summit, where you get a sick view of Seoul! -Jer
Posts: 226 | Location: Ithaca, New York, USA. | Registered: 18 October 2005
Kilkenny, Ireland Strasbourg for the French and German mix. Mamasa, Suluwesi In South Korea: Suanbo, Sokcho (when it's not tourist season), Yangyang (why? but I like it, somehow....), Gangneung, Chuncheon, Kongju, Kyeongju (well, that one is visited a lot....) Puyeo, Andong, Danyang. Silvassa (who the heck goes to Dadra and Nagar Haveli?), India Bijapur, Karnataka
Posts: 11 | Location: South Korea | Registered: 20 October 2005
