BootsnAll Travel Community

I cast my vote to counter piecar's... that the beach is boring.

It is a great example of human smarts. Catch a few sharks, and watch the surfer a hundred yards down the beach…

Then again, I am biased… I haven’t been surfing yet.

Amen to Egypt. I couldn't agree more.
we were on a semi-organised tour, and that didn't stop the touts. we were a co-ed couple. that didn't stop the touts. we shouted at them in Arabic to leave us alone, and that sort of slowed them down.

anyone notice the smell in Egypt? it wasn't until we got to Jordan that I realized just how much the smell in many parts of Egypt bothered me. I think it was the wood that they burned in their fires, it just had a really acrid smell. it could be that they burned a lot of garbage, too.

cool old stuff, but if you do some research, you'll find equally cool, and much less touristed and touted places elsewhere. Jordan and Syria were way cooler, had equally cool old stuff (ok, so nothing really equals the pyramids and grandeur and 'how the hell did they do that'-ness of the pyramids and other ancient Egyptian stuff, but...), much more relaxed environment, greater access to stuff, fewer people...

Meh. won't go back to Egypt.

Gee, I've been to plenty of places I didn't like and I haven't even traveled that much. I lived in Texas for 25 years and hated it the whole time. I'd rather be in Russia than Texas.

As far as visiting....I went to Wales for Christmas a couple of weeks ago. Just hated it. It didn't help that I was visiting someone else's relatives and it rained sheets and gales for over a week and every business in the country was closed for 5 days straight. Blek. I'd never go back to Wales on a bet. Didn't like the UK much in general, the *nanny* state.

Other places I haven't liked....I'm with the poster about beaches. The beach is a bore unless you're 19 and look really cute in a bikini. Nothing but sand up your butt and in your picnic lunch, jellyfish in the water, and it's always way too frigging hot.

I also didn't like Helsinki. Despise LA. Sochi on the Russian Black Sea was smelly and depressing. Victoria Island BC, totally overrated. Moscow.

I'm sure Washington DC would be on my list but I'm savvy enough never to have bothered going there. Everybody know it's just about the worst dump in America.

I'm always sorry for foreigners who spend a bunch of time and money and visa hassles going to America and want to see Washington DC. They always think they've been duped and mislead. They expect a suave and exciting World Capitol and they get one big, ugly, bad neighborhood. It's really sad to hear them tell of it.

The Mall of America is so OVERRATED! I live in Minnesota, I even worked at the Mall for 5 years [Shudder]. I don't understand why tourists come to the MOA?! It's a giant mall, and yet some how people think it's different and exciting.

Sydney, Australia

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Originally posted by Sophie9:
Gee, I've been to plenty of places I didn't like and I haven't even traveled that much. I lived in Texas for 25 years and hated it the whole time. I'd rather be in Russia than Texas.

As far as visiting....I went to Wales for Christmas a couple of weeks ago. Just hated it. It didn't help that I was visiting someone else's relatives and it rained sheets and gales for over a week and every business in the country was closed for 5 days straight. Blek. I'd never go back to Wales on a bet. Didn't like the UK much in general, the *nanny* state.

Other places I haven't liked....I'm with the poster about beaches. The beach is a bore unless you're 19 and look really cute in a bikini. Nothing but sand up your butt and in your picnic lunch, jellyfish in the water, and it's always way too frigging hot.

I also didn't like Helsinki. Despise LA. Sochi on the Russian Black Sea was smelly and depressing. Victoria Island BC, totally overrated. Moscow.

Have you been anywhere you have actually enjoyed?

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Have you been anywhere you have actually enjoyed?

I know where you're coming from here but I can see the other side too. It SO depends on if you are free to do as you please at your destination or if you are somehow constrained. For example, if I was without a car in LA, I would find it miserable there. With a car, it is great. If I was in Amsterdam with someone who only wanted to do museums and I had to join them, I would not like the place. Which I really do BTW.

In many places I've been constrained due to work. Forced to stay in one certain area or needed to go to bed before the nightlife started, no days off etc. and it ruined the whole experience for me. Other times, actually many times I just plain didn't like the place.

When I get to actually go on "vacation" whereas I choose where to go and what to do, I almost always have fun, but there have been a few duds there too.

I can't subscribe to the "anything new is cool" deal.

I think the question had more to do with the fact that the poster complained about a ton of places, including ones she had NEVER been to. Kind of invalidates the argument when you go on and on without justification. She didn't say whether or not she had freedom, just a laundry list of places she didn't like (again, whether or not she had been there).

I think Sky's question is an honest and good one.

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I think Sky's question is an honest and good one.

Me too. I was just sorta using it to point out the other side of the coin. Maybe cause I'm miserable at the moment in Ponce.

I have to disagree with anyone who hates on New York or the Bay Area. Spend a little time in them and you'll understand. Really.

However...

Spend as little time in Vegas and LA as possible. Both for your wallets sake and your long term sense of well being. DC blows too.

Ixtapa, Mexico. It all felt so fabricated and built-up, solely for tourism. It's not hard to get out of there, of course, and there are very cool places to check out within a few hours' drive, but Ixtapa itself? Boo.

I've been to Toronto twice. And while I actually stayed in Hamilton we went to Toronto often. It was a lovely city, but terribly boring. Maybe I was just missing everything. I enjoyed my walk through the U of T campus and I looked up at the CN tower. (Not brave enough to go up) Other than that it just seemed like a city where people live and work. Not many tourist type places. Things people would be interested that aren't from the area. Now, those of you that are Canadian or love Toronto if your willing to buy me a ticket I would be willing to give the city another go with you as my guide.

quote:

Originally posted by Dangermode:

Spend as little time in Vegas and LA as possible. Both for your wallets sake and your long term sense of well being.

Going to both in March, for the first time. Now I've got a challenge to enjoy myself! If I do, I'll let y'all know how I did it.

The most overrated place Iv'e been to has to be Nassau, Bahamas. I should have spent more time on the less travelled islands and skipped Nassau all together. There were hoards of cruise ship folks pouring into Nassau every day and heaven help you if you were anywhere near the docks. It was like being caught in a stampede of bargain hungry tourists. We stayed at the Wyndham (had it's own beach...big deal) and when we ventured onto the Radisson's beach (next door) they made us leave!

Wow, I'm really really surprised by the nominations here. Las Vegas and NYC in particular. I guess I'm curious about the expectations of Las Vegas. I personally expected lots of lights, lots of casinos, and lots of food. And Las Vegas has that in spades. As for NYC, I'll never forget coming off the subway and walking into the main terminal of Grand Central Station. And then walking out onto 42nd street, hearing the honks of taxis, people in overcoats everywhere... it was everything I thought it would be.

Anyway, I'll agree with those who have said Venice. So...dirty. There's this smaller area nearby that you take a ferry to that has a bunch of colorful buildings, I forget the name - that was much more interesting.

Years ago (like maybe 28?!), my brother and I spotted the town of Double Trouble on our New Jersey highway map. It was maybe 40 miles away, mostly on county routes. We decided biking there and back might be a fun way to spend a summer day. The name of the place really intrigued us. We'd had plenty of practice getting into trouble, but "double trouble..."

Well, if it hadn't been for the map and our knowing that the intersection of two tertiary routes was the location of the mythical sounding place, we would have missed it.

Outside of running into a hailstorm 80+ miles in (we'd gotten lost in the forest adding 20 or so miles to the roundtrip), it was still a pleasant enough schlep through the Jersey Pine Barrens -- not even "single trouble" though...

Another vote for Egypt here. If I had gone on an expensive tour, maybe I'd have different feelings - but as an independent traveler I felt like I was constantly in combat mode. I saw some cool things, but overall it wasn't a pleasant experience. It's actually the first country I've been to that I actively disliked. Maybe once the mafia dictatorship falls the country will relax a bit.

Though, to be fair, I liked the West Bank of Luxor and the Sinai interior. It wasn't all bad.

London!

honorable mention to Paris and Amsterdam. Frankfurt is awful- but I don't think its rated highly so I cannot consider it overrated

Philadelphia. Small, dirty, few points of interest.

And this is from someone who lives in a similar city, at least in terms of size, geographical location and historical significance.