BootsnAll Travel Community

RE: http://www.bootsnall.com/articles/08-01/top-10-destinat...avelers-in-2008.html

I completely agree with Jordan being a great destination - I lived there for 4 months and it was a fantastic experience. My family and friends freaked out a little when I told them where I was going, but they got over it after a while

Once I got over the culture shock, I found wonderful scenery and history and very friendly and hospitable people. And the diving is amazing!

I have been to Nepal several times and completely agree that it's a great destination. I also enjoyed visits to both Chiangmai and Buenos Aires. All three are completely different, and I can recommend any of them.

Belize at # 2? 15 years of experience has me screaming “no WAY!!!” – and it doesn’t matter how “pretty” it is or how great the diving is! These are the reasons why not to choose Belize - The exchange rate is fixed forever at 2:1, while it is now 10.8 to 1 in Mexico. Belize is FAR too expensive to get to and to get back from. Chief cause of death: one vehicle accidents caused by bad roads. Chief occupation: Drug smuggling. Favorite hobby: Crime. Crimes of choice: spousal abuse / murder, robbery, rape and murder. Did I mention murder? Starving Guatemalans streaming across the border, armed with machetes and looking for food (Caretaker lost a thumb to that.). Medical care: Poor to none. If you get sick, you must be sent by air to the nearest world class medical center in Merida, Yucatan. Belize is a welfare nation that has developed with a welfare mentality. Belize is a very small country that is much like entering the “projects” in any large U.S. city. Enter at your own risk. If you go to Belize, stay with your group. Do not wander off. It is not safe. Please - Read the online newspapers of any destination you choose. Forewarned is forearmed.

Budapest beautiful - yes. Budapest cheap - no. It might be marginally cheaper than a wealthy euro city such as Brussels, but you still get the organized crime and crappy infrastructure. We paid $100 USD (2005) for a hostel room that had no bathroom (apparently because they close down most of the hostels in winter to make them more scarce). We had a purse stolen via petty theft in the streets and when we went to the police station it took 5 hours to record the incident becasue the server wouldnt load. Im sure I was unlucky but all of these events occured and my friends that had been in the 90's were dissapointed that you can no longer get coffee, cake, and caviar for peanuts...

Want value for money, go to China...take advantage of the deliberate undervaluing of the currency which wont last forever...

Great top 10 list. Never been to a bunch of them. Some reason I want to go to Dubai. Anyone pay for my lodging at that fabulous hotel?

I love my Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The area in Old Town and south of Rio Cuale is where it really is at. Lots of shops, Playa Los Muertos, restaurants, music, art, dance, locals going about day by day, nice lodging. It draws my spirit. People love the parasailing, fishing, hiking, gardens, jungle, tequila factories, dolphins, whales, turtles, bungee, swimming, scuba...wow, a lot to do!

grb

Glad to see Sicily and Jordan on the top-ten list because these are two destinations we'd definitely want to see. Nepal is great. Don't stay in Kathmandu. We went to Phaplu for the Mani Rimdu ceremony in November. Hopefully Nepal will recover its stability. Have to admit, Budapest surprised me as the one 'mainland' European choice. Hey, there HAS to be another European city that beats Budapest - no offense to Budapest.

I think Im gonna use this as my own personal guide for where to go in 2008-2009. I have such a hard time choosing places. Its a very diverse list, I like it. Except for Budapest, overrated expensive euro-cities need not apply.

Budapest -awesome city but don't go during summer. it's not that cheap!

oh and entrance to some museums is just too expensive (i have in mind a certain castle, just a stone's throw away from Heroes Square)

didn't have ANY problems while there though. nothing stolen...but probably that's b/c i can speak some Hungarian.

I've heard abt bad experiences in hotels/hostels b4. I stayed at a friend but this spring I'll probably stay in a panzio...so i'm rather scared lol

nevertheless i still LOVE Budapest. the architecture is magnificent and the place is not overrated at all. just need to plan your vacation and avoid the high season

Szia!

Weird list since half are countries and half are cities. Are they saying the rest of Hungary is so bad that if you go you should only visit Budapest?

Obviously such lists are mainly there for people to disagree with. Like others I was suprised at Belize being number 2. Ok I have not been to Belize myself, but then I never expected anyone to rate it as the 2nd best destination in the world...

My impression of Belize is influenced by the fact that almost every window I saw had burgler bars over it.

I am still completely baffled as to how that list was decided upon. Belize? WTF?

I'm guessing Belize got LOTS of bonus points for being a place where English is spoken (sort of), it is fairly easy and cheap to get to from the USA via direct or Mexico mass tourism flights, and for having a currency that is pegged to the US dollar, making the on-going crash of the dollar less painful for Americans.

It's a pleasant country to visit, but certainly not outstanding in any way.

Bjørn
http://bjornfree.com/

I have not been to Belize since prices increased so dramatically a couple of years ago, but I still think Belize is a wonderful place to visit for what you are able to experience in a short period of time- There are multiple options for jungle tours, several Caribbean areas with snorkeling, SCUBA as well as sailing and intermingled with all of that is the Mayan ruins which are fascinating.