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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

What place/city would you never visit that others love?

271 replies

MoverOva · 28/04/2026 11:12

Paris and New York for me. They don't appeal at all. Not just the amount of tourists but when I've seen of them on tv and videos they don't look attractive. I'm open to being told I'm wrong. I don't like London but would visit if I had to. I've been a few times for shows and sport etc. I always feel grubby after a visit.
I do like some cities. Favourites are Edinburgh and Barcelona. Barcelona is rife with pickpockets though so you have to be on your guard.

My ideal holiday is walking in the lakes but I still enjoy the odd city break.

So is there anywhere that is popular that doesn't appeal to you?

OP posts:
Crikeyalmighty · 28/04/2026 17:39

JHound · 28/04/2026 15:08

Do you mean dodgy experiences?

Yes - my friends with kids who lived there ended up with marauding guys with baseball bats in a supposedly safe compounded area during Covid , and could never go out anywhere on foot - always drove everywhere windows up etc ! She was South African too so it wasn’t naivety but said it was much worse. They came back the following year after 11 years there ,

igelkott2026 · 28/04/2026 17:28

worrisomeasset · 28/04/2026 15:20

Cornwall. It takes bloody ages to get there in the summer and, when you finally get there, the weather is shit. Then it's the interminable drive home again. I'd choose Wales instead. Yes, the weather is as shit there as it is in Cornwall but the scenery is better, its coastal towns aren't as rammed as Cornwall's, and (most importantly) it's a whole lot nearer for those of us who live in the Midlands.

And you have to go through Devon to get there, so why not stop there instead and have a shorter journey. Also agree that Wales is lovely if the weather is good.

MoverOva · 28/04/2026 17:24

igelkott2026 · 28/04/2026 17:22

Gosh North Wales is beautiful.

As for alien, do you mean the language? Everything is in English too and despite what people claim, you hear much more of it than Welsh!

I have family from there. I really need to go. I've been to South Wales.

OP posts:
igelkott2026 · 28/04/2026 17:22

Luckyingame · 28/04/2026 17:06

North Wales.
God, what an utterly alien place. 👽

Gosh North Wales is beautiful.

As for alien, do you mean the language? Everything is in English too and despite what people claim, you hear much more of it than Welsh!

MoverOva · 28/04/2026 17:22

curious79 · 28/04/2026 17:15

You’re not here to be convinced at all otherwise your post would be titled ‘Convince me why I should I should go to Paris or New York’ not broadly ‘pile on to every city you can’t be bothered to visit and have rationalised your opinion based on petty judgements and stereotypes’.

so yes, still yawnworthy. I love Paris and NYC but I definitely can’t be bothered to explain why to someone so closed minded

Aw so I take it we aren't friends? 😉 Don't get so wound up over it. I'm sure the places I've mentioned will get plenty of tourists(and already do) Maybe find a thread that isn't so triggering?

OP posts:
MadCrocShoe · 28/04/2026 17:21

Threads like this always amaze me, so many people writing off entire continents and iconic cities based on preconceptions and prejudice or maybe just a lack of curiosity or sense of adventure. I’ve been to 130 countries (mix of travel, work and living in six different countries so far) and I can genuinely say there’s nowhere in the world I wouldn’t want to go at least once, time and money permitting, and almost all the places I’ve been to I would love to go back to (Scarbados aside 😂).

igelkott2026 · 28/04/2026 17:21

Quite a lot of places. I am not very adventurous. I have noticed that Japan seems to be the latest middle class destination of choice, but how on earth do you get by language wise?

I really liked Singapore - it is such an interesting place. But I can only cope with the climate in small doses!

thing47 · 28/04/2026 17:18

Another vote for Dubai, zero interest.
And I know its not a place but skiing - could never see the appeal and as I don't like heights and don't like the cold, I probably never will!

I enjoy the buzz of New York but my last visit there was on 10th September 2001 and I haven't been able to bring myself to go back yet. Not a fan of LA or Vegas.

MoverOva · 28/04/2026 17:18

loislovesstewie · 28/04/2026 17:14

My son spent a year at university in Japan. He loved it, but he did spend a lot of his time when not studying getting out of the city and into the countryside. He speaks Japanese and went to the shrines and older parts of the country.

Same son who's visited everywhere loved Japan too. He said it feels safe although was surprised by the smoking bars.

OP posts:
curious79 · 28/04/2026 17:15

MoverOva · 28/04/2026 13:03

Tell me what you love about it? I'm all for being changed. The only people I know who've been raved about shopping. I'll have a Google too.

All those yawning. How many threads would there be if all we did was advanced search and posted on those? And I'm all for being convinced otherwise about my choices. I genuinely can't see the appeal of Paris, Dubai and New York but am open to discussion about why I'm wrong, hence posting on AIBU. Although even chat brings out aibi fans nowadays.
I know people who would baulk at walking 10 miles through hills. But I love it. I doubt I'd convince them to though. We're all different.

Edited

You’re not here to be convinced at all otherwise your post would be titled ‘Convince me why I should I should go to Paris or New York’ not broadly ‘pile on to every city you can’t be bothered to visit and have rationalised your opinion based on petty judgements and stereotypes’.

so yes, still yawnworthy. I love Paris and NYC but I definitely can’t be bothered to explain why to someone so closed minded

loislovesstewie · 28/04/2026 17:14

ballroompink · 28/04/2026 16:57

Apart from the usual ones that always get mentioned I feel like the place I have no desire to visit is Japan. People seem to rave about it - and perhaps it is just the holiday photos of people I know who have been there - but nothing about it looks appealing. Someone I know went and billed it as her trip of a lifetime but she just seemed to spend a week traipsing round grey concrete jungles of shops and cafés. The countryside and natural beauty of the country look lovely so why do people spend thousands to trek to the other side of the world to look at grey concrete shops? Absolutely do not get it.

My son spent a year at university in Japan. He loved it, but he did spend a lot of his time when not studying getting out of the city and into the countryside. He speaks Japanese and went to the shrines and older parts of the country.

HeadDeskHeadDesk · 28/04/2026 17:10

MoverOva · 28/04/2026 17:09

My son visited Singapore twice he loved it

Me too. An absolutely fabulous place. I was there 10 days and I didn't want to leave.

MoverOva · 28/04/2026 17:09

Charel2girl5 · 28/04/2026 15:28

Sooooo agree hated it both times I’ve been there. And Paris is a shithole.
a amazing city is Singapore, totally fabulous!

My son visited Singapore twice he loved it

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SwedishEdith · 28/04/2026 17:07

New Zealand is somewhere I know must be beautiful. But, for cost and time to get there, I would think it's easier to go to Norway. The scenery can't be massively different plus they don't speak English (as first language) so would feel more like a holiday.

Luckyingame · 28/04/2026 17:06

North Wales.
God, what an utterly alien place. 👽

Jaddf · 28/04/2026 17:06

ThisSunnyBee · 28/04/2026 16:53

Haha yes , this is exactly it.

Lynn from Bedford has never been further than the out of town Tesco but she'd NEVER go to Paris😅

I didn't know until recently that there were people here that were adults but never had a passport.

SwedishEdith · 28/04/2026 17:04

I never get the hatred for Paris or New York on here. What are people expecting Paris to be like? And we only experienced incredibly helpful people in NYC. Or, when one situation we were in got a bit pushy and jostly, locals apologising to us (we were fine).

Playing the game, I have never been interested in any form of Disney thing anywhere. Nor Las Vegas. I could imagine going there if it was en route to somewhere but some people actually go there as the purpose of the trip.

There are lots of places in the world I half fancy going to but when I factor in time to get there, cost to actually stay there for any meaningful amount of time and sheer hassle of travelling (especially with someone who doesn't really thrive on travel), the desire to go eases off. I wouldn't want the cost and time to go to Japan, for example, but only spend a day in Tokyo.

Doximama2 · 28/04/2026 17:00

India, Morocco.

JohnTheRevelator · 28/04/2026 16:58

I would never go to Australia. Too hot in many places,plus everything seems to want to kill you - sharks, spiders and snakes. Incidentally,why is it that whenever someone who is in Australia comes on the radio,they always start boasting about how hot it is there? We're not all heat freaks,loving 35 degrees! I also have zero interest in visiting Paris. I know it's meant to be a beautiful city with loads of culture but it strikes me as being too touristy.

ballroompink · 28/04/2026 16:57

Apart from the usual ones that always get mentioned I feel like the place I have no desire to visit is Japan. People seem to rave about it - and perhaps it is just the holiday photos of people I know who have been there - but nothing about it looks appealing. Someone I know went and billed it as her trip of a lifetime but she just seemed to spend a week traipsing round grey concrete jungles of shops and cafés. The countryside and natural beauty of the country look lovely so why do people spend thousands to trek to the other side of the world to look at grey concrete shops? Absolutely do not get it.

HeadDeskHeadDesk · 28/04/2026 16:55

KoalaBlue1 · 28/04/2026 16:38

My bucket list is NZ, soon to be ticked off, Canada, Ireland, Scotland.
Wouldn't touch America with a barge pole, likewise rest of Uk.
Then my dream would be to see Broome and the north of W.A.

What do you mean by 'the rest of the UK'? Where do you live in the UK now?

ThisSunnyBee · 28/04/2026 16:53

TerracottaBowl · 28/04/2026 12:36

Because these threads come up all the time on here, and they're just a way of people congratulating themselves on being mentally lazy and incurious, and confirming it by having their own baseless prejudices corroborated by other people's equally baseless prejudices.

Haha yes , this is exactly it.

Lynn from Bedford has never been further than the out of town Tesco but she'd NEVER go to Paris😅

SpringPuppie · 28/04/2026 16:52

Paris
Egypt
Morocco
Marrakesh
Japan
Newyork
And i know its not a country but Disney World looks like hell on earth, so does Las Vegas.

Jaddf · 28/04/2026 16:51

HeadDeskHeadDesk · 28/04/2026 16:49

I saw some internet list of the world's top 20 most dangerous cities the other day and an alarming proportion of them were all in South Africa.

It's absolutely horrendous. Only place I'd go is Capetown.

Miyagi99 · 28/04/2026 16:50

Squirrelchops1 · 28/04/2026 11:16

Australia. Everyone else seems to rave about it but it's so far down my list of places I want to visit that if I die without going i won't feel regret. With the exception of gaining understanding of the indigenous people, I dont see what culture there is there? Similarly nature outside of the great barrier reef. My ignorance is know. Also everything wants to kill you lol
I am fully aware I'm writing off a country 50 plus times larger than the UK in one fell swoop.

Edited

I know what you mean about Australia but they do have a rainforest too! Aswell as the bush (some are into that - not for me) and Tasmania is meant to be beautiful. But I don’t like dangerous creatures and when I flew over it it seemed like 4 hours of orange dust!

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