Worst 'tourist' places you've visited

[ThunderOnlyHappens]

A little inspired by the school trips thread but I have been thinking about the worst places I've visited in pursuit of leisure. Disclaimer-sorry if you live there/love it. These are not anything other than my experience on that day/time.

There was the time I took a group of patients for a nice country stroll, which turned out to be a lay-by off an A-Road.

Or going on holiday to a small town near Gainsborough and realising that there was nothing to do, at all. We were there for a week!

I generally find something to enjoy in most places. Florence is probably the place I felt most underwhelmed by - it all just felt a bit "Disney" and you barely saw anyone who wasn't a tourist in the historic bits. Food was incredible though!

My favourite places in the whole world are Rome and Paris - I think because they feel like people actually live there!

@growingboys well Devon isn't all a tourist place. Plymouth could never be described as touristy and it's unfair to criticise it's architecture as it was levelled in the war. Torquay is beautiful with some of the warmest weather and low rainfall as it has its own micro climate. Cockington is gorgeous. Ilfracombe can be a bit grey though.

Almost all tourist-class small English seaside towns are startlingly dull and grubby or actively awful by design (Blackpool) or overcrowding (Whitby, Scarborough, ) but you can usually find somewhere pleasant for a sit and look out to sea or a coast walk a couple of miles away. Real cities on the coast are generally fine, in normal cityish sort of way.

Eden Project is acebest if you like a bit of that sort of thing which I do, particularly in bloom, and I imagine it's mind-numbingly dull if you don't but why go? It's not a theme park, it's a plant research/breeding centre.

A lot of the "boring city" crowd need to learn to look on Google Maps or Citymapper etc for highly rated tourist things, in my considered opinion! Works brilliantly for us - loved Crete for example, but without that crowdsourced info we'd never have found the wonderful off-the-track places that make it a delight. Following the standard tourist recommendations was blergh, apart from Samaria Gorge.

For those who hated the groping in Egypt, please don't imagine it's only on the street. I've stood at their airports and watched male/female security staff employed to "tap down" male/female passengers - all good so far

Until an attractive western woman needs to be searched that is, when the male steps forward, arms outstretched and almost slobbering over his opportunity

I think many people are disappointed in the Eden Project because it is so expensive, and so they expect more. If it was much cheaper, I think more people would be happy with it.

its not that rome isnt beautiful its the people and traffic i dont like-same for paris and it smells of piss

"anywhere Spanish speaking with a Brit expat 'community' needs to be blown up and tipped into the sea"

I really liked Venice. It’s got a weird fakeness about it which is odd but I enjoyed it. Don’t think I’d go back but glad I’ve been.

Also liked Amsterdam but went with kids and didn’t go out late or go to the red light district. I did feel unsafe walking back to our hotel with pre teen dd though

Fucking hated Lake Garda. It’s the only place I’ve been to in decades where people have been arsey about us being a mixed race couple. Also traffic and general snobbery and loads of grumpy bastards.

I found lanzarote really depressing.

I went to Cancun many years ago and hated it. I was young and did no research on it apart from "is it close enough to visit Mayan stuff". Which it was, and that was great. But Cancun itself was horrible. Just Americanised restaurants, bars and clubs, huge resorts and private beaches.

"Also traffic and general snobbery and loads of grumpy bastards."

We only explored the lake by ferry, so the roads didn't bother us. And didn't meet and snobbery or grumpy people. We stayed in Garda and Sirmione BTW.

Australia, most of it though there are some beaches that are ok. Trying to think of some.

Australia is the size of the mainland United States. Have you actually seen "most of it"? And those "okay" beaches are consistently rated among the best in the world. Just sayin'.

London is definitely the worlds best city though. It's got everything going for it - there is something interesting around every corner.

Disagree. I prefer New York, if we're comparing the world's biggest cities.

Cannot understand which part of New Zealand people went to if they think it's like Dorset or that Scotland has more stunning scenery.

Only Marrakech really - got lost in the souk, felt nobody cared or wanted to help, really quite panicky. (Also got ripped off with food we didn’t ask for in the big square at night.)

Love Amsterdam, Paris, Rome (apart from the Vatican museum shuffle ), New York & London.

Maybe I just have low expectations and things turn out better than feared! We do tend to go out of season, which helps.

We only explored the lake by ferry, so the roads didn't bother us. And didn't meet and snobbery or grumpy people. We stayed in Garda and Sirmione BTW

It was mainly the racism tbh

That's awful Jam. Was it mainly from Italians?

I went to St Lucia about 20 years ago and didn't like it at all. We couldn't go anywhere without being hassled and the beaches (with one notable exception) were very crowded, small and underwhelming.

There was a very strong undercurrent of hostility towards tourists, which was disconcerting. To balance that, we did meet some lovely, genuine people too, though.

Paris - a filthy , stinking place, constantly pestered by beggars and con artists. Felt I was going to be pickpocketed any moment. I just couldn't relax. Constantly checking I had my valuables. Strong smell of piss everywhere and rubbish piled up. Rude people of all nationalities. Actually putting their arms around my head to put a camera in front of my face to take a photo of the Mona Lisa. The room was crammed and people pushing and shoving like they were at the Boxing Day sales! Armed police patrolling the Eiffel Tower put me on edge. I suppose it's a good thing but it made me on edge that something was going to happen. I was so happy to return to the safe bubble of Disney. You step out those gates though and it's a different world.

Epcot Centre. The world location section was nothing more than a few very stereotypical recreations of tourist destinations and a load of themed shops. African section - buy some bongo drums and a tribal mask, Chinese section - buy a coolie hat and some chopsticks, British section - buy a teddy bear dressed as a beefeater and a Union Jack umbrella. Yawn. I can't even remember what was in the futuristic section of it, it made such a minimal impression on me.

It's weird. I've been to Paris 4 or 5 times as an adult and never felt unsafe in the slightest.

Also never noticed any smell of piss!

Niagara Falls are amazing but the town itself not so much. Very tacky and and not one decent shop to buy anything. It was a very long wait for the train back to Toronto. Niagara on the lake different story a lovely lovely place.

I think many people are disappointed in the Eden Project because it is so expensive, and so they expect more. If it was much cheaper, I think more people would be happy with it

This I agree with.

To those who snottily imply it’s because people think it will be a theme park, its not because I thought I was going to Alton towers

Another one for Sunny Beach, Bulgaria. God it was gross. Moscow was horrible - felt very unsafe and people stared all the time.

People always look surprised when I say this, and I wouldn't say it was the worst place I've visited, but I was thoroughly underwhelmed and bored with Copenhagen. I had probably expected too much of it, but I found it expensive and boring. It's also sold as being a certain way, but going there over a weekend suggested that there isn't much more to it than your average British city. Did I visit all the wrong places?

Oh and Capri. Got off the ferry and it was like trying to walk about at a festival. Sat down for lunch and when we got the bill realised we had been charged €7 for a bottle of water.

Many of the places people have described have been destroyed by the sheer numbers of tourists. I have read many places are trying to reduce numbers and only really want affluent people who will spend a lot of money. Not people who just get off a cruise ship and wander around and spend nothing.

There was a sad programme on R4 the other day about how Rome was being taken over by organised crime - old traditional restaurants being bought for a large amount of money and then turned into cheap pizza joints to launder drug money.

You have to ask if tourism is really that beneficial to countries or just the tour companies, in many of the poorer countries the all inclusive resorts mean people spend little or nothing locally just boost the profits of multi nationals.

London has certainly not been improved by the vast numbers of tourists and cheap as chips tourist shops and eateries.

Butlins in Skegness for a 70's weekend.
Very weird atmosphere. Everyone in fancy dress, dancing and drinking from 9am. It felt like a swingers convention. I left at midnight on the second day.

uggmum you should have known better.😜