What famous places have disappointed you?

[mouldyhousemouldylife]

Or a landmark, artwork etc.

I guess mine is Plitvice Lakes in Croatia and Lake Bled in Slovenia. I've wanted to go for years as they both looked unbelievable and magical on photos, but going there just felt pretty ordinary. Very nice looking but I wasn't blown away.

Anyone else been to either? What did you think?

I think the thing about The Tower of London is that its suprisingly small. And loads of bits you can't go in to. I quite liked it, and the Beefeater guide was really excellent. But you really have to use your imagination as its all a bit tidy and manicured.

I also liked Barcelona a lot but we booked an apartment with a balcony in the Gothic quarter and it was pretty cool and atmospheric. I might not have enjoyed it as much in a Radisson!

San Francisco for me too. I don't know why but I was expecting some sort of nirvana and was disappointed to find a standard big city with standard big city problems. We stayed for a week and I did warm to it a bit - Alcatraz was interesting and I liked the Japanese Gardens, but I don't think I would rush back.

Mont St Michel. It's a bloody awful tourist trap. Tiny narrow paths with people pushing to get past each other, tacky shops, over-priced food, no shelter from the elements. Honestly it's much better from a distance.

I agree. But I really enjoyed the guided walk across the bay to get there.

The Burj al fucking Arab. It's all very expensively done but I felt as though I'd died and gone to tacky hell. Plus, the buses full of what is effectively slave labour passing by everywhere we went really didn't sit right with me. The rest of the country is basically huge shopping malls, as far as I could tell after a two week stint.

OTOH, my boss, who was there with me, found it thoroughly enjoyable and returned for a family holiday the following year.

Tastes differ, I suppose.

In terms of previous mentions, loved Stonehenge, Warwick Castle and Notre Dame (though I preferred the cathedral in Rouens), was thoroughly underwhelmed by the Mona Lisa and the David (both fine pieces - just failed to take my breath away).

We used to go there back in the 70s and it was really nice back then. Not hideously busy and you’d see monks padding around (not sure if there are any left). But then most touristy places are mobbed. We found an old photo album of our grandparents who had the wanderlust post-ww2. Photos of them at some major of sites without another soul in sight. Amazing.

Singapore

All of mine have already been mentioned.

I hated New York. In fact, every North American city I’ve been to has been a disappointment. I had to go back to New York for work one time after the initial disappointing trip and spent all my spare time in the Met to make it tolerable. And, I agree that Niagara is an abomination. The whole town should be pulled down, it feels utterly disrespectful to the natural world.

Santorini was basically a Disneyfied version of Greece for American honeymooners who ruined the whole sunset experience by whooping and screeching.

However, I love Venice and go there often, but you need to make sure you get well away from the touristy bits and also don’t go in the summer.

Frankly, I think a lot of you are nuts. I can't imagine paying loads of money to visit somewhere I've always wanted to go and then deciding 'it's a shit hole' or 'boring'. If you're not interested in the history of a place why go and see it at all? Greyfriars Bobby is a little statue of a dog. The Little Mermaid is a little statue of a mermaid. What else were you expecting? Castles, pyramids and cathedrals aren't ruddy theme parks. You have to try and imagine what they were like in the past and how they were built. And writing a whole city off because of the weather when you visited or because there were too many tourists is just daft.

Frankly, I think a lot of you are nuts. I can't imagine paying loads of money to visit somewhere I've always wanted to go and then deciding 'it's a shit hole' or 'boring'.

It's not a choice to be unimpressed by something and obviously you'll only know if you find it shit when you actually go there...? Maybe?

It’s easy, on holiday, to miss the best parts of a place. I live in Boston at the moment and really like the city, always feel comfortable and find plenty to do. However I went to part of downtown that I don’t usually visit (Downtown Crossing) and it was dirty, full of slightly scary people and generally unpleasant. If that had been one of my first experiences of Boston I might write it off as a grimy city with an unpleasant vibe.

The Little Mermaid is a little statue of a mermaid.

This for example is made out like it's much bigger and more impressive than it is. As is the Statue of Liberty. Don't blame people for having high expectations due to exaggerated marketing.

I went to Cannes year's ago and hated it, felt it was tacky, horrid beach. Went back recently and loved the buzz there!
Some of these places like times Square... there is nothing really there... it's the buzz, the fame ...the sense of history, cross road...

Places like Paris.. what's Versailles without knowing some of the history? What's place de la Concorde without the knowledge of the bloodshed...

Venice without Casanova... four seasons...doge's palace, Byron, browning...

I loved statue of liberty but it's size didn't matter too me... again it's that symbol that pulled immigrants from all over the world to American shores, and again that history with France...

Re Venice we went years ago in February. Arrived on boat down misty canal barley able to see building... rattled with cases down abandoned back street's... found hotel...huge red Room,red silk wall paper 😅😅.. canal view... decided to find st marks square in the wee hours.

Deserted, silent magical...

Went onto have 3 amazing days.

On plane home people saying it's minging?

The only part of New York I found fabulous was Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. Food wasn't good and dreadfully overpriced.

Paris - I hated it. I didn't enjoy the vast open spaces and never managed to get my bearings (which I've been able to do in every other city I've visited). Also the city I've felt most unsafe in - we had 3 separate occasions of being approached by people we were wary of.

Hever Castle. I wanted to go for so long but it was so commercialized it looked like something out of Disney.

The Little Mermaid in Copenhagen. Not only is it really tiny, the backdrop of industrial chimneys adds to the let down.

cornelia my experience of Paris is very similar. Never really got the lay of the land in my head, and struggled with the metro system, which is very unusual for me. I generally have a good sense of direction and spacial awareness.

I have travelled quite extensively but never had the urge to visit Australia. Just too far away, too expensive to get to.

Also hated Bangkok. Loved the rest of Thailand, but would never spend time in Bangkok again.

But I think you have made a choice if you come back with only negative impressions of Paris or Barcelona or Rome or Venice. You haven't bothered to look for the wonderful things they all have to offer. It might be be partly because the company you're in, or because of the weather or the crowds, but you make the choice to let those things spoil your visit.

San Francisco.

and yes, I found Alcatraz interesting and I've loved drinking a tea at the Japanese garden. But that's it imo.

I spent 5 days in Paris visiting all the main sights as well as just spending time wandering around the back streets etc. Some of the places we went to were amazing, and I appreciated them. Just never felt comfortable in the city, was for ever loosing my bearings which makes me uncomfortable.
It wasn’t a choice that I didn’t like it, i just didn’t...