Places people rave about but you don't really have any desire to visit

[nuitdesetoiles]

I know there's some element of judgement here but just based on what I've heard, seen on TV, types of people who go there, read about..

Dubai.. like plastic fantastic, cultureless and horrifically tacky

Thailand.... Looks like it's been ruined by all the tourists and those full moon parties look a bit dark and sinister

Australia.. some parts look lovely but just seems a bit British and dare I say it racist...

Bali. Although I have actually been there. Just like being at a holiday park but I paid ££££ to go.

The only places I wouldn’t go are those with current shitty humans rights records.

Dubai and UAE for example.

Thailand I thought was absolutely gorgeous. The people are so lovely.

I thought I’d hate orlando and the parks but was persuaded to go and can’t wait to go back :)

Vegas I also loved.

I’m not keen on beach style relaxing though, i prefer places I can wander round all day.

I didn’t like australia, but granted it was 20 years ago so may have changed. Some of the attitudes were awful.

I’ll give pretty much anywhere a go as some of the places I thought I’d hate I loved, and vice versa...

Ski slopes.

Mainland europe - musty, overcrowded poverty stricken landscape with very little to offer. No thanks.
I know, the entire place is awful, isn't it.

images.app.goo.gl/oySy6qXYiDBgRfBMA

@ThePlantsitter

This thread is blowing my mind. You don't have to love somewhere to have got something from going there. Also you might find that actually you don't hate the things you thought you would. That's why they say 'travel broadens the mind'. But... you have to allow it to

I agree. Very narrow minded thread

I was of the impression that 80% of the most deprived areas of Europe were in the UK, but there you go.

Las Vegas just does not appeal.

Dubai....I would rather stick pins in my eyes. Worked in Oman for a year in the late 80s and it was fabulous so nothing against the Middle East per se. But I am very aware of the dreadful poverty and working conditions that makes all the superficial ‘luxury’ possible.

Venice...been twice and that was once too often. Once you’ve oohed and aahed over the sights and done all the outer islands it’s really just an overpriced, cramped shopping centre. Wouldn’t go again even if it was free.

@PurBal interesting you say that about Bali... It's become very popular as a holiday destination round these parts particularly in the yoga community. I've always been undecided. Wouldn't go with the kids anyway, no point doing long haul to places like Bali with them. There are lovely enough places nearer and less of a £££ outlay.

Lidl

😂😂😂 I agree, Aldi much more scenic!

Personally, I'd prefer Iceland...

You can totally do Amsterdam while avoiding the stag-dos, coffee shops and sex shops if that is what you want to do.

I recall one cultural site in the middle of the redlight district and passing some stalls I felt I needed eye bleach after, but otherwise you can easily have an art, culture and restaurants holiday there.

Literally the only pull of Australia for me is 2 friends who emigrated.

It looks so HOT and then the accents & the tendency to put the letter 'o' on the end of words and the men who I assume are all like the knobs in Married at First Sight (that's a joke...or is it?) and, well, maybe if I was promised a cuddle with a baby quokka but really, no thanks.

Oh and Dubai. Again, hot as feck (can you tell I'm a bit ginger yet?) and rammed with vacuous insta twats and business folk. Nope.

In defence of Vegas - I was very resistant, as was the mate I was travelling with, but we flew in on a cheap internal flight aiming to sort car rental and spend a few weeks driving around the national parks.
Booked a cheap motel for one night and, in short, ended up staying a week! We had a BLAST! It's tacky but genuinely hilairious.

@nuitdesetoiles

Maybe I'm not enough of a "foodie" then..

The type of food on offer even in the high end places is not my bag and all the "foodie" stuff is generally about meat and fish which I don't eat. I refuse to pay upwards of £100 for a meal when I can pick up some Street food locally which is, to me, far tastier and satisfying. I've done the whole taster menu/fine dining thing previously, and whilst on the enjoyment didn't justify the cost. A high end veggie restaurant opened up locally and we had the 12 course taster menu, and whilst it was ok I get far greater satisfaction from a decent curry.

You don’t need to be a foodie, there are some very good middle-of-the-road “gastropub” and Bistro offerings in the Lakes. Zefirellis and Fellinis in Ambleside are fully vegetarian, Ghandis is vegan and other places like Priest Hole, Stamp House, Sheilas Cottage, Auradaze and Dodds do great veggie and vegan. Thats just in one little village.. Drunken Duck just outside is also excellent for veggies. No street food anywhere per se, and not much in the way of diversity with regard to world-food restaurants in the villages ie Lebanese but the outlying towns have more to offer. If you’re used to London restaurants you could think the Lakes is crap for food, but perhaps all that’s needed is a bit of research and perhaps travel more than you would in a city.

Dubai - a shopping mall in the desert

New York - noisy and I hate the accent

Thailand - seedy. Sorry but I don't want to watch live sex shows

USA - we have odd people in the UK but they have odd people with guns

Anywhere with bad human rights record

New York never wanted to go

Spain

Absolutely gobsmacked at @Fastedbrownie writing off mainland Europe!
Off the tip of my tongue, I have no desire to go to Gulf states, south America, the Caribbean, Africa, the Far East, India, Indonesia, China, Japan, Russia or any of the post-Soviet states . .but accept that this is entirely based on ignorance and being adventurous, I'm sure it would be perfectly possible for me to have an enjoyable trip anywhere. We have a friend who's a travel journalist, he says he's never been anywhere he didn't like at all.

Duh, for adventurous read unadventurous!

I'm absolutely agog at half these comments. Rarely am I glad to be me

@ItsJustARide I have been to the vegetarian restaurants in Ambleside you mentioned. Ok but not great. Bistro and gastro isn't my bag really. Keswick where we usually stay is very much pub food.

Thank you for the tips re the others, the Drunken Duck was good when we went years ago... If we do go up again in summer I'll check those places out. It doesn't help that we're usually on holiday there with a group of friends who are really into pies and steaks so it's me who has to compromise when we're out for meals.

Dubai as others have said and also any resorts where you are just in a beachy sort of compound and don't get to see the actual island / country

Places that I'm just not attracted to
New York- It looks like hell. I appreciate it may not be though.
Australia - some parts look lovely but the flight kills it for me.
Dubai - no appeal whatsoever.
Paris - I don't why, I've never been but it's always advertised as romantic! It looks far far from.
London - no real reason as I do like a city visit. Love Edinburgh, Barcelona, Warsaw, Krakow and others.
Disney anything is my idea of hell.
Bulgaria - I've looked to book many times but something stops me, I can't explain it.
I'd like to visit Thailand but not the main resorts.

I love many parts of Europe.
I love Gibraltar.
I love Turkey but quieter less busy parts.

@Bloodybridget

Absolutely gobsmacked at *@Fastedbrownie* writing off mainland Europe! Off the tip of my tongue, I have no desire to go to Gulf states, south America, the Caribbean, Africa, the Far East, India, Indonesia, China, Japan, Russia or any of the post-Soviet states . .but accept that this is entirely based on ignorance and being adventurous, I'm sure it would be perfectly possible for me to have an enjoyable trip anywhere. We have a friend who's a travel journalist, he says he's never been anywhere he didn't like at all.

I'm gobsmacked that you have written of 85% of the entire world

I’m obviously cautious about criticising places I have never visited, but Dubai really doesn’t appeal to me at all. My image of the place is too westernised, not enough Arabian culture & food, too much consumerism, too much heat and too many shallow materialistic dickheads. Perhaps I’m wrong.

I won’t be going back to Florida any time soon. Disney & theme parks don’t interest me, Orlando is full of the wrong sort of tattooed, football shirt wearing British tourists and the climate in summer is awful. The Kennedy Space Centre is great and Miami Beach is worth a visit, but I’ve been there & done that. And I don’t fancy bumping into Donald Trump in Palm Beach Wal-Mart, either.

Anywhere where it would be illegal for me (a woman) to have sex with my wife. Or anywhere it would be unsafe, even if not illegal.

I agree with Dubai and Las Vegas looking a bit plastic. I also wouldn’t go back to Los Angeles - it seemed to be a mixture of the plastic, touristy thing alongside very real poverty and alcohol/drug abuse.

I wouldn’t particularly want to go to Disney or similar for more than a day or so, but I can see the appeal if you have the right age DC

I would go anywhere right now.