Unexpectedly interesting tourist attractions

[StillCoughingandLaughing]

Just thinking about it because it came up in my ‘On This Day’ on Facebook… a few years ago, I went to Stockholm, and someone I’d met just before told me I absolutely had to see Vasa. (It’s a perfectly preserved 17th Century warship, for those of you who, like me then, haven’t heard of it!) He said it had been a recommendation from a friend and he would never have thought of going otherwise, but found it fascinating.

He was absolutely right. I’d never even heard of it, but was so glad I went. So now I’m wondering, what other ‘hidden’ or underrated gems should I see?

@MintyMabel

Maybe a bit dark to some but the 9/11 museum in NYC is fascinating, obviously very very sad but I learnt so much. Could have spent all day there listening to recordings and looking at all the displays.

Great museum. Not exactly a hidden gem.

Ooops sorry missed the hidden gem part 😂

@StillCoughingandLaughing

Just thinking about it because it came up in my ‘On This Day’ on Facebook… a few years ago, I went to Stockholm, and someone I’d met just before told me I absolutely had to see Vasa. (It’s a perfectly preserved 17th Century warship, for those of you who, like me then, haven’t heard of it!) He said it had been a recommendation from a friend and he would never have thought of going otherwise, but found it fascinating.

He was absolutely right. I’d never even heard of it, but was so glad I went. So now I’m wondering, what other ‘hidden’ or underrated gems should I see?

What else is there to do in Stockholm...

Hillwood Estate Museum and Garden in Washington DC.

Loved the emirates airline sky liner experience in Greenwich only 3.50 tv that tells you facts and take a 10-15 min cable car over the river it's great also apparently in Waltham stow on the Victoria line is the worlds largest neon sign museum

The Wells Fargo Museum and the Cable Car Museum in San Francisco are both free. The cable car museum is in the building where the cables are driven.
The Museum of the Mountain Men in Pinedale Wyoming, fascinating.

The Postal Museum in London was surprisingly fascinating and the Roman Museum in Ribchester, Lancs is tiny, but a real gem if you're in the area.

Good to see the House of Marbles love - its basically a massive gift shop with a wall of the biggest marble run I've ever seen.

Also - the Bayeaux tapestry in Reading Museum. Full size replica - albeit censored for Victorian eyes. No nudity!

It’s great to find so many other museum lovers on here. I always seem to see threads where people ask for things to do in places I’ve been and then add “not museums, we’re not interested in them”, which I can’t relate to.

My ultimate obscure museum visit was the miniatures museum in Mijas in southern Spain - not sure if it’s already been mentioned. It’s just a kind of large trailer/shed like structure but because everything inside is tiny there’s loads to see! It’s. Stuff like things written on a grain of rice and fleas in clothes, with magnifying glasses to look through. Didn’t have DC at the time but kids would adore it.

The mentions of cliffe castle are making me Misty-eyed - it was my local museum growing up and we went countless times. I don’t remember a cafe and I’d love to go back and see how it’s changed.

Gilmerton Cove in Edinburgh.

About 15 years ago there was a great book called 'Bollocks to Alton Towers' (with a sequel unimaginatively called 'More Bollocks to Alton Towers') about this sort of unusual and often gently enjoyable visitor attraction. I wonder how many are still going - some have been mentioned on this thread.

My contribution is Langham Dome, near Holt in Norfolk. It's a concrete dome, and looks extraordinarily of place on the edge of a typical Norfolk village. In WW2 they projected footage of flying planes onto the inside of the dome, and trainee anti-aircraft gun operators had to practise identifying them and shooting the enemy aircraft.

@OooPourUsACupLove

Jerash in Jordan. It isn't obscure or anything, just not as well known as Petra. When we went there were about 10 other people in the whole site. It's amazing, whole streets of Roman and Byzantine ruins - you can wander into the foundations of shops and there's a church which is about 3 churches each built on top of the earlier one.

We went to Jerash too. Amazing for the kids and so empty compared to Rome!

Somewhere I really want to go back to is Earth Station Goonhilly. We visited way back before we had DCs and found it really interesting.

PPs have already mentioned other favourites of mine - The Tank Museum, The Horniman Museum and Reading Museum.

Ostia Antica near Rome. It's like Pompeii except nothing terrible happened. It's so quiet (unlike Pompeii which is heaving) and you can wander around imagining people living their lives thousands of years ago without feeling sad or guilty. It felt magical.

When I finally got to Pompeii a couple of years later, having wanted to go all my life, I saw one of the casts of the dead bodies just after we arrived and felt nothing but dismay the whole time we were there, although of course I had known the casts were there, I just didn't expect to feel so upset.

@SummerSazz

Oradour sur Glane in France. This is their write up and sounds really not like a great day out but it's fascinating and the atmosphere incredible. Everyone was just silent and taking it in

On 10 June 1944, the village of Oradour-sur-Glane in Haute-Vienne in Nazi-occupied France was destroyed when 643 civilians, including non-combatant women and children, were massacred by a German Waffen-SS company.

@SummerSazz I read a good historical fiction book last year that partially has this event as a feature. It’s called The Alice Network by Kate Quinn. It’s set in 1947 and around the real life Alice Network of women spies in WWI. It’s fascinating spy craft that jumps between two eras, WWI and post WWII. I highly recommend it.

www.goodreads.com/book/show/32051912-the-alice-network

"The mentions of cliffe castle are making me Misty-eyed - it was my local museum growing up and we went countless times. I don’t remember a cafe and I’d love to go back and see how it’s changed."

@MrsBunHat it was in the glass conservatory bit- the pavilion?

I think the conservatory itself has been added since I was there!

Can't see the point of a pencil museum!

@TwoLeftSocksWithHoles

Can't see the point of a pencil museum!

Maybe draw a line under that suggestion then? Or erase the memory of it?

@lavenderlou

Paestum in Italy. Amazingly well-preserved Ancient Greek temples about an hour south of Pompeii. Had never heard of them but happened to drive past on a trip.

Seconding this! So much better than the acropolis with only a fraction of the tourists. Also good pizza & ice cream nearby!!

Love this thread. Lots of ideas. The museum of brands sounds like my sort of thing.

I’ve heard good things about the Wensleydale creamery

@TwoLeftSocksWithHoles

Can't see the point of a pencil museum!

Yeah better write that off as a suggestion! 😜

@mum2jakie you’re sharp this morning!

Margate shell grotto!!!

The centre for computing history in Cambridge. DS wanted to go when we were there for a uni open day and I loved it. Very hands on, I even beat him at pong