Destinations that turned out to be surprisingly good

[Pluvia]

Salamanca. On a trip through Spain we randomly stopped there for a night at Salamanca and loved it. Inexpensive bars and restaurants, lots of locals, no tourist hotspots — so much so that we spent the day looking round and stayed a second night.

Cardiff. A lovely, bustling, buzzy city with a beautiful river, park, castle, shopping, cafes and a harbour and history. I'd gone for the weekend to visit an old friend, ended up moving there.

Lucca. So beautiful and lots to do and see.

South Holland - went twice to Duinrell theme park and loved it. Great food, beaches, people.
Hanover - we were visiting friends stationed in Paderborn and flew into Hanover so stayed for a few days. Such a nice city
Adelaide
Newcastle

Loved Cardiff and Llandudno. Revisiting this year.
Lake Garda, beautiful scenery and so laid back.
Washington and SAN Diego.
I love Venice and the Grand Canyon.

Riga, La Rochelle and Liverpool!
Pompeii - I knew it was a town but didn't expect it to be the size of a town! Streets and streets of it. The site was too big to see in one day. We hired a private guide which was worth every penny.

@OVienna

Grand Canyon. We splurged on a helicopter ride into it. Breathtaking, proper "Wow" from me. Loved it.

It's the Grand Canyon for **'s sake. Everyone knows what to expect. One of the wonders of the natural world. Of course it was breathtaking.

This little thread is specifically about the less well-known places that no one raves about and yet deliver in spades.

Another Croatia fan. Visited Dubrovnik, Korcula and Split and enjoyed them all. Good weather, lots of history, good food.

@Iamthewombat

Loved Egypt and was blown away by the Pyramids, Luxor, Aswan, and all of it.

Were you expecting them to look like a Romanian council estate? Why were you surprised that the pyramids and other world heritage sites were impressive?

Love the energy and bustle of Hong Kong and the junk trips to outer islands.

Unlike most people who go to Hong Kong for peace and quiet, eh? What an eye opener!

Loved the Angkor Wat in Cambodia- the temples

Yes, well most visitors to Angkor Wat hate it, of course.

Love NYC- the Met, the Guggenheim

What a surprise! Considering that most tourists would never consider visiting NYC or going to those museums. Kudos for going off the beaten track and finding that those places were ‘surprisingly good’.

What a strange and needlessly angry response. In another thread people mention hating all these places because of the crowds, including NYC. I just think the sights make up for it so I put it on this thread. And yes, there are places off the beaten track I could mention but I didn't realise it was a competition. Birmingham is hardly off the beaten track!

Northern Finland - so much snow. Properly magical.

No, Janis, this is specifically a thread for people to give others recommendations for lesser-known but lovely places. Not for listing all the world-famous places they (and millions of others) have been to.

I think well known places can still fit the "turned out to be surprisingly good" bill though. In fact quite a lot if the places people have quoted here have been better than expected very much because their popularity has led to low expectations. Those of us who were pleasantly surprised by places like Lanzarote and Mallorca have been so pleased because we found things we liked despite their masssive popularity, not because of it. So I think it is fair enough to include mainstream tourist destinations. There will be people reading who wouldn't consider such places because of their reputations and it us good to hear different opinions.

Brussels!

I thought it was going to be a bit dreary with EU buildings and a bit ' spot the restaurant'..couldn't have been more wrong.

The Grande Place in the centre of Brussels is amazing, and all the streets off it have lovely bars, cafes and restaurants. Loads of statues and museums to see, quirky cinemas and shops etc.

Two other things stand out..for a European capital it seems not to have attracted the English stag/hen /birthday party crowd, and it's really easy to get to with cheap flights and trains.

Nice one @HalfCakeHalfBiscuit

Totally agree with Salamanca though it does get overrun with language students in the summer holidays (my DD was one of them a few years ago). Also love Seville and Malaga (city bit) in Spain.

Rotterdam - so much better than Amsterdam!

Closer to home I love Belfast, Liverpool and Glasgow.

@BaggaTDoubleTroubleDoubleG What is the Japanese Michelin star restaurant called? We are thinking of Canaries soon and this could sway our choice as to which one!

I enjoyed Detroit a lot more than I expected.
It has some seriously good museums and a vibrant food scene.
Indianapolis was a lot more fun than I expected as well.

Ok Pluvia, lesser known places. Most of mine are in Asia

Belur, Halebidu and Hampi in Southern India. Temples like you have never seen.

Penang in Malaysia. Lovely little beach town to bum around in.

Tiger's Nest trek in Bhutan. Actually all of Bhutan.

Ephesus and Pamukkale in Turkey.

@Chocaholic9

Cardiff is a terrible shithole, or at least it was when I visited.

Rest assured Cardiff feels the same about you.

@oncemoreunto

I enjoyed Detroit a lot more than I expected. It has some seriously good museums and a vibrant food scene. Indianapolis was a lot more fun than I expected as well.

Would love to go to Detroit.

St Albans, loved it.
Verona, so perfectly Italian.

Thanks for all the Liverpool love 😘

For me it has been:
Lanzarote - as per PPs it is beautiful
Sunny Beach - loved it despite what others say . The people were so friendly and we visited a local old town which was beautiful
Sheffield - went with work a few times and it was lovely
Barmouth - lovely beach

Kotor Bay in Montenegro is stunning. There are some little villages around the bay where you can idle your time away with a view, spending not a great deal of money. Avoid the opposite, very well built up Tivat on the other side of the peninsula. It's a bit of a haven for the wealthy.

@Slinkymalinky03

Khazakhstan

Where is Kazakhstan?

I loved County Donegal.
I remember sitting in a deserted beach and looking out at the wild sea and sky.
Not a tourist trap. I hope to go back one day.

The famine village at Doagh is well worth a visit. Very informative.

Where is Kazakhstan?? Why ask such an odd question?

"Where is Kazakhstan?" is a regular round on Richard Osman's House of Games, which always exposes the staggering geographical ignorance of the celebrity competitors, even ones you would have expected to be quite well-informed.