To ask which country you would not visit again and why?

[travelcat]

I love hearing about travel experiences and am interested in knowing about places you have visited that you wouldn't go back to.

AIBU to ask which country you'd avoid in the future and what specifically made your experience less enjoyable? Was it due to culture, safety, or something else?

It's not always good to listen to some randomers on the Internet. For example, Turkey is mentioned alot here in a negative way however i love the place. I would say see for yourself. It's only one night.

Dubai and Cape Verde. As has been said, Dubai is a soulless hellhole chock full of shopping malls. If you want to shop in next then better to nip to your local one rather than fly somewhere tax free and pay a third more.

Cape Verde, bored and wind blasted the whole week I was there.

I have traveled to most of the places being talked about, loved most of the,. I realise most North African countries are difficult for women, I’m not female and therefore don’t have the same issues.

Thailand can be very sleazy but you can avoid the sleazy bits even in Bangkok. Koh Samui was lovely 30 years ago but has been overdeveloped.

I am surprised no one has piped up that this thread is Islamaphobic yet as a number of Muslim majority countries are mentioned. It interesting that someone mentioned that harassment maybe partly a woman's fault (?) for not wearing clothes associated with cultural norms. I guess if you wear a headless and gown you may have a better experience in these countries but aren't you really bowing down to the patriarchy in a way unpalatable to women?

personally I wouldn't visit a Muslim majority country out of choice for the reasons given by pp which is a real shame as they probably are some architectural delights. I simply don't want to absorb a culture which degrades women as a holiday experience.

Agree with the poster who mentioned Thailand. There really is a very sleazy undercurrent, particularly in Bangkok. You don't have to go to sleazy places to encounter that either. Young girls with old men at the airport, luxury hotels etc.

Mexico scares me as well.

Wow this is the most blanket ignorant statement I've read on here in a long time !

@honeyrider stopover in Singapore instead, lovely airport and safer imo. How exciting- oz is a wonderful place.

None. Happy to go anywhere.

So no visiting
Dubai
Indonesia
Egypt
Turkey
Malaysia
Jordan
among others, then?

I have never bothered with Dubai as shopping interests me not at all but Egypt, Turkey and Malaysia were all fabulous travel experiences for me. I would go back in a heartbeat. In Turkey and Malaysia I travelled solo with no trouble.

I just think of you look at the above countries and the views of women and gay people I would have my doubts. I would think there are some fascinating places to visit but is it worth paying yourself open to assault? I don't think I could truly feel comfortable in a culture where I was a second class citizen.

I guess men can behave with relative impunity as the police will not intervene which makes it all the more scary. I also don't believe women should have to dress apprortiately to hide from the male.gaze, thank you. Again just one opinion.

Dubai - used to live there. Singapore - used to live there. Singapore is ok I suppose for a holiday if you like that sort of thing.

The Azores ( I know it's not a country but a region). Backwards in all the wrong sort of ways.

I have felt much safer in Malaysia and Turkey wearing shorts than in Trump's America as a brown person. No guns at least.

Also there are plenty of conservative non Muslim majority countries too.

Me too, everyone else seems to love it. I loved the scenery but that was all.

And your comment is bang on the money. I live in Thailand absolutely no where near the known areas as described by the poster. There are a great many beautiful places in Thailand. I live rurally, I am the only white face for 6km, the only foreigner in my village (everyone knows me and stops for a chat ( I speak Thai so there’s no language barrier). The nearest big town is 34km away followed by two more at 90 and 104km respectively. There is nothing more pleasurable than plucking a fresh coconut or banana from the trees in your garden. For me it’s absolutely paradise. The country I hated and would never go back to is Kuwait filthy rich Arabs constantly bullying the real workers, Bangladeshis.

Love Thailand. Found it quite easy to avoid sex shows amd farangs with young girlfriends.

If one is sensitive to stray animals then of course most of Asia is ruled out except Singapore which is super boring. Most of the world does not have equal rights for women or animals or gay people. But I don't really want to spend my life travelling only in Northern Europe.

I might point out a little known fact: Homosexuality was illegal in super santitised Singapore until quite recently. Though perhaps only de facto, not de jure.

I am the same. Now live in Southern Europe and am only really interested in what is in abundance, on our doorstep.

Can't really imagine doing the long haul treks of my youth again - even if 5 star!

I don't recognise some of the descriptions of some places here, but in spirit of the thread I would say India, and for reasons covered by pp.

Cities, Istanbul and Cairo for the leering men. I felt harassed to the point of simply wanting to leave. I wonder how many women miss out on seeing so much of a place due to lecherous fucking men!!

I meant de jure not de facto. Need coffee.

Mainland Spain. Just come back from our first visit, loved Madrid but had tyre stabbed in Valencia and found a lot of people in Barcelona to be downright hostile. Vegetarian food very thin on the ground for my DD.

Israel - by far the rudest people I’ve ever met. Only went to Eilat though so possibly better elsewhere.

Dubai - great hotel but the prices 😳. Also hated seeing the migrant workers building in the just excessive heat. Only there for 2 days and was bored.

To finish in a better note, love Canada, India, Italy, Scandinavia (although mosquitoes in Finland in June were relentless). New Zealand beautiful, Zimbabwe, Mauritius lovely.

Fuerteventura. The coast was pretty but I find rocky, arid landscapes dull after 10 minutes. It wasn't horrible just not for me.

”except Singapore which is super boring”

I have lived in Singapore twice, for a total of 11 years. Believe me, it’s no where near as boring as the UK. Beaches, great food, lovely people, work hard/ play hard, lots of nature and people from different cultures who get along, and mix with each other.

Much better than successive corrupt governments, massive taxes, worrying about your DD’s going to a concert or about getting stabbed when you go out. Now that’s all really tedious.

@RedHotChilliPreppers I can see all that to live in- have lots of friends there- but purely to visit, I think there are more exciting countries nearby.

A friend of mine has dual UK/US citizenship and whenever he travels to the US on his US passport the immigration staff are very friendly and say "welcome home sir!".

Most of you should just stay home. The world is wasted on you.

Seriously, this is a really depressing thread, filled with ignorance.

Egypt, lecherous men constantly trying to touch you especially my poor blonde friend.
Similar experience in turkey but really only in markets.

Shame how most of our reasons are lecherous or worse men 😒

Also Lanzarote, just full of typical loud English tourists.

I agree, I always tip - my dd works as a waitress and I despise people who don't tip, but in the US it is shocking. Service charge set at a certain percentage and then in the bill, tips are set at a certain percentage - when I said to the waiter, no, please remove the 20% tip because I always tip 10%, the waiter removed the tip altogether and when I left 10% on the table, he ran out of the restaurant after me, shoved the money at me and said 'you clearly need this more than I do'. In front of my dc.