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?

I have several friends who have lived in Israel and one who is there now. They all say that it's very much a Middle Eastern country with lots of shouting and hassle. My friend who lives there describes it as the rudest country on Earth.

It is far from wealthy as it is perpetually at war or preparing itself to be at war.

Crikeyalmighty · Yesterday 20:35

Egypt - all got amoebic dysentry and the hassle was another level.

Oh God, I sympathise 100%!

I got it when working there and the doctor said, "Don't buy fruit from stalls, Carrefour is for white people." Metronidazole made everything taste rank for weeks afterwards.

This really surprises me, I spent a week in Marrakesh and was really surprised at how safe I felt walking around in the evenings alone. Agree it is very hot though...

I wonder if I have " brown privilege" in Turkey. I can pass for a local. So can DD. Both of us have travelled fairly often there with no issues. Love the country and was not hassled except to buy carpets which I can tolerate. I can see it is much harder for blonde or white women.

I am treated fairly badly at all immigration especially US so I will take this small win!

Turkmenistan. Once is enough.

Fascinating but the lack of freedom was stifling.

I have always loved visiting the USA but the tipping culture puts me off massively.

Dubai. Tacky, shallow and soulless with no culture and no respect for human rights or the environment.

Tunisia where the food was abysmal, I got leered at by the men and there was a dead scorpion of some sort in the pool for two days and no one bothered to clean it.

Brussels. Boring AF.

I’ve flown to Boston many times (a Dsis in the area) and have to say they’re much better than they used to be - maybe because of the dreadful reputation their immigration officers used to have just about everywhere.

IMO it was at least partly down to their belief that everyone was a would-be illegal immigrant - why wouldn’t they be? Of course America was so much better than whatever country you were from!

On one occasion we were merely transit-ing through the US, but you can’t, or certainly couldn’t, just transit - you had to enter officially and leave. The immigration officer was so rude and aggressive - he evidently took it as a personal insult that we were only transit-ing through his wonderful country!

How many countries have you actually visited in Africa to make such a sweeping statement?

England.
Particularly Clacton-on-Sea

Americans tend to think that everyone is desperate to live in their country.
I visit America quite often as I have close relatives who live there.
I don’t have any desire to live there at all tbh.

Turkey - did a day trip there back in my early 20's and i was harassed the whole time. I vowed never again.
Thailand - again back in my 20's and the sex industry was everywhere. I imagine it's worse now. I was glad to leave and get away from it. Lots of interesting places to see though but I wouldn't return.
NYC - too busy, too many drugs, so expensive and just not for me.

Bratislava, Slovakia

Every single person we met was as miserable as sin! It was a very cheap place to visit but I am in no rush to ever go again. If you’ve been to almost any other city in Eastern Europe then they have nothing unique to offer you there.

I also didn’t enjoy Amsterdam that much, it’s just so tacky!

Morocco - the men were AWFUL. Never felt so angry on a holiday.

@Bunny44

"There's also a lot of talk about harassment. One thing I do like to do is try my best to blend in"
You can't blend in as a woman, in lots of places. I can cut off from it, but you can't avoid it. Being nearly 60 I can remember when parts of Greece wasn't safe for women.

Although, some of these are about a lack of research (nothing but hotels in Cape Verde, poverty in Pakistan, well yes?) and just not believing the reports of extreme misogyny. There's been numerous newspaper reports on the rise of it and incels in Japan. As for the ME and Africa needing to sort out misogyny and rape culture, the governments have to reward the young men with something, so they allow them to have unfetted access to and power over women.

None of the animals you stated are cuddly in any way. Fairly vicious despite their appearance and you'd get nowhere near a joey. The mother would never allow it.

May I ask which part of Wales?

Turkey. The absolute constant harassment was off the scale. I was young and with another female friend at the time but it was awful. We dressed conservatively but that didn't help at all.

Japan. Just overall disappointing. Nothing special, quite unwelcoming and a long way to go.

Egypt - on the main tourist but you’ll be harassed constantly by people trying to seek you something for 20 times what it’s worth. Off the tourist drag you’ll be in real danger as a woman, even if travelling with a man. The history is incredible but it’s not somewhere I’d ever go back.

Let's not pretend that there aren't issues. I'd say Ghana is getting better. The shopping areas of Morocco/Johannesburg etc. But there's a level of threat that some people (not me I love North Africa, visit South because of family) which stops them from considering it as a holiday destination.

Egypt and Tunisia both for the same reasons - you're unable to leave the resort without being harassed, the food was awful and both times I had some kind of excruciating stomach illness which lasted for weeks after getting home.

Just one example, a Swedish friend’s teen son spent a year in the US, in order to perfect his English. Apparently he was repeatedly asked whether he didn’t prefer the US to Sweden, and found he started having to say he did, or the person would be offended. But it certainly upset him to have to do it, in order to keep things sweet.

Labelling whole countries as rude is odd.

@Drawahardline we had an amazing trip to Amsterdam with our kids. Stayed in an Air BNB near the zoo, did some galleries, there's a stunning park called Den Bos that you can hire tandems and cycle round. We stopped for pancakes and there's a city farm where you can feed baby goats, so cute. We also got the train to the beach one day which is half an hour from the city and beautiful sandy beaches.

Tenerife. Been three times and found it ruined by tourism. Couldn't even find Spanish food. I realise there are parts of the island that are more Spanish and I did visit them.

@whalesonthebus a friend was at the same hotel at the same time as you.