I hated Torremolinos...anyone else?

[PinataHeeHaw]

I've heard great reviews about Torremolinos, but it was concrete and more concrete. More foreign eateries than traditional Spanish restaurants and tavernas. I only ventured in the town centre and didn't see the beach front. The town centre could've been one in the north of England to be honest. People looked miserable. I prefer further down the coast, Estepona and Marbella and gorgeous Málaga. Luckily, it was only a one night stopover.

Where have you been that you've been disappointed with?

I loved Porto, I thought it was absolutely gorgeous. I liked that there were some slightly rin down and tired areas in the main tourist centre. It made it feel more real. Sitting at a river front bar in Gaia looking across the river to Porto and the stunning bridge was one of my favourite ever city break experiences.

I thought Berlin was exciting and fascinating and just wonderful. So interesting how differently people see places!

@ShinyAppleDreamingOfTheSea yep I agree- that’s why I stuck up for Benidorm earlier in the thread- I’ve had some great tapas and meals on the poniente side of town which is more Spanish, fantastic beach, nice marina bit and it’s easy to get out on train to Altea, Alicante etc - plus it has several big waterparks, safari etc - the mature Brits on scooters thing tends to be a long winter season thing as many go for cheap but long breaks for better weather and to stop paying uk heating bills!! I’ve had some very fun times as my grandparents lived there for many years. - and yes I love places like France, Tuscany, Greece too -

I was so disappointed in Malta. Went on the recommendation of several friends. People were friendly but yes lots of building…including in our hotel which was a nightmare! Food very poor and we were unlucky with the weather.

We loved our city break in Porto!

Malta will be lovely once it's finished😄

Very, very disappointed with Nashville.😐

@Tooty78 can I ask why? always wanted to visit

I liked Nashville but it is a party town

Surely it’s about doing your homework! Surely everyone knows some resort towns are fairly horrible. They can be avoided. However it’s not difficult to find pictures and honest reviews of places. Above all: be discerning.

NY has attractions that rise above its grubby exterior and it has wonderful things to see. I have had occasional disappointments with hotels: trees obscuring a view in China, a building being demolished opposite our room, also in China, and once a rat in a room adjoining ours, in India, but overall generally happy with locations and no disappointments with cities and what we have seen.

I was disappointed with Bali. I know it sounds ungrateful but I don't know, it just wasn't as amazing as I expected/hoped. Maybe that's the problem when somewhere is hyped up.

Back to OP, I didn't mind Torremolinos/Benalmadena. I guess it harks back to nice holidays I had in places like that as a child. We stayed in Benalmadena for a week when DD was a baby. We weren't looking for a cultural experience, we were looking for a week by the beach with good weather. We enjoyed walking round the Marina. We walked along the prom to Torremolinos and it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. The beach was nice and clean, we found somewhere on the front to sit and have food.

A few people have mentioned egg and chips. As a student I had a Spanish boyfriend who was from Andalucía and when we visited I can remember his father taking me to one of those roadside restaurants they have and saying they did the best egg and chips I would ever eat- and they did, the chips were amazing. It wasn't in Torremolinos though, and, just to add, I've been to Spain many times over the years and eaten some amazing traditional Spanish food, but I will never forget that egg and chips!

Same with the Maldives. Beautiful beaches, yes but too hot to be on them for a large part of the day, little else to do and fish most nights because there was very limited fresh food.
A week would have been recharging. Unfortunately, we booked 3 🤣

I had a friend with a 3 week honeymoon in the Maldives. Idyllic beach front/over water villa, beautiful views, peace. Perfect ‘sun sea and sex for 3 weeks.

On returning she said ‘sun…sea…too bloody much….and with three weeks even the sex had dried up!’ 😆

I don't think I have ever been anywhere with no redeeming features - there's always been something that I have enjoyed about everywhere I have visited but there are places I definitely wouldn't be in a hurry to go back to. New York is one of those, as is Washington DC. I was also somewhat underwhelmed by Niagara Falls and found Cannes rather dull. New Dehli is somewhere I've glad I've seen but I don't think I'd choose to go again and I really don't understand why so many people love Liverpool. But I honestly can't think of anywhere I've actually hated.
I also think that things like the weather, who you're with and the circumstances of your visit affect how you view a place. I might feel more positive about Cannes if I'd not been on crutches when I visited for example!

@MrsAvocet I do totally agree with your last paragraph- for instance when I took my son by myself for his 18th to Benidorm we had a blast doing karaoke, tribute bands at beach front bars, fun stuff round the pool, my H on the other hand would have totally hated it .

I worked in film sales so Cannes is a bit like Milton Keynes to me but my kids insisted on holidaying there for a week and actually I loved seeing it from a different angle - designer shops, beaches, great restaurants, gorgeous scenery, places to visit and the Brigitte Bardot vibe of the old town.

On the same lines as Bali / Maldives, I thought Tulum (Mexican Riviera) was very disappointing. I loved the rest of the Yucatan (Chichen Itza, Merida, Campeche, even Cancun) but Tulum was packed with tourist paraphernalia despite selling itself as more boho / non-touristy than Cancun, very tacky and the Mayan temple on the beach looks a million times better in photos than it does IRL.

I also thought Sydney Opera House was a bit small and dirty so ner.

I had my appendix out in Benadorm so I don’t have the fondest memories of the place

You're really not. I hate it too. Occasionally I end up having to spend a day there at the end of a work trip and I just stay in the Met museum all day (though, tbf, if you have to pay $30 to enter an art gallery, you're going to spend the full day in there, and not a minute less).

Me too.

We have an apartment just along the coast from Benidorm. You can be down beside the beach in the evening and a van will pull up, out jump a couple of men and clean the entire area with hosepipes. Followed by a small digger which then cleans the beach area. You would not get that in the UK. Most resorts here are filthy.

we liked toremolinos as a early spring break. amazing apartment overlooking the beach. you should have walked along the beach front which as others have said is clean, sandy and has lots of older spanish people on holiday. restaurants were good - lovely ones on the beach BBQing sardines. lots of spanish youngsters eating at the weekend. parakeets nattering to each other.

sorry but i wouldnt go back to malta even if there werent floods and rain for two weeks, like last time

@ghostyslovesheets I had my gallbladder out as an emergency in le clinic - so didn’t go back for 20 years!!

@FKAT I know what you mean - we used to do midem every year so just associate it with rip offs!!

I'm a bit geeky so always research where I intend to go, and know what I would love and what I would hate, including my choice of accommodation. So there have only been few mistakes.

Agree with pp re Granada . The Alhambra is spectacular but the town is weirdly forbidding.

Didn't like Brussels, apart from the moules frites.

Melbourne. I failed to take into account my love of truly historic buildings. In European cities and towns. I always head to what is or was the medieval heart of the place. Sit in an ancient church and smell the polish and the incense and admire the genius architects who built these places.

Obviously no such thing exists in Aus and I failed to take into account this lack when planning my trip. Highlights were Uluru and some parts of Tassie.

@Words Brussels is mainly grim -