Most disappointing destination/holiday

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For me, it was the Norwegian fjords. Not because they weren’t beautiful (what we saw of them, they were!) but because it was cold, rainy and foggy when we went. One town known for being very pretty was ridiculously busy and there was a cruise ship blocking the view from the restaurant we booked. We knew the prices were going to be high, but expected good quality… when you pay over £100 for a train ticket, you expect there to be toilet roll and soap in the toilets!

where have you been that was disappointing?

I have a few, but don't understand some on here either.
Cuba - we went for our honeymoon in 2000 - we were 'advised' by travel agent that it was a suitable destination. Havana was great, very interesting to wander round for a couple of days and the hotel was OK (Nationale), but not way up to European 5* standards. Then we went to an all-inclusive on a resort, def not for me. The whole thing wasn't 'right' - set up for tourists but obviously Cubans having a shit time of it.

Paphos - Blackpool in Cyprus. Hotel was lovely but the resort - meh. The Roman ruins were interesting but the town wasn't. Even 'old' Paphos up the hill, where it was less commercial, was dead! Wish we'd gone somewhere else in Cyrpus but everyone raved about Paphos.

I don't get the hate for Malta though, we went recently and there was too much to do! DH wanted to relax more so we did one day pool, one day sightseeing, but could've gone somewhere every day. Wasn't keen on the resort we were staying, I knew it would be tacky but we booked very late so there wasn't that much choice. The hotel was great though which is why we booked that particular place. Def a place to go if you're interested in history. I wouldn't go in July/August though, it was just getting too hot at the start of the summer in June.

I was also disappointed in Paris the last time we went which was about 6 years ago. I used to love it but it seemed to have got more dirty and tacky and I won't rush back again!

Exactly! It’s funny when people visit world-famous places and then act shocked that other people had the same idea

To PPs who mention Tenerife. Definitely not our experience in Del Duque area Cost AdejeTenerife. Clean with a beautiful white sandy beach & amazing hotels. Great boat trips & entertainment. The new shopping centre is lovely.

I'd love to go to Malta. My daughter was there for 3 months working on the new Gladiator film. She absolutely loved it for the history and the people, and she felt very safe there. She's travelled extensively with work, so has many stories of heaven/hell destinations.

@KobeghGreen you should definitely go - but avoid the really tourist areas - and don't go in high season. Ideally I'd go when it's warm enough to sunbathe but not too hot it's uncomfortable to get about, and we were just getting in to that part of the year. I reckon May/September are good months.

We don't eat rabbit so didn't have the stew, but the food is good. Plenty of fish, salads, pasta, pizza.

Absolutely. I've never been anywhere for a whole month so can't comment on that part, but Malta is one of those places where if you like that kind of thing, it's exactly the kind of thing you like. There is just So Much History.

Japan for me. I just didn't get it. I really regretted going.

Antalya because of the harassment.

We are just about to book Japan. Can you say what you didn’t like about it?

Made me LOL. I can just imagine 😂

Australia has history, but its not a particularly positive story (like most places it is rather grim)
Some of the indigenous art is really wonderful and my biggest regret from the trip is not taking a piece of art home. I do love architecture and the whole of Australia felt totally lacking but that will be down to being "new" and not having the amazing old buildings, castles, cathedrals that you have elsewhere. The cities in turn have a very dull appearance and no beauty to note.

Lots of beautiful beaches (but after a couple of days it becomes just another beach)
We loved some of the national parks, Daintree and a lot of places that we visited off the beaten track, but for us nowhere in Australia was so memorable that we would need to return. Speaking to a lot of people living there its just the beach and the shopping center really for them, most work long hours and don't get to enjoy the beach as much as they would like.

We spent quite a bit of time travelling there, it is very very overpriced, aware wages are higher but even speaking to many many locals on our travels they struggle with the cost of living since covid, we had prepared well for the costs and had a good budget but we just felt ripped off for the most part when comparing the cost vs quality of meal/service etc. We didnt have any memorable meals (we are foodies so its a big part of a holiday for us)
People were friendly on the surface but we ended up in a situation where we needed assistance and people were very unbothered to help.
There is a massive crime rate, its not spoken about for some reason, a lot goes unreported, not spoken about on the news as we would be used to at home, but we felt very unsafe at times in certain parts and witnessed lots of really quite scary anti social behaviour, house/car breaks ins are also really really common. Theres definitely a sleazy/seedy undertone to a lot of places and misogyny is rife in parts there is so much domestic abuse. There is also a crazy high alcohol/drug dependency problem, we have friends and family living throughout Aus from Perth, Darwin, Victoria to Gold Coast so we probably seen/heard more of what was happening locally than what the average tourist would.
Again, we had some wonderful days out there but I couldnt recommend it again as a holiday destination unless you want to spend thousands upon thousands more than you would visiting pretty much anywhere else where you can find equally good beaches. We did really enjoy Kalbarri, the national park off Esperance, Katoomba and the whole blue mountains area, Daintree and Cape tribulation and Margaret river. We also experienced some great snorkelling/scuba, its not that we didnt enjoy our holiday because we did but we just felt underwhelmed for the prices we paid.

I went to Tokyo and loved it. Really helpful friendly people, calm & civilised, great food, I felt very welcomed.

It was a culture shock though not in a bad way. Mainly because the city is so vast and densely urbanised - I am used to London and still found it quite overwhelming.

Iceland - though the issues were no ones fault ...

Blue lagoon was closed (volcano activity)

Didnt see the Northern Lights (unpredictability of mother nature )

SO expensive - could not afford it for more than a few days

I managed to get the hire car stuck in a verge of snow .

However, the people were very friendly (various strangers tried to get the car out and in the end a lovely farmer pulled us out with his tractor)

@EverybodysinthehousetonightMemphis was terrifying. We were only there for a night (I was staying in Nashville) and although Beale Street was great fun, it was like a military compound - both ends of the street were literally barricaded and guarded by armed police to keep the locals out. We stopped at a gas station and were being eyed up by a group of men the whole time; it was really intimidating.

Why are people going to Agadir expecting traditional Moroccan architecture or markets or lots of historic things to do? Most of the city was leveled by the 1960 earthquake & it completely destroyed the Kasbah. 2 minutes of research prior to booking would tell you this.

Skimmed through this thread and honestly, the biggest disappointment seems to be people themselves. Too many tourists, too little awareness.
Don’t book a beach holiday if you hate lying on a beach. Don’t choose a cheap AI resort owned by a faceless chain, then complain the food isn’t cooked to “British standards.”
And maybe don’t write off an entire country because you once visited its Jaywick equivalent.
Travel’s not a vending machine—you don’t punch in “sun” and get home comforts with palm trees.

Do your homework, manage your expectations, and maybe, just maybe, the destination isn’t the problem.

LA, I've never felt so unsafe in my life and I've been in quite a lot of countries, some generally considered 'unsafe'

@witheringrowan ,because people don't realise that resorts within countries vary a lot. They also don't seem to consider that a resort might look perfect in a brochure/web site, but the reality might be different.

From my minimal knowledge of the Moroccan beach resorts, they are ideal for surfers, so are likely to be windy.

''@SouthernNights59 · Yesterday 22:26
Classic MN - a tourist complaining about the sheer amount of tourists!
Honestly, reading threads like these it's obvious travel is wasted on so many people.''

Agreed!

And also the people who seem to object to 'poor people' and 'dirt' being visible in places like Cuba, North African countries or parts of Italy or who complain that Las Vegas (a place purely set up to make money out of gambling) is soulless.

And those who seem surprised that big cities have a higher crime rate and that some parts might feel unsafe.

The complete lack of common sense and the entitlement are staggering.

No wonder some of the locals are not too keen on tourists.

Me too, fabulous city to visit.

So it seems it’s not actually the place but the tourists who ruin it…

I think the only holiday I've had that I didn't enjoy was egypt. DH and I went years ago for winter sun in a resort. I felt generally uncomfortable whenever I was alone. Pool was freezing. I got an upset belly. It was all inclusive but there was nothing I wanted to drink as wine was disgusting, I was worried about the unclean water in any ice and I don't drink beer. The only good day we had was a boat trip with scuba diving

Jee thanks what great advice. None of us have ever thought to research a country or culture before spending tens of thousands of pounds and using valuable annual leave 🙄

Wow really. I love Venice, the many amazing small squares away from the crowds, the beautiful buildings, so much art and just magical.

Harder to find great restaurants, you need to seek them out and not go for pizza. Pasta, especially seafood pasta, is more the thing in Venice.

Speak for yourself. Many don't.

The behind the scenes tours of Venice and what actually happened there is far more interesting than the usual landmarks there. I have been six times and find something new each time!