Places you’ve been which have been insanely busy

[Forgottenmyphone]

Friends have just come back from Santorini and they said that in one town (I can’t remember the name), they were literally queuing to walk around. They couldn’t actually walk, but just shuffled along behind the people in front. It’s my idea of hell. My parents said similar about the old town in Barcelona and parts of Lake Garda. Where have you experienced this?

i came on to say Cairo

Lake Garda in August. Hideous place. Tried to get early flights home but failed.
Westminster a couple of months ago. Big mistake getting off the Uber boat there.

Carcassone in August. And that was 25 years ago.
Still glad I went because it is lovely.

Abandoned an attempt to visit Tintagel once - complete nightmare.

St Ives on a lovely summer’s day!

more predictably, Venice and Dunrovnik. I’d not go near either in peak season.

Shinjuku in Tokyo has to be one of the very busiest places of all but its regular folks going about their daily lives not tourists milling about, which makes it somehow bearable

Unfortunately there doesn’t seem to be much of a choice. As everything is ticketed you still have to queue with the hundreds of others that have that allocated time even the early slots.
Best bet is actually go last thing I‘ve found for queues. People don’t like going in late.

Yeah the get up early and beat the crowds trick is over.

Just been to Sistine chapel busy of course but well managed and didn’t spoil the enjoyment. Lake Garda was fabulous we must have gone to a quiet town. Buzzy and lively and not over busy plenty of sunbeds at beach lake and availability for walks ins at the many restaurants.

My tip for Rome in summer is do the walking sightseeing after dinner in the cool of the evening. Still people but far fewer then end with a rooftop cocktail. Perfect evening with our teens. In the day it was sweaty hot mayhem.

Ah, thanks for the tip!

Venice, Edinburgh, York

@TheaBrandt1 first holiday with me with H -the old club cantabrica cheap coach trips ( we were pretty skint) - 6 nights in sirmione in a very crappy tin box mobile home - ah those were the days!! Fond memories of Garda

Wow, I’m shocked. We spent a lovely time there a few years ago (pre- Covid) and it was practically empty as of course it should be. Sounds like it’s been discovered! 😱Or maybe we were just lucky.

Like another pp , I keep away from central London’s museums and galleries in the summer. I always feel sad that tourists can’t properly see the beauty of London because it’s so busy when they go (contributing to it of course!)

My busiest place was leaving the O2 for the station after a Pulp gig this year! We were corralled like cattle

That was the other super- crowded place. Omg, it was heaving - and hot!

Guess when we’re going? 🙄

Oxford was unpleasantly busy when we went (summer 2007).

We so wanted to go then! I’m glad you grabbed the chance to visit such a magical place

I agree with this … tour to the Sistine Chapel… being hoarded at great speed with a mob past precious artworks. It was horrendous. … didn’t scream though.

Cambridge - went a couple of weeks ago and had to queue on the pavement. Was absolutely packed with Asian tourists. Couldn't believe it.

Also St. Ives. Would never return, although I'd like to see the art museum.

Columbia Road Flower Market - I'm not sure I actually saw any flowers.

We went to Venice in late February about 6 years ago and it was amazing and quiet - once away from St Mark's Square. And we may have been lucky with the weather but it was high blue sky and warm enough to eat out at lunchtime.

Lindos, Rhodes. We were there for a couple of weeks and it is stunning but maybe 3 days a week the cruise ships drop off. We used to get in a cab to different beaches, it was a nightmare and don’t even start me on the poor donkeys

I've lived and worked in several places mentioned here. The busy times are really irritating but none of them are packed all day, every day. A wet Wednesday in October is usually fine. That's the approach I really try to take when I go places now - find the wet Wednesdays!

The thing with London is that the crowds stick to the main streets so going one street up or down will give you peace and quiet - eg rather than walking along Oxford Street walk along Brook Street.

We went to Santorini last year. Oia is fine before and after the cruise ships. Akrotiri was empty. I loved it.

Bath Xmas market is a lot more spread out now, and I have found it much nicer.

Dubrovnik was fine last time I went there (about 5 years ago) but we took a trip to the waterfalls, and they were ridiculously crowded.

Germany, Cologne Christmas market, the markets and town shopping areas were incredibly busy, worse than London when it’s rammed.

Oh goodness yes, and we went in March. All the insta idiots taking selfies (autocorrect made that selfish!) And not even looking at the paintings. One girl was getting irate at dh because he was doing his oblivious old gadgie thing studying every pic and reading every caption and spoiling her picture.