Countries one doesn’t consider but should

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that multiple people have said Slovenia. DH has Slovenian heritage and FIL was born there; it is high on our list of places to travel to in the next few years but I keep hearing about how it has just exploded in popularity in the last decade or so! Maybe just among the Europeans?

Yes. Slovenia is the new Croatia. Croatia got super slammed with tourism during the era of Game of Thrones over the last decade since so much was filmed there. Now that it’s become a really saturated tourist market, people are heading a tiny bit north to Slovenia. Slovenia is beautiful, especially in the winter, and especially if you do skiing and outdoor winter sports. Lake Bled is gorgeous any time of year and it’s easy to get around.

People figured out the Croatia has a lot of the same stuff as Italy and Greece since it’s basically crammed in with them and was historically part of the same community. It somehow got stuck with Stalin after WW2 and people forgot all that.

Stalin? You’re thinking about the wrong country.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that multiple people have said Slovenia. DH has Slovenian heritage and FIL was born there; it is high on our list of places to travel to in the next few years but I keep hearing about how it has just exploded in popularity in the last decade or so! Maybe just among the Europeans?

Yes. Slovenia is the new Croatia. Croatia got super slammed with tourism during the era of Game of Thrones over the last decade since so much was filmed there. Now that it’s become a really saturated tourist market, people are heading a tiny bit north to Slovenia. Slovenia is beautiful, especially in the winter, and especially if you do skiing and outdoor winter sports. Lake Bled is gorgeous any time of year and it’s easy to get around.

People figured out the Croatia has a lot of the same stuff as Italy and Greece since it’s basically crammed in with them and was historically part of the same community. It somehow got stuck with Stalin after WW2 and people forgot all that.

Stalin? You’re thinking about the wrong country.

Yugoslavia was part of the Eastern Bloc which Roosevelt and Churchill gave to Stalin after WW2. Tito managed to carve out a smidge more independence but it was still behind the iron curtain and therefore was not a travel destination for most of the second half of the 20th century. And then after the death of the Soviet Union, there was a significant war there, so that definitely cut down on tourism for a period. I don’t think most Americans really were aware of Croatia’s cultural ties to the Greeks and Italians until relatively recently.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that multiple people have said Slovenia. DH has Slovenian heritage and FIL was born there; it is high on our list of places to travel to in the next few years but I keep hearing about how it has just exploded in popularity in the last decade or so! Maybe just among the Europeans?

Yes. Slovenia is the new Croatia. Croatia got super slammed with tourism during the era of Game of Thrones over the last decade since so much was filmed there. Now that it’s become a really saturated tourist market, people are heading a tiny bit north to Slovenia. Slovenia is beautiful, especially in the winter, and especially if you do skiing and outdoor winter sports. Lake Bled is gorgeous any time of year and it’s easy to get around.

People figured out the Croatia has a lot of the same stuff as Italy and Greece since it’s basically crammed in with them and was historically part of the same community. It somehow got stuck with Stalin after WW2 and people forgot all that.

Stalin? You’re thinking about the wrong country.

Yugoslavia was part of the Eastern Bloc which Roosevelt and Churchill gave to Stalin after WW2. Tito managed to carve out a smidge more independence but it was still behind the iron curtain and therefore was not a travel destination for most of the second half of the 20th century. And then after the death of the Soviet Union, there was a significant war there, so that definitely cut down on tourism for a period. I don’t think most Americans really were aware of Croatia’s cultural ties to the Greeks and Italians until relatively recently.

Yugoslavia was a communist country during Tito, but in no way was it a part of the Eastern Block. Please stop spewing historically inaccurate nonsense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that multiple people have said Slovenia. DH has Slovenian heritage and FIL was born there; it is high on our list of places to travel to in the next few years but I keep hearing about how it has just exploded in popularity in the last decade or so! Maybe just among the Europeans?

Yes. Slovenia is the new Croatia. Croatia got super slammed with tourism during the era of Game of Thrones over the last decade since so much was filmed there. Now that it’s become a really saturated tourist market, people are heading a tiny bit north to Slovenia. Slovenia is beautiful, especially in the winter, and especially if you do skiing and outdoor winter sports. Lake Bled is gorgeous any time of year and it’s easy to get around.

People figured out the Croatia has a lot of the same stuff as Italy and Greece since it’s basically crammed in with them and was historically part of the same community. It somehow got stuck with Stalin after WW2 and people forgot all that.

Stalin? You’re thinking about the wrong country.

Yugoslavia was part of the Eastern Bloc which Roosevelt and Churchill gave to Stalin after WW2. Tito managed to carve out a smidge more independence but it was still behind the iron curtain and therefore was not a travel destination for most of the second half of the 20th century. And then after the death of the Soviet Union, there was a significant war there, so that definitely cut down on tourism for a period. I don’t think most Americans really were aware of Croatia’s cultural ties to the Greeks and Italians until relatively recently.

Yugoslavia was a communist country during Tito, but in no way was it a part of the Eastern Block. Please stop spewing historically inaccurate nonsense.

I went there in 1979. Lots of European tourists but not the same volume as now. Fortunately, the tourism model under socialism was to leave the old towns intact and largely build hotel complexes on the edge of town.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that multiple people have said Slovenia. DH has Slovenian heritage and FIL was born there; it is high on our list of places to travel to in the next few years but I keep hearing about how it has just exploded in popularity in the last decade or so! Maybe just among the Europeans?

Yes. Slovenia is the new Croatia. Croatia got super slammed with tourism during the era of Game of Thrones over the last decade since so much was filmed there. Now that it’s become a really saturated tourist market, people are heading a tiny bit north to Slovenia. Slovenia is beautiful, especially in the winter, and especially if you do skiing and outdoor winter sports. Lake Bled is gorgeous any time of year and it’s easy to get around.

People figured out the Croatia has a lot of the same stuff as Italy and Greece since it’s basically crammed in with them and was historically part of the same community. It somehow got stuck with Stalin after WW2 and people forgot all that.

Stalin? You’re thinking about the wrong country.

Yugoslavia was part of the Eastern Bloc which Roosevelt and Churchill gave to Stalin after WW2. Tito managed to carve out a smidge more independence but it was still behind the iron curtain and therefore was not a travel destination for most of the second half of the 20th century. And then after the death of the Soviet Union, there was a significant war there, so that definitely cut down on tourism for a period. I don’t think most Americans really were aware of Croatia’s cultural ties to the Greeks and Italians until relatively recently.

Yugoslavia was a communist country during Tito, but in no way was it a part of the Eastern Block. Please stop spewing historically inaccurate nonsense.

I went there in 1979. Lots of European tourists but not the same volume as now. Fortunately, the tourism model under socialism was to leave the old towns intact and largely build hotel complexes on the edge of town.

I grew up there and I wish people could experience it like I did in the 80s when there was very little tourism. We still had people from Poland, Germany, Romania and other European countries. Now it's overrun and super expensive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Uzbekistan is pretty high on my list. Samarkand looks stunning.
Senegal (Have any of you been? I am drawn there for some reason and hear positive things from expats but never hear about travelers’ experiences.)
Oman
Baltics
Caucasus, especially Georgia
Island nations in the Indian Ocean, but many of these places are well-touristed by non-North Americans given flight times

+1 for Uzbekistan. Food is phenomenal. People are lovely.

Kyrgyzstan is awesome too, but it is more of a nature tourism place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I took my first trip to Tbilisi Georgia and was amazed. Beautiful culture, that cheese bread thing - wow- their wine was nice and I really enjoyed interacting with the people. Of course they are no Italy or Spain but what a wonderful city. I went with a culturalExchange group and Georgia had the least people signing up. I would have never gone nor considered it. Now I’m wondering if I should broaden my horizons. Can you recommend other places where you were pleasantly surprised?

I ended up in Georgia because I was reassigned for the same reason. No one wanted to go there. It was amazing. The people were great hosts and there’s no equal for the food and wine.

If you liked Tbilisi, see the rest of Georgia —especially the beaches and other nearby countries. Azerbaijan was also gorgeous.

Georgia is fantastic. Seriously, go before it gets "discovered" and becomes a tourist trap.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just took a week long solo trip to Jordan and had an amazing time.

I’m intrigued by Jordan and think I would enjoy it.

I also loved Jordan.

[Anonymous]

Romania, particularly the Carpathians, is really beautiful. The people were really warm and friendly. I traveled with a friend and we were invited to share several family meals with strangers, and were randomly invited to a free concert in a stunning hall. People were so nice that we were almost taken aback every time, like, is this a scam?! But no, people were really that nice.

(obviously, there are scams everywhere, so be wary. But in our case, it was just older Romanian women who were trying to be welcoming to two travelers!)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think that the tourism reputations places have are generally merited. Places that are great but not on the beaten path include Iran, Iraq, and Slovenia (in that order). Romania, Bulgaria and Albania are nicer than you might think, though a bit of a clean-up would make them nicer. El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras also have much to recommend them, though like Colombia the crime is not negligible.

Iran? Iraq?

I spent more time in Iraq than I ever should have. Awful place. Will never go back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:though like Colombia the crime is not negligible.

I'm in Barranquilla, on my fifth trip to Colombia and second to B/quilla, and I've never been close to being the victim of a crime. At what point should I start trembling in fear of becoming a crime victim in lawless Colombia?

[Anonymous]

Brazil. There is Rio, which is unique and interesting city. But there is a lot more to visit. In the northeast, you have beautiful beaches. Maragogi, Jericoacoara, Lençois Maranhences, etc. The resorts are much cheaper than ones in the Caribbean. There is also Chapada Diamantina National Park. Fernando de Noronha is wonderful but difficult to get to/limits visitors. But there is a reason it's considered to have some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. In the south, you have beautiful cities, beaches, and interesting towns with German, Italian influences. Blumenau and Gramado are really cute. I'm pretty sure Blumenau has one of the biggest Oktoberfests in the world. But even if you can only manage Rio, you can visit towns somewhat near by like Buzios, Ilha Grande, and Paraty.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that multiple people have said Slovenia. DH has Slovenian heritage and FIL was born there; it is high on our list of places to travel to in the next few years but I keep hearing about how it has just exploded in popularity in the last decade or so! Maybe just among the Europeans?

Yes. Slovenia is the new Croatia. Croatia got super slammed with tourism during the era of Game of Thrones over the last decade since so much was filmed there. Now that it’s become a really saturated tourist market, people are heading a tiny bit north to Slovenia. Slovenia is beautiful, especially in the winter, and especially if you do skiing and outdoor winter sports. Lake Bled is gorgeous any time of year and it’s easy to get around.

People figured out the Croatia has a lot of the same stuff as Italy and Greece since it’s basically crammed in with them and was historically part of the same community. It somehow got stuck with Stalin after WW2 and people forgot all that.

Stalin? You’re thinking about the wrong country.

Yugoslavia was part of the Eastern Bloc which Roosevelt and Churchill gave to Stalin after WW2. Tito managed to carve out a smidge more independence but it was still behind the iron curtain and therefore was not a travel destination for most of the second half of the 20th century. And then after the death of the Soviet Union, there was a significant war there, so that definitely cut down on tourism for a period. I don’t think most Americans really were aware of Croatia’s cultural ties to the Greeks and Italians until relatively recently.

Yugoslavia was a communist country during Tito, but in no way was it a part of the Eastern Block. Please stop spewing historically inaccurate nonsense.

True it was nnot Waraw Pact, but it did maintain treaties (defense and otherwise) with every member of the Warsaw Pact.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that multiple people have said Slovenia. DH has Slovenian heritage and FIL was born there; it is high on our list of places to travel to in the next few years but I keep hearing about how it has just exploded in popularity in the last decade or so! Maybe just among the Europeans?

Yes. Slovenia is the new Croatia. Croatia got super slammed with tourism during the era of Game of Thrones over the last decade since so much was filmed there. Now that it’s become a really saturated tourist market, people are heading a tiny bit north to Slovenia. Slovenia is beautiful, especially in the winter, and especially if you do skiing and outdoor winter sports. Lake Bled is gorgeous any time of year and it’s easy to get around.

People figured out the Croatia has a lot of the same stuff as Italy and Greece since it’s basically crammed in with them and was historically part of the same community. It somehow got stuck with Stalin after WW2 and people forgot all that.

Stalin? You’re thinking about the wrong country.

Yugoslavia was part of the Eastern Bloc which Roosevelt and Churchill gave to Stalin after WW2. Tito managed to carve out a smidge more independence but it was still behind the iron curtain and therefore was not a travel destination for most of the second half of the 20th century. And then after the death of the Soviet Union, there was a significant war there, so that definitely cut down on tourism for a period. I don’t think most Americans really were aware of Croatia’s cultural ties to the Greeks and Italians until relatively recently.

Yugoslavia was a communist country during Tito, but in no way was it a part of the Eastern Block. Please stop spewing historically inaccurate nonsense.

True it was nnot Waraw Pact, but it did maintain treaties (defense and otherwise) with every member of the Warsaw Pact.

And it was also one of the only allies that the West had, so what's your point?

[Anonymous]

My wife is always trying to convince me to go to Lithuania. There's so many other places I haven't been to and still others I want to return to. If I'm not Riffed.

Is Lithuania a must see? I've only been to most Western European countries, much of the US, Canada, and A couple of Caribbean destination ls.