Most overrated international destination?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Quite honestly, you can get incredible food and views in the US without all the hassle. I'd put Big Sur, CA, much of the state of Washington, Sedona, AZ, and the 30a beaches against most international destinations.

This is so true. While I like the occasional overseas trip, my most memorable trips are to the western U.S. Never tire of the landscape and beauty.

+1. This. I'm a huge fan of visiting the US national parks and put them up against any of the world's major travel destinations. It's a shame that so many Americans skip visiting other parts of the US when we have arguably some of the best scenery in the world. We try to do a national park trip once a year - or every other - to ensure that kids will appreciate it. We also travel overseas quite a bit, though still think UT, AZ, WY have been our best vacations.

[Anonymous]

Bahamas

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Madrid. I lived in several parts of Spain, & Madrid is like a synthesis of the worst aspects of all the other parts of spain: crime, sprawl, crappy new architecture, rudeness, American fast food, etc. Lots of great places to visit in Spain. I found that the capital city isn’t one of them.

Madrid left me cold, as well. It felt soulless, like Midtown Manhattan.

Interesting. I loved Madrid. I liked it better than Barcelona.

I loved Madrid, too. Especially when I had the opportunity to see King Felipe in person.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Quite honestly, you can get incredible food and views in the US without all the hassle. I'd put Big Sur, CA, much of the state of Washington, Sedona, AZ, and the 30a beaches against most international destinations.

Incredible food in the US is very hard to come by, [unless you have deep pockets to pay for the best restaurants] and I say this as a New Yorker with access to the best restaurants in the world. Our food industry sucks, and our ingredients are just not as good/fresh. Even our fruit is not as good as in other parts of the world, it is never quite as sweet and flavorful. Therefore, I suspect that those claiming that the food in Paris, Spain, Italy is not good have what I call that soda/burger palette…

I don’t disagree with you, but ending on the misuse of “palette” instead of the correct “palate” casts a slight pall over any claim to sophistication you might make.

Wow, a snob AND an English teacher all rolled into one!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Madrid. I lived in several parts of Spain, & Madrid is like a synthesis of the worst aspects of all the other parts of spain: crime, sprawl, crappy new architecture, rudeness, American fast food, etc. Lots of great places to visit in Spain. I found that the capital city isn’t one of them.

Madrid left me cold, as well. It felt soulless, like Midtown Manhattan.

Interesting. I loved Madrid. I liked it better than Barcelona.

It is kind of pathetic that you are name dropping, on an anonymous forum.

I loved Madrid, too. Especially when I had the opportunity to see King Felipe in person.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Quite honestly, you can get incredible food and views in the US without all the hassle. I'd put Big Sur, CA, much of the state of Washington, Sedona, AZ, and the 30a beaches against most international destinations.

Incredible food in the US is very hard to come by, [unless you have deep pockets to pay for the best restaurants] and I say this as a New Yorker with access to the best restaurants in the world. Our food industry sucks, and our ingredients are just not as good/fresh. Even our fruit is not as good as in other parts of the world, it is never quite as sweet and flavorful. Therefore, I suspect that those claiming that the food in Paris, Spain, Italy is not good have what I call that soda/burger palette…

Don't get out much?
Your ignorance is staggering.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The only mainland US beaches that pass muster for me are in Miami because they’re basically like the Caribbean. Don’t try to sell me your cold brown water waters like it’s Bali. There’s nothing more disappointing than going to a sad a** East Coast beach after swimming in the crystal clear warm waters of the Caribbean or Mediterranean.

You clearly have never experienced the beautiful beaches on the Gulf coast of Florida, from the panhandle all the way down the SW coast. They have beautiful warm emerald colored water and white sugar sand beaches. They’re so pretty.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Quite honestly, you can get incredible food and views in the US without all the hassle. I'd put Big Sur, CA, much of the state of Washington, Sedona, AZ, and the 30a beaches against most international destinations.

Incredible food in the US is very hard to come by, [unless you have deep pockets to pay for the best restaurants] and I say this as a New Yorker with access to the best restaurants in the world. Our food industry sucks, and our ingredients are just not as good/fresh. Even our fruit is not as good as in other parts of the world, it is never quite as sweet and flavorful. Therefore, I suspect that those claiming that the food in Paris, Spain, Italy is not good have what I call that soda/burger palette…

Palate

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Quite honestly, you can get incredible food and views in the US without all the hassle. I'd put Big Sur, CA, much of the state of Washington, Sedona, AZ, and the 30a beaches against most international destinations.

Incredible food in the US is very hard to come by, [unless you have deep pockets to pay for the best restaurants] and I say this as a New Yorker with access to the best restaurants in the world. Our food industry sucks, and our ingredients are just not as good/fresh. Even our fruit is not as good as in other parts of the world, it is never quite as sweet and flavorful. Therefore, I suspect that those claiming that the food in Paris, Spain, Italy is not good have what I call that soda/burger palette…

You need to speak for yourself. I live in the south and we have plenty of delicious fresh food, from the fresh butchered meats you can buy, to the fresh eggs, bread and produce from neighbors, farmers markets and co-ops.

NYC has limited access to fresh yummy food but plenty of Americans have access to fresh foods every day. I come from a family of farmers and grew up eating much better food than anything I ate in most of Europe while I lived over there. I will say the Greek island of Crete had the freshest tasting food in Europe, IMO.

NYC has good food and fun places to eat but honestly nothing has ever blown my mind up there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The thread is a joke. The idea that people living in DC of all places are qualified to pass judgment on their superiors around the globe is hilarious.

We’re the oldest and greatest country on the earth, we have the highest standard of living, and we’ve never lost a war, we can judge whoever we want!

We are definitely not the oldest country on Earth. Not even the oldest democracy. As far as standard of living, I would disagree also it is nowhere as evenly distributed as European countries. As far as never lost of a war, you may not be familiar with Vietnam or our efforts in Afghanistan.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The thread is a joke. The idea that people living in DC of all places are qualified to pass judgment on their superiors around the globe is hilarious.

We’re the oldest and greatest country on the earth, we have the highest standard of living, and we’ve never lost a war, we can judge whoever we want!

We are definitely not the oldest country on Earth. Not even the oldest democracy. As far as standard of living, I would disagree also it is nowhere as evenly distributed as European countries. As far as never lost of a war, you may not be familiar with Vietnam or our efforts in Afghanistan.

Quit spewing Russian propaganda! We literally invented freedom. Ever since we ratified the Constitution in 1776 everyone here has been free and able to vote in Democratic elections. Even most European countries like France and Germany still have kings instead of elected presidents. There’s no comparison!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Quite honestly, you can get incredible food and views in the US without all the hassle. I'd put Big Sur, CA, much of the state of Washington, Sedona, AZ, and the 30a beaches against most international destinations.

This is so true. While I like the occasional overseas trip, my most memorable trips are to the western U.S. Never tire of the landscape and beauty.

+1. This. I'm a huge fan of visiting the US national parks and put them up against any of the world's major travel destinations. It's a shame that so many Americans skip visiting other parts of the US when we have arguably some of the best scenery in the world. We try to do a national park trip once a year - or every other - to ensure that kids will appreciate it. We also travel overseas quite a bit, though still think UT, AZ, WY have been our best vacations.

Very hard agree. We’ve done a big National park trip the last three summers as my kids have gotten big enough to do more hiking/ strenuous activity. I feel such an intense sense of well being when in the parks. The beauty is unreal. We almost planned Mexico City this summer and then I was like nah, save that for another time - summer is for the national parks. Every American should aim to visit the ones accessible to them. Absolute treasures.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Quite honestly, you can get incredible food and views in the US without all the hassle. I'd put Big Sur, CA, much of the state of Washington, Sedona, AZ, and the 30a beaches against most international destinations.

This is so true. While I like the occasional overseas trip, my most memorable trips are to the western U.S. Never tire of the landscape and beauty.

+1. This. I'm a huge fan of visiting the US national parks and put them up against any of the world's major travel destinations. It's a shame that so many Americans skip visiting other parts of the US when we have arguably some of the best scenery in the world. We try to do a national park trip once a year - or every other - to ensure that kids will appreciate it. We also travel overseas quite a bit, though still think UT, AZ, WY have been our best vacations.

Very hard agree. We’ve done a big National park trip the last three summers as my kids have gotten big enough to do more hiking/ strenuous activity. I feel such an intense sense of well being when in the parks. The beauty is unreal. We almost planned Mexico City this summer and then I was like nah, save that for another time - summer is for the national parks. Every American should aim to visit the ones accessible to them. Absolute treasures.

Apples and oranges. I’ve done many years of national park trips with the kids (both biggies like Glacier, Acadia, Grand Canyon, as well as less visited ones). Totally agree that the scenery is stunning.
These are completely different kinds of trips overseas, where you experience a different culture, food, language and cities.

[Anonymous]

Also- summer might be the *worst* time to visit a national park- many are extremely hot (Utah/AZ parks) or extremely crowded and require advance planning that rivals planning a trip to Paris (reserve in-park lodging or campsite a year in advance, set calendar reminders to book trail/scenic road reservations). These trips are also full of stress- set alarm to wake up early to secure parking spot in tiny lots, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The thread is a joke. The idea that people living in DC of all places are qualified to pass judgment on their superiors around the globe is hilarious.

We’re the oldest and greatest country on the earth, we have the highest standard of living, and we’ve never lost a war, we can judge whoever we want!

Oldest country on earth????

What school did you go to? We are one of the youngest.

I was educated here in America, home to the world’s best education and healthcare system.

You are pathetically ignorant, I am afraid.

Our health care system is #1 for cost alone. We trail behind most high income counties for outcomes/health indicators.

Try reading instead of waving your flag maybe.

You need to show some more pride in your country. The rest of the world combined has zero Super Bowl trophies, how do you explain that?

Lol. I’m loving your posts; although a bit worried about the people who are refuting your facts seriously.