Anonymous wrote:Anything Disney
Charleston - I was shocked at how rude the people were
Madrid - but loved the rest of Spain
Toronto - definitely the low point of our trips to Canada - very dull compared to Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City, Vancouver, and the countryside in Quebec and the Maritime provinces
Cities in Switzerland - very boring and sterile - countryside is gorgeous, though
Watkins Glen
Mackinac Island - everyone in Michigan raves about this place, but it is a big nothing. I would rather be in Flint
Costa Rica - Mexico, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Panama, Ecuador, Peru, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and Brazil are far more interesting countries if you want to head south
Seattle - cold, unfriendly people and mediocre food
Austin, TX - so-called "music scene" is vastly overrated; traffic is horrible; it's not as liberal as people think it is
Aruba - absolutely nothing to do there once you want to do something other than lie on the beach

Anonymous wrote:Anything Disney
Charleston - I was shocked at how rude the people were
Madrid - but loved the rest of Spain
Toronto - definitely the low point of our trips to Canada - very dull compared to Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City, Vancouver, and the countryside in Quebec and the Maritime provinces
Cities in Switzerland - very boring and sterile - countryside is gorgeous, though
Watkins Glen
Mackinac Island - everyone in Michigan raves about this place, but it is a big nothing. I would rather be in Flint
Costa Rica - Mexico, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Panama, Ecuador, Peru, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and Brazil are far more interesting countries if you want to head south
Seattle - cold, unfriendly people and mediocre food
Austin, TX - so-called "music scene" is vastly overrated; traffic is horrible; it's not as liberal as people think it is
Aruba - absolutely nothing to do there once you want to do something other than lie on the beach

Anonymous wrote:I've gotten into TikTok (I know, I know) and I see a lot of travel videos. For some reason, I see so many comments that say that Paris did not live up to expectations. Apparently, there's even a term for this - Paris syndrome. Personally, I cannot relate. My worst day in Paris is better than my best day here, lol. I imagine it's because it's many people's first experiences abroad and/or in a big city and that might be shocking to some?

But it did get me thinking about places that did not live up to expectations and why. Do you have any experiences like that?

Anonymous wrote:Istanbul, Turkey. I had a 11-12 hour layover at the new Istanbul airport in my way to Accra, Ghana. Never left the airport. I walked around for my over an hour trying to find one of the lounges that’s I could pay my way into. I asked several staff workers for assistance but they were dismissive, rude, unprofessional, aggressive, simply couldn’t be bothered to even look at me. Felt definite racial overtones (I’m AA). I will return to Washington in about 2 weeks via IST. Thinking about actually venturing out into both the European and Asian sides of Istanbul, but after the airport fiasco, I’m afraid that my experience could be worse in a less-controlled environment.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Great Barrier Reef. Washed out corals.

Oh no really?!?! I lived there for a year in 2001 and went on a 2 day snorkel trip off of Cairns. The reef was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen and I’ve been waiting until my kids are old enough to return. Am I too late?

It is hurting, for sure.

Anonymous wrote:Bali. Probably already mentioned a few times on this thread (I didn't read the first 15 or so pages). Very crowded, very commercialized. Did have some nice things about it but it's not the tropical paradise of travel promotional materials.

Places like Paris and London - I've been to both many times and as the years go by they lose more of their magic. A lot of changes in both cities since the 1980s. They're far less English/French and much more "international" and without wanting to get into politics it does mean these cities have lost much of what made them unique.

Cambodia. Went for the Angor Wat. It was nice enough. But I'd already seen many temple complexes and when you've seen one the rest tend to run into each other. There is a fascinating history at Angor Wat but Thailand is just a more enjoyable experience that I wouldn't go back to Cambodia. Food wasn't so interesting.

Anonymous wrote:I think the problem is that most tourist-worthy places these days have been literally overrun by tourists and have been "disneyfied" as a result. Social media has made this worse by creating hype around certain destinations which invariably disappoint tourists when they arrive and see hordes of other people trying to have the same "unique" experience.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which is better for a beach vacation with kids: Puerto Rico, DR, Aruba, Bahamas, or Mexico? Talking about staying at a resort the whole time and really want nice sand and clear water.

I like Saint John. Make sure to rent a Jeep.

The problem with St. John is there really isn't a resort there to stay at the whole time. Caneel Bay is gone.

If the PP wants to hunker down at a resort the entire time AND wants clear water, then Aruba, Bahamas and Mexico are the best bets.

But:

Aruba is windy and the water has more waves (although gentle). Divi was calm, though.

Bahamas is crowded unless you go super high end (avoid atlantis unless you want to fight for lounge chairs).

Mexico is good if you stay upscale and avoid a mega resort. Mayakoba area is nice.

DR has crummy beaches; sand like dirt, water isn't clear; plus, bugs and weird plumbing issues.

We love PR, but we wouldn't hunker down at a resort unless it's something fabulous like Ritz Dorado. You should go to Old San Juan to eat and see the forts. Visit the rainforest. Explore beaches around the island. There are some lovely hotels like the Fairmont. Condos in the Isla Verde area. Wyndham. There are tons of threads on PR. You could stay at the Embassy Suites two blocks off Isla Verde beach for a very reasonable price.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would be disappointed anywhere I was hunkered down in a resort. Blech.

So, Barbados. I didn’t feel safe there (and I felt safe in Egypt and China!). After a few horrid day trips we never left the (nice) hotel but it was boring.

What on earth are you saying? Barbados is super safe. We drove the whole island and had a grand time.

Any why wouldn’t you feel safe on Egypt or China? We loved both! What are you implying?!

How weird.