Biggest destination disappointment

[tuixiu]

My wife and I stroll thru Pat Pong people watching, those guys waving the placards of what is available inside don't care if I'm holding wife's hand they're still pressing.

If what those cards say is true I'm in awe that certain body parts can actually do tricks like blow up a balloon, change a paper bill into coins, or write my name with a marker.

 

[audreyh1]

Venice. Its beautiful and all, but in such an artificial way. Its like an old-world version of Disney.

Wow - my reaction was completely the opposite! Made anything Disney created look one dimensional. The most fascinating European city I have ever seen - such an exotic mix of east and west and renaissance and what a history.

Venice is not artificial, it's real - it is frozen in time and how fabulous that the snapshot has been preserved over the centuries. I had no idea, but you can see how abruptly things changed in the Mediterranean once the Turks overthrew Constantinople in 1453, completely shutting down trade with the East.

Audrey

 

[flyfishnevada]

Our biggest disappointment was San Diego. Ya, its warm and sunny, but the city was lame. Just another metropolis with very little to make it stand out. If we want SoCal culture, we go to LA/Orange County.

We love Vegas too. It is what it it, but lots to do and see, people watching is great (only rivaled by San Francisco in our opinion), more great restaurants than you can shake a stick at, great shows and headline attractions.

Disneyland is always ranked way ahead of Walt Disney World. It is crowded and expensive, but there is tons of info on the net on how to avoid the crowds and save bucks. Again, it is what it is, but if you expect the downside (crowds, expensive, etc) and let yourself be a kid its a lot of fun. Then again we are Disney geeks.

As for the pyramids, Grand Canyon, Taj, etc., my dad and I are the same way. You drive up, look it over and leave. How long can you look at a hole in the ground or a triangular shaped pile of stones? Something I want to see, but not spend days looking at. Even my wife is becoming that way. Neat to see, but more action to be had elsewhere. Its not about seeing stuff for us, but experiencing stuff. Rafting the Grand Canyon, fun. Staring at from the rim, not.

 

[vicente solano]

I hope nobody is bothered by this, but I was mildly disappointed with the Liberty Bell. Maybe it was the location that made the experience anticlimactic. Otherwise, I found Philadelphia to be a very nice city.

 

[F4mandolin]

Whew..haven't seen any complaints about Yellowstone. Been there when I was younger a couple of times. Planning on taking my UK wife and her parents there when I retire in 2 years. Days drive from Spokane....they like the animal thing.....I like the physical science part (damn....too much teaching science).....Sept when the kids go back to school is the plan.

 

[ksr]

Whew..haven't seen any complaints about Yellowstone.

IMO, Yellowstone is spectacular. It just blew me away, and I've been to a number of national parks. It felt almost surreal, like it was part of some different world.

And, while I was there, I was really lucky to see a moose with a calf.

 

[landover]

Thanks for this thread, this is informative. This relives me of guilty feeling of not saving enough to see the world.

 

[WanderALot]

The Irish Pubs in Ireland. Go in one, you basically went into all of them. Very corporate, same stuff on tap, same set-up behind bar etc.. They do have some brew pubs that were fantastic. And yes several of the older pubs were interesting places to go, but overall beg disappointment.

Oh man, I totally disagree. Maybe there isn't a lot of differentiation between pubs, but the Irish at the watering holes are what make the place. I can't tell you the number of times I've struck up conversations with random people in between sets of live music. What an experience!

The pubs are Temple Bar were obviously very touristy, where all you have are tourists sitting around drinking Guinness. But outside of that area in Dublin or in any small town, so much fun.

 

[flyfishnevada]

Oh man, I totally disagree. Maybe there isn't a lot of differentiation between pubs, but the Irish at the watering holes are what make the place. I can't tell you the number of times I've struck up conversations with random people in between sets of live music. What an experience!

The pubs are Temple Bar were obviously very touristy, where all you have are tourists sitting around drinking Guinness. But outside of that area in Dublin or in any small town, so much fun.

I was thinking the pubs designed for tourists would be just that, touristy. I have always wanted to go to the UK/Scotland/Ireland and drink in a pub, but a real pub with real people, not tourists from America. Just like here, if you go to the downtown, touristy area you're going to drink with tourists. If you go down the street from your house, your going to drink with the regular folk. I want to go down the street from their house.

 

[Meadbh]

I've been racking my brain to think of somewhere that really disappointed me. It's been a challenge, because I usually research where I'm going and know what to expect. Finally I came up with one: Hollywood, California, which I found tacky and sleazy. No desire to return.

On the other hand, I can think of many places I've been that provided unexpected pleasures. One that sticks in my mind is looking down on the evening mist from my hotel in a little French town called Domme, which sits on top of a hill. It was one of the most romantic places I've ever been to. This is the hotel: Hôtel Domme.*Hôtel L'Esplanade Domme.*Hôtel restaurant Domme

 

[WanderALot]

Have to agree with the comments about Egypt. It was disappointing when you went to the pyramids and you could see the cesspool of Cairo in the background. The Sphinx I was expecting something on a far greater scale than it was. Then the Nile, I had a romantic vision of Cleopatra floating down on her boat, but it was nothing more than a filthy stream of murky water which would would not dare want to immerse your body in. As for the locals, the amount of harassment was off the scale. The highlight of the trip for me was undoubtedly the Egyptian Museum, such a fascination collection, you could spend days there and I say that as a non-Museum type of person.

We went to Egypt late in 2008, and it definitely didn't disappoint. We didn't like the pyramids at Giza much because it was a circus. We took a taxi to Dahshur first, which isn't visited as often because it's about 1.5 hrs outside of Cairo. This guy's website has some good pictures:

Dahshur pyramids

One of the most surreal experiences of my life. There were *2* people there with us. We went into all the way into the oldest pyramid in the world (about 4500 years old) down a narrow stairway to the central chamber. The Bent Pyramid is interesting too, one of the first pyramids constructed and you can see that they messed up the angle of the pyramid and had to adjust it in the middle of the construction! After visiting Dahshur and Saqqara, Giza was less interesting for sure, especially since we, like you, expected the Sphinx to be much larger!

We took a Nile cruise and although we got sick on it (all except for our son, thank God!), really enjoyed the beautiful temples we visited on the way, especially the Valley of the Kings. It's hard to believe that such vibrant colors in the paintings have been there over 3500 years! I thought the Nile was unlike any boat trip either, not too many places you see camels grazing alongside cattle with dahabiyas (traditional Egyptian boats) floating alongside. Admittedly, tt's not a luxurious spa experience.

The historical variety was just amazing, mosques built on top of Christian sites which themselves were built on pharaohnic sights! You can visit a 2000 year old church and realize that Egypt has places that were already 2500 years old when the church was built! I'm not a history buff by any means, but Egypt constantly made be shake my head in wonder.

We also didn't get harassed much at all (and I've heard everyone gets harassed) probably because we traveled with a toddler so the very-family-oriented Egyptians would constantly want to interact with our son.

 

[Achiever51]

At the risk of offending all of Texas, I must confess that I was very disappointed the first time I saw the Alamo. After watching all those westerns of my childhood, I envisioned the Alamo as this enormous fort surrounded by thousands of acres of open land...not this smallish building down the street from the Hyatt Regency. Once I toured it, however, I can appreciate its importance to history..but still, it looked so small!

The other disappointment was Mt. Rushmore. We drove to see it after spending three weeks camping in Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons, so my expectation was that Rushmore was more on the scale of the Rockies. We drove into the parking lot and there it was. Again, once we learned how Gutzon Borglum and his crew carved the sculptures from the rock, it was much more impressive, but that first view was a big "is that it?"

On the other hand, watching the sun rise over the rim of the Grand Canyon ranks as one of the most impressive sights I've experienced. YMMV

(BTW, I have to admit that I was at Walt Disney World on October 1, 1971, the day it opened for business.)

 

[lightspeed]

I don't think I can get excited or impressed by any city in any industrialized country. I guess I've been to too many big cities, so they all are the same to me.

 

[Texas Proud]

At the risk of offending all of Texas, I must confess that I was very disappointed the first time I saw the Alamo. After watching all those westerns of my childhood, I envisioned the Alamo as this enormous fort surrounded by thousands of acres of open land...not this smallish building down the street from the Hyatt Regency. Once I toured it, however, I can appreciate its importance to history..but still, it looked so small!

Hey... the truth is the truth.... it WAS a lot bigger... but like most places it was whittled away... down to almost nothing... and I would agree... it you are going to San Antonio just to see the Alamo, you WILL be disappointed...


As for Egypt again.. (sorry, just want to get a few more words in about it)... I DID like a number of the sites... Abu Simbel was very impressive... and more so when you find out they MOVED it... but it was a 3 hour bus ride to it and 3 hours back... (note... if you want to see it, pay the money for the flight!!!) I liked the valley of the Queens... the valley of the Kings did not impress as much, but then again, we were only there a couple of hours (if that)... I enjoyed the Nile cruise as we could only be yelled at by the people paddling up.. which was rare... and it is something to think about how OLD a lot of these places are when you think about how old America is....

I liked the Pyramids... but the locals ruin the experience... (we had to bribe a cop while there... but don't know what we did... he even asked 'are you sure'... seems I gave him the wrong bribe amount... to much!!!)... we did go into one of the smaller ones... not enough time to go into the large one..

 

[TromboneAl]

No one told me that Stonehenge was only 18 inches high. What a ripoff.

 

[Maurice]

Venice is not artificial, it's real - it is frozen in time and how fabulous that the snapshot has been preserved over the centuries.

Well, we're both right. Its been a tourist trap since the 18th century. (i think tourist even outnumber residents in the old city)


Getting out of the old city the place becomes somewhat more charming. But I'll take Treviso or Trieste over Venice any day.

 

[ksr]

At the risk of offending all of Texas, I must confess that I was very disappointed the first time I saw the Alamo. After watching all those westerns of my childhood, I envisioned the Alamo as this enormous fort surrounded by thousands of acres of open land...not this smallish building down the street from the Hyatt Regency.

This reminded me of the time I went to see Plymouth Rock in Massachusetts. I expected it to be big - it's actually fairly small, in a roped-off area. Fortunately, it was just a side-trip when I was in the area anyway, so I didn't have much in the way of expectations. But I do recall thinking "is that it?"

 

[RunningBum]

Not that it was that much of a disappointment, but I'd have to say Prague. It was so hyped to be this cool, hip place to go, and maybe a few years ago it was, but when we went last year it was pretty pricey, with restaurants that overcharge tourists (apparently if you make an attempt to speak Czech that won't happen), and touristy. The Charles Bridge was under reconstruction and was just lined with people selling crap or wanting to draw your caricature. We had an ok time, but it was far from charming, and I don't understand what all of the people who said it was their favorite European city were talking about.

Another disappointment was the Deutches Museum in Munich. It was really stuffy, crowded, and looked like it hadn't been updated in years. Usually it's a matter of deciding where I want to spend my time in a big museum, but nothing really grabbed me here and we didn't stay that long. In contrast, I found Science Museum in London absolutely fascinating, with some great hands-on exhibits that really explained the concepts, not just buttons for kids to pound on.

 

[bbbamI]

No one told me that Stonehenge was only 18 inches high. What a ripoff.

............

 

[Purron]

No one told me that Stonehenge was only 18 inches high. What a ripoff.

LMAO!!!

 

[tuixiu]

Not that it was that much of a disappointment, but I'd have to say Prague. It was so hyped to be this cool, hip place to go, and maybe a few years ago it was, but when we went last year it was pretty pricey, with restaurants that overcharge tourists

Yup. Praha kinda sucked. Plenty of lovely places in Czech Republic but that wasn't it, our vacation definitely took a turn for the better after we took the train to Dresden in Germany.

Dresden was absolutely wonderful, would do again anytime as long as not winter.

 

[FIYes]

I guess that I am the dissenting voice on Stonehenge. I liked it! On the other hand, I had so many people give me the "it is just a pile of rocks" speech before I went that I benefited from lower expectations.

The one place that I didn't care for was Hilton Head---I am not golfer so I didn't find anything there--also the weather was not great when I was there.

 

[check6]

On the other hand, I can think of many places I've been that provided unexpected pleasures. One that sticks in my mind is looking down on the evening mist from my hotel in a little French town called Domme, which sits on top of a hill. It was one of the most romantic places I've ever been to. This is the hotel: Hôtel Domme.*Hôtel L'Esplanade Domme.*Hôtel restaurant Domme

Meadbh...Thanks for the Hotel Domme recommedation. We are heading to that part of France this year and it appears to be just what we are looking for.

As for our biggest disappointment it was New Zealand. I had been wanting to visit there for 20 years with the hopes of living there 3-4 months every year in retirement. Hard to pin point exactly what it was but my wife and I looked at each other on day 3 and shook our heads no at the same time. Guess we thought it would be more like England which I found immaculate.

 

[audreyh1]

Whew..haven't seen any complaints about Yellowstone. Been there when I was younger a couple of times. Planning on taking my UK wife and her parents there when I retire in 2 years. Days drive from Spokane....they like the animal thing.....I like the physical science part (damn....too much teaching science).....Sept when the kids go back to school is the plan.

Yellowstone is really neat for the geology (geysers, etc.) and wildlife and some views like Yellowstone Falls are spectacular. But for non-stop scenic grandeur, you really need to stop at Grand Teton National Park on the way. That place always blows me away even though I have been there many times.

Audrey

 

[audreyh1]

I guess that I am the dissenting voice on Stonehenge. I liked it! On the other hand, I had so many people give me the "it is just a pile of rocks" speech before I went that I benefited from lower expectations.

The one place that I didn't care for was Hilton Head---I am not golfer so I didn't find anything there--also the weather was not great when I was there.

Yep - I really enjoyed Stonehenge too - especially when I realized (on site) how old it really was.

I haven't come up with any disappointing destinations yet. I tend to avoid overly developed/commercial tourist areas/parks (like Disney whatever) and things like cruises or resort hotels. I already know I don't like those things. That seems to keep disappointment at bay. Maybe I never expect anything special and that helps - in fact I am usually not expecting that much at first so I am often pleasantly surprised.

We've traveled extensively only real travel disappointments we have experienced have been stuck with a group of boring/passive people. It only happened once when we traveled with a more generic group rather than with a group focused on photography or bird-watching or nature focus. From that I learned to only join a group that had some purpose other than being led around by the nose and spoon fed information.

Audrey