Undiscovered destinations around the world?

[IMATERP]

+1 on OP's comments on Prague. I spent several weeks in Olomouc - a couple hours outside of Prague. I suppose it's not "undiscovered," but it's off the beaten path. It has relatively low prices, great dining, gorgeous churches and cathedrals, and, wonderful friendly people.

I have driven there from Prague, and also taken the train. The Pandolina (high speed train) is my preferred method.

I also had the opportunity to visit Bratislava while in Vienna. Took the "twin cities jet boat." The boat ride was it's own adventure. Don't spend the $$ for first class. The main cabin is spacious and you can walk outside, go to the bar, or grab a snack while enjoying the views.

Slovakia and the Czech Republic separated peacefully after the cold war. The recent history of Nazi and Soviet conquest / occupation will bring tears to your eyes. However, the kindness and hospitality of the locals may just bring tears of joy.

Highly recommend both side trips if in the area!

+2 on Op's comments on Prague. We were in Prague for three days in May. Fabulous but way too crowded. Years ago I did some work in Bratislava and Banska Bystricia. I sort thought Banska Bystricia was sort of neat. I also liked Kiev a lot - but I'm not really sure how to tie Kiev into a longer vacation.

Michael

 

[FUEGO]

There's an awful lot of undiscoveredness out there outside Europe, btw--DS honeymooned in Argentina and Uruguay several years ago and loved it. I guess Europe appeals to more people?

I didn't mean to steer the discussion toward Europe specifically, just threw out Slovenia and some other eurozone countries since we just visited.

We went to Argentina and Uruguay for a week and a half in 2010 and it was honeymoon-ish in a way (left our 3 and 5 year olds back home with other family and it was just me and DW). Great place and I hope we make it back. We went in March which is their autumn - great weather, not overly busy at all (except in one touristy spot which we left after an hour or so). It had a very euro feel to it down to the appearance of the people (I blended in; my wife stood out - exact opposite experience compared to Mexico).

I'd love to hear non-euro suggestions too (especially ones that are within a reasonable <10 hr flight of the continental US). Most in our family speak some degree of Spanish from basic to proficient so it makes Latin America, even far off the beaten path, very doable (at least language is not a bar to exploration!).

 

[FUEGO]

I also liked Kiev a lot - but I'm not really sure how to tie Kiev into a longer vacation.

+1 to Ukraine as being undiscovered. Kiev is pretty far out there if you're using ground transit but by plane it's not far at all. Lviv, on the far western edge of Ukraine might be a better option for those visiting other Eastern European destinations. There's a volatile part of Ukraine on the eastern edge but overall the country is pretty stable. At least according to my Ukrainian friend who urged us to go to Lviv or Kiev if we visit the Baltics (she's biased of course ). Ukraine is dirt cheap due to the currency's losses and dampened tourism due to the conflicts in the east.

 

[BigNick]

Great list - thanks

I thought about setting up a similar tour guide service. Identify the unknown spots and offer tours to those places. Seems like a nice niche to be in. Probably lots of wealthier folks who don't want to get trampled on in the crowds and wouldn't mind paying a premium (even though it would cost less to operate in low cost undiscovered places).

The full service version would come with me and DW (I haven't told her yet!) driving people around in a very comfortable car from place to place. Basically we would get paid to go on vacation while other people imagined that they were the ones making the decisons.

 

[Nemo2]

The full service version would come with me and DW (I haven't told her yet!) driving people around in a very comfortable car from place to place. Basically we would get paid to go on vacation while other people imagined that they were the ones making the decisons.

Love it! P. T. Barnum would be proud!

 

[braumeister]

I'd love to hear non-euro suggestions too (especially ones that are within a reasonable <10 hr flight of the continental US). Most in our family speak some degree of Spanish from basic to proficient so it makes Latin America, even far off the beaten path, very doable (at least language is not a bar to exploration!).

I can think of some wonderful areas in Brazil, but unless you speak Portuguese they probably wouldn't work for the average tourist. Most Spanish speakers don't handle it well, and Brazilians enjoy tormenting Spanish speakers if they suspect they might be Argentines.

Still, I love the gaúcho area, up and down the coast from Porto Alegre. Many Brazilians can't even understand their accent. Campos do Jordão is a lovely mountain town between São Paulo and Rio. Farther north, Porto Seguro, Ilheus, and Aracaju are just delightful towns with great beaches.

 

[brett]

We make a point of not staying in large, corporate style hotels. We far prefer a small, family run hotel or B&B.

This past winter we spent time in Uruguay. Rather than staying in a hotel in Punta D'Este we stayed in a B&B. Our hosts were gave us lots of information. What was interesting was that they had immigrated to Uruguay from South Africa later in life. Because of the poor currency in SA Uruguay was the most financially attractive to them.

One night, instead of eating out our hosts offered to have a barbeque for he guests. They bought the meat, the wine, the beer, etc. We split the cost. Had a wonderful time and exchanged travel tips with the other two guests.

These are not unusual occurrences when you stay at small places, and in out of the way places (though this was not really out of the way)

 

[Bestwifeever]

The full service version would come with me and DW (I haven't told her yet!) driving people around in a very comfortable car from place to place. Basically we would get paid to go on vacation while other people imagined that they were the ones making the decisons.

Do it! We're planning a trip to a wild and crazy undiscovered country called Spain -- has anyone heard about a little city called Barcelona? -- for next year. Some acquaintances passed on information about a guide they used there and DH emailed her. For a group of up to six people, she would provide her very comfortable vehicle, make all the arrangements, etc., etc., and hold our hands while she showed us everything. Her cost is $500 a day, every day. On top of all her expenses, including her hotel room and meals and the vehicle, plus of course our acquaintances paid for all their own expenses.

I can see why these acquaintances used her in that they speak no Spanish and English is not their first language either, they travel a lot but like having someone show them everything, they are somewhat high maintenance, plus they can afford it--I am not judging their use of a personal guide, and they said she was amazing. There are probably more expensive guides out there. So use that as your base line .

 

[Nemo2]

I'm getting in on this..."Nostalgia Trips For Those Who Weren't There The First Time Around".

We drop you off on, (or near, depending upon our mood of the moment), roads/highways, and provide you with ('personalized'....suckers love that word) hand written signs for a multitude of towns/cities.

We then follow at a distance, (perhaps), and when you reach your destination, direct you to a squalid hostel where you'll stay the night.

Rinse & repeat for only $200 per day, (plus expenses of course).

 

[Bestwifeever]

I'm getting in on this..."Nostalgia Trips For Those Who Weren't There The First Time Around".

We drop you off on, (or near, depending upon our mood of the moment), roads/highways, and provide you with ('personalized'....suckers love that word) hand written signs for a multitude of towns/cities.

We then follow at a distance, (perhaps), and when you reach your destination, direct you to a squalid hostel where you'll stay the night.

Rinse & repeat for only $200 per day, (plus expenses of course).

Be sure to promise places that only the locals go to so your clients will feel even more like special snowflakes (and places that will provide a little consideration for the effort back to you).

 

[Nemo2]

Be sure to promise places that only the locals go to so your clients will feel even more like special snowflakes

Shhh..trade secrets an' all that.

(and places that will provide a little consideration for the effort back to you).

People would actually do such a thing? Wow, now I know how Captain Louis Renault must've felt.

 

[NW-Bound]

We didn't allow enough time this go around, (we catch a transatlantic on Nov 06 from Civitavecchia), but we have our eye on Romania/Moldova down the road, (if I live long enough ).......also want to see Lithuania/Estonia/Latvia.

When you visit Moldova, be sure to allow enough time to see Transnistria as well.

 

[Nemo2]

When you visit Moldova, be sure to allow enough time to see Transnistria as well.

If we went there, (on a State Visit of course), it'd have to be officially recognized.

(In actuality, I'd never even heard of it before...one more reason to check it out.)

 

[NW-Bound]

After this trip, you may want to visit Cyprus, both the southern and northern sides.

I will have to say these places are not very high on my list. It is more likely that I would go to Solenzara first, all because of the following song by Enrico Macias.

 

[Nemo2]

After this trip, you may want to visit Cyprus, both the southern and northern sides.

Haven't been to the Turkish side, but my first Saudi R&R, (April 1982), was to Israel...(indirectly), by ferry from Limassol.

(I hadn't visited Israel 19 years earlier when I was in Syria, Iraq, et al, because one couldn't travel in and out of that country overland from Arab areas. So, I grabbed the first opportunity that offered itself.)

 

[shortstop14]

One Sunday morning in Prague we got up at about 03:00 a.m., showered, ate, got ready, caught the streetcar and arrived at the Charles Bridge at 05:00 a.m.

There were a few drinkers heading home, and then for about two hours we had the whole downtown to ourselves. It was great.

We did the same in Prague, and even over New Years it was peaceful with few tourists early in the mornings. Temperatures did keep us walking briskly, though. It got busier once the holiday markets opened up. New Years Eve was pretty crowded, but fun for a night.

After a few days in Prague, we moved to the Vyšehrad district, which was much more residential and quiet, but with its own castle area to explore.

 

[Nemo2]

We did the same in Prague

We did it in Rome too........had a little room near the main station.....started out by walking down to the Colosseum in the dark....it was closed, but all lit up.

(It's great to feel like you're the only people there......back when I used to run, (in Toronto), in the 1970s, I'd do it before work and was often the only person around..........had a street sweeper drive alongside me one time, and he yelled out to me and told me how fast I was going. )

 

[FUEGO]

After a few days in Prague, we moved to the Vyšehrad district, which was much more residential and quiet, but with its own castle area to explore.

That's the nice, quiet area we found on our last day in Prague! Really nice castle and grounds to explore, along with the church and cemetery and a huge wall around the whole thing. Free to enter and stroll as you like. Very different vibe from the downtown historic area. I wish I would have found it earlier as it was worth a second visit (versus going downtown to the crowds).

 

[shortstop14]

Definitely an advantage in staying in places for longer periods - being able to explore different neighborhoods off the tourist track. You kind of need to see the big attractions (they're usually popular for good reasons), but it's nice to get out and see how the locals live.

I'm not sure if South Island of New Zealand is exactly an undiscovered destination, but it's high on my list of places to return to. We rented a small campervan and just moved clockwise around the island starting in Christchurch, taking about five weeks before taking the ferry to North Island. The fall in NZ was a great time to explore the country.

 

[brett]

There are two types of undiscovered places. Undiscovered, and then undiscovered/now well known to North American and/or European tourists.

 

[DJRR]

Not undiscovered, but I really enjoyed Hong Kong when I visited. Kowloon night market was awesome. You really understand where the old term the Hong Kong Flu comes from when you step into Kowloon and see how the people are stacked in there. Really a lot to see and do for a few days. Good stopping point for other locations around Asia.

Also, you can see Singapore which I consider the Disney version of Hong Kong

 

[Winemaker]

Between my frosh/soph year in college, I worked for 8 months in a coal mine in Wyoming as part of a co-op program. I traveled to a few great places on 5 or 6 weekends I took off. Jackson Hole had 1 blinking yellow light, Steamboat Springs had none, and Denver was just a town. When I returned with the family in the late '90's, I was heartbroken over what had become of these 2 little blips and the Mile High. I sat in bumper to bumper traffic for 90 minutes last year trying to get to the airport from Red Rock Amphithreatre in 4 lanes of traffic going my way last year.

So I ain't telling nobody about my secret spots ever again.

 

[braumeister]

So I ain't telling nobody about my secret spots ever again.

Many of us have similar stories. The first time I visited Colorado Springs, the population was around 140,000. When I moved there for w*rk it was nearly twice that.

I bought a home on a two-lane road that petered out into a dirt road at the south end of town. Today it's a six-lane divided highway, and the population is around half a million.

 

[EastWest Gal]

I've been to Norman Wells, NW Territories, Canada. Not a real touristy place, but very interesting. Plus, it has a museum.



I haven't been to Antarctica, though. I wonder if anyone here has been?

I haven't but I had a neighbor go in the 90s and my niece went for a J-term course in 2012. Cruises leave from Argentina.

 

[EastWest Gal]

I've been to Norman Wells, NW Territories, Canada. Not a real touristy place, but very interesting. Plus, it has a museum.



I haven't been to Antarctica, though. I wonder if anyone here has been?

I haven't but I had a neighbor go in the 90s and my niece went for a J-term course in 2012. Cruises leave from Argentina.