Up for discussion: travel disappointments and pleasant surprises
Tell me where you loved and where you didn't!
I wasn’t planning to post again this week but I’ve been thinking about travel all day today (I’m flying to Copenhagen tomorrow, writing a travel piece for a magazine as we speak and simultaneously trying to plan a holiday with my boyfriend and a trip away with my ma) so I thought I’d open it up as a discussion.
I haven’t been anywhere for a long time (believe it or not, my last beach holiday overseas was in 2017), so wanting to go everywhere means I can’t decide which destination to focus my efforts on. Greece, Portugal, France, Italy? Somewhere entirely different?
It’s hard to know where to start when there are so many options, especially when you’ve possibly seen some turquoise sea on an Instagram reel and decided to book a trip on that basis, but you didn’t see the 3,600 people sardining on the beach behind the person holding the camera.
I tried one of these ‘ask the audience’ type posts when I first joined Substack and had about 23 subscribers. Unsurprisingly, no one responded (OK, one person did) and I felt about as cool and relevant as you can imagine. In fact, it was so embarrassing that I archived it afterwards. If you follow me on Instagram though, you’ll know I *love* to crowdsource obscure information and ask people to send me their recommendations or opinions on things on everything from blenders to natural deodorant. Well, this is me doing that again.
My question is this:
Where have you been (anywhere in the world) that exceeded your expectations? And where have you been that didn’t live up to them?
I’ll tell you a couple of mine….
I’m sorry to say it but I’ve been to Berlin quite a few times now (a couple of friends lived there) and although the coffee and food scenes were good, I’ve always found it a bit depressing aesthetically and it hasn’t hit the spot for me. Other people seem to fall in love with it on the first visit and want to move there. I feel the same about Margate (a seaside town in the UK). Everyone seems to love it but I don’t feel the spark, for similar reasons to Berlin.
Antwerp – I loved it! It’s small and walkable, has a great design scene, so many good antique and vintage shops, a couple of cool hotels (I can suggest some if anyone is planning a trip?), beautiful architecture and the train station alone is worth getting the Eurostar for. It’s also cooler than Brussels in every way, yet it’s less hyped as a city break destination than its capital cousin.
I’ve also had great experiences in Marrakech and LA – both destinations that everyone predicted I’d hate (the hassle, the traffic) but that wasn’t my experience. I loved them and have been multiple times!
Leave me a comment below and let me know where you loved (and maybe hadn’t expected much from) and where was a bit of a letdown. I know any answers below (please don’t leave me hanging…) are only representative of one person’s experience and maybe they got lucky/unlucky, but I love to hear your opinions and you can be honest – I’m not judging.
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This is my kind of discussion!
If we’re talking cities - Copenhagen is my absolutely favourite. It’s the only city I could imagine myself living in. I also loved Reykjavik, Athens and LA.
I much prefer a slower pace of travel though, and am mostly drawn to coastal or rural locations when I travel.
Taormina in Sicily was a big disappointment for me - I’d fallen for photos of Isola Bella I’d seen online, but in reality it’s overcrowded and covered in litter. The town is pretty, but it’s very touristy and I was mainly there for a beach that I really didn’t love. And I was stung by a jellyfish.
I adore the south-east coast of Mallorca, around Santanyi, Cala Llombards, Calo del Moro (visit in shoulder season - it was quiet and dreamy late April last year). But I found Valdemossa and Deia to be overhyped and a bit of a let down. I imagine if you’re staying at the Belmond it’s beautiful and peaceful, but even in April the main towns were full of tourists and there just wasn’t much to see.
Croatia always exceeds my expectations. The water is crystal clear there. The islands I have visited (Vis and Mljet) were both beautiful. There’s a secret spot I can’t share with anyone on the mainland which is possibly my favourite place in the world. Dubrovnik, Split, Hvar etc are very busy, but it’s easy to drive along the coast or catch a ferry somewhere peaceful, beautiful and that most people have never heard of.
I had a wonderful two weeks island hopping in the Greek Cyclades recently, and completely fell in love with both Athens and the islands. Following a very disappointing trip to Santorini a few years ago (for a family wedding, not by choice, but it’s the most overhyped place I’ve ever visited) I had written off Greece but I’m glad I returned. There are so many beautiful islands to discover; I now have a long, long list and am already thinking I want to go back this year. Hydra is next on my list - I think you’d like it there too.
I’m going to stop there because this is getting VERY long, but please feel free to message me for more travel tips. I love to waffle on about places I love, overhyped destinations/over tourism and my long, long list of places I dream of visiting ……
Japan ! Fantastic on so many levels Best trip I’ve done back in 2017. Can share my itinerary if interested. We went in November/December out of season. Cold but sunny. No queues. Magnificent