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With the pandemic having put our lives on unprecedented hold, many are dreaming of returning to norm… Who are we lying to? The sole, okay, one of the little things, we truly miss badly is traveling. And I can bet that at any given opportunity, you’d be up and rolling with a fedora to any place in the world just to sip on a pina colada and forget the comfort-turned-hell of your four home walls.

And it’s no secret that many thirsty travelers have must-see travel bucket lists somewhere in the drawer waiting for the borders to open up. For some, it’s Times Square and Hollywood, for others, it’s all about dinner with a view at the Eiffel Tower, but as you’re about to plan your next big post-pandemic trip, you may as well take some good advice from people who have been to those places, but would likely travel back in time to not go there.

So below, ladies and gents, are the most overrated travel destinations shared in one r/AskReddit thread to help us reflect on our sightseeing must-dos before its too late.

#1

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) The Mona Lisa in Louvre in Paris. It's just a small painting hanging quite far away in a really crowded room full of tourists. Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful, iconic painting, but it's not worth visiting the Louvre only for the Mona Lisa. The majority of the other artworks in that museum are more impressive than the Mona Lisa.

cheeseguy_ , Artotem Report

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lenka
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And can be appreciated at leisure, closer to the works and without the sea of phones in your face

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#2

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Dubai.
Unless you're really into spending all day in an air conditioned building, then going to the air conditioned basement to get in an air conditioned car to travel to the air conditioned basement of another air conditioned building in which case, do I have a city for you!

Invunche , themonnie Report

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JennyLaRue
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes! From a business travel point of view, it was great as everything was easy and you can get anything you might be missing from home, but anything to do for leisure or tourism just feels completely synthetic.

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#3

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Hollywood. The most disappointing garbage and pee covered place on earth.

existentialism91342 , Shinya Suzuki Report

#4

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) The peak of Mount Everest. People just pay sherpas to carry all their gear, and navigate the dangerous areas. Many have heated tents. The line to wait to get a picture at the top can be extremely long, and dangerous because people aren’t used to the altitude.

jchanceh9lol , https://www.flickr.com/photos/hagleitn/ Report

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#5

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Pisa.

Besides the small square with the tower where everyone is taking the same stupid joke pic. And guys tryna sell you toys.

The rest of the town is pretty lame. You're in Tuscany, go to ANY small town and you'll enjoy it far more.

patch173 , Ed Webster Report

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lenka
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is true. Pisa is wierd and kinda cool but very much a tourist trap. That said, I had one of my best Italian meals in a tiny restaurant in Pisa. I asked my taxi driver where he takes his wife for thier anniversary. It was reasonably priced, really nice atmosphere and amazingly good food.

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#6

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Hollywood walk of fame. Haven't seen a dirtier road.

mirgyasen , news.com.au Report

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Sum Guy
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And... you are going there to see a walkway with people's names on it

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#7

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Japan has such a romanticized view of France that they actually have a term, "Paris Syndrome", for the sudden shock suffered by Japanese tourists when they see that France isn't how they imagined.

onlysane1 , Pedro Szekely Report

#8

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) I didn’t get anything out of Las Vegas. It was cool to see the themed hotels but besides that it was just an overpriced cultureless soulless city designed to entertain you.

viktor72 , matze_ott Report

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Cupcake168
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2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I have been there 23 years ago, and than you had at least HUGE pools in the morning for you all alone and delicious food for little money. Didn’t spend a single dollar at gambling.

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#9

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Egypt, all the beauty and awe of the ancient civilisation is completely outshone by how absolutely horrible the modern civilisation is. Think of all the worst parts of India and then add sand to it.

PublicOccasion , Michael Ravodin Report

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Elle Malkamäki
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So true! Cairo is horrifying. All the pics you see of the pyramids are taken from this side, if you’re standing on the other side, shithole Cairo is right there in all it’s dirty glory. Whatever you do don’t drink the water!! I forgot on my last day and rinsed my toothbrush under the tap. Never been so ill in my life. The museum is incredible, but full of people trying to scam you.

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#10

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Times square on new years. If you know, you know

LeSenpaii , Anthony Quintano Report

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Sum Guy
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Most new year parties are awful all over the world... the best I have had in the past few years is a bit of alcohol, a fire outside, music and friends. (December is full on summer here)

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#11

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Bali. It was beautiful 10 years ago but now it's been ruined by influencers.

gitwiz89 , Uwe Aranas Report

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Cupcake168
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Same with most famous nature spots on earth. I recently saw a picture of a mountaintop where people stand in a line to get THAT one picture. It’s a pity.

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#12

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Stonehenge. They don't let you get very close to it to help preserve it. Either way you get just about as good a view of it from the Highway going by it as you do by waiting in line and paying to go see it. I appreciate what it represents, but if you put on a youtube video of it you will get a more personal and close experience of it then if you actually go there.

anonymous , mari Report

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Kirsten Kerkhof
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I went there in the mid-90s and I was very disappointed (probably served me right as I should've known). It's a bunch of standing stones in a field. Don't get me wrong, it is incredibly important historically, but ... stones in a field. Plus, Britain is littered with stone circles. This one just happens to be more famous.

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#13

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Oktoberfest

You can get the same brand and amount of beer for a third of the price literally anywhere else in Munich. The carnival rides are also overcrowded and overpriced, the food is decent but also overpriced... I could go on. Oktoberfest is over-everything.

TeaOnWine , 46137 Report

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Cupcake168
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I lived in Munich for a decade and haven’t ever been there. For a reason.

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#14

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) If you're in Dublin, stay away from the Temple Bar area, it's ridiculously overpriced and is not at all what a real Irish bar is like at all

ois2400 , Heather R Report

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Bardhi's Dad
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I have been there, and I like it. As I like beers, Dublin, and Ireland, in general. Btw, I'm from Balkans

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#15

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) UAE, it's the most culturally deficient place you will ever see in your life!!

thatcoolgaydude , earthobservatory Report

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GirlFriday
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I agree completely. It was like they went out of their way to make everything as generic as possible.

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#16

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) That wing mural in Nashville.. there is literally a line that takes an hour to go take a picture with a pair of wings on a wall.

nateisgreat1017 , tripadvisor Report

#17

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) The Taj Mahal. Yes, it's beautiful but it's also overcrowded which ruins any serenity and every thing that there's to see is visible on the pictures you've seen a thousand times before. The inside is dark, surprisingly small and you're rushed through. Agra Fort, overlooking the Taj Mahal, by contrast is equally gorgeous, vibrant and teeming with history. I enjoyed it much more.

misringuette , Christopher John SSF Report

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Raphael Biock
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You see the irony when you visit a place and say 'it's overcrowded', dont you?

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Pipe Kasuko
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It is a beautiful mausoleum to honor a king's love for his favorite wife, who died giving birth to their 14th child. None of the pictures will ever give you the jaw-drop reaction when you stand 100 feet in front of it. The sheer majesty is mind boggling. Amoung many other facts, there is the Quranic scripts around the entrance appear to be the same size even though the top lines are almost 30-50 feet higher than the lower carvings. The dark history has to do with the alleged maiming and/or killing of the 20,000 or so artisans who made the carvings, marble windows, etc. so that they could not ever make a similar or better structure.

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Tigger O
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If you're 'rushed through' that means you're going with a tour group. so much nicer to stay in a nearby hotel, watch the colours of the marble change in the dawn and twilght, and be able to to wander through at your own pace. All those from my small hotel came back moved. But there were three different reactions: 'It's much snaller than i imagined' 'It's so beautiful' ... and/or 'You can feel the love there'. Winter is the best time to go - you avoid the main crowds. Go alone, take your time - and don't miss the side buildings, which are beautiful in their own way.

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Aditya Modi
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Take a guide. The place is full of optical illusions. Its crowded Yes. But you can't experience the Taj Mahal in Photos. I don't fancy man made beauty on my holidays as a matter of fact, but the statement that you can see it in photos is completely untrue.

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Bella10
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The Taj blew me away with it’s up close, intricate beauty. You need to visit at dawn as the gates open and you’ll practically have the place to yourself. The details are what make it so magical. It’s not something you can rush.

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Sabed Hussain
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

its necessary to visit early in morning... during sunrise is best

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Riikka T
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

True! And that’s the only possibility to see it with a ”clear” sky. During the afternoon it’s so foggy that these kinds of pictures are impossible.

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ZimZamBoom
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My mother and I went there and we didn't feel this way at all. It was completely worth it.

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Marianne
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Sounds like a similar experience as Saint Peter's Dome in Rome.

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Nick P
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I totally agree. It's too crowded and you wont be able to enjoy it unless you are a VVIP

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Paul Beebe
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's also surrounded with tons of trash-plastic bags mostly.

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Lisa-Marie Dhondt
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ever since I know it’s not symmetrical, I am mildly horrified by it.

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Paul Aguilera
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The world would be a better place without half the people in it. Team Thanos all the way, Covid would be a blessing if it were deadlier. I honestly believe this.

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#18

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Brussels. If you're in Belgium, visit Ghent and Bruges.

HamiltonSlashLaurens , Sam Greenhalgh Report

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Delgada
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Brussels is actually really nice, especially in the spring. But Bruges is simply magical.

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#19

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Romeo & Juliet balcony & house in Verona, Italy. Pure tourism BS

CharlesBronx , Sarah Report

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JennyLaRue
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This one has always baffled me as surely it's just a random balcony that just happens to be in the town where someone in England wrote a fictitious story that also had a balcony in it.

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#20

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) South Beach/Miami

Over priced bars and clubs, if youre a dude and you dont have a fine group of women with you, be ready to drop serious cash for a night out if youre there. There are better beaches up and down the coast, that wont force you into the terrible traffic and parking SB has.

MrBoliNica , Piutus Report

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Sum Guy
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I can almost see will smith getting s**t while racing martin lawrence

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#21

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) definitely Mallorca - I'm German enough, I don't want to hear 90% German on holiday in Spain as well. The quieter, less central parts of Mallorca are gorgeous, especially for snorkeling and diving, but the Playa de Palma, or at least that part, is horrendously German lol

yeetaliano , Kyle Taylor Report

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If I could I would live under water
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

German here. The island itself is gorgeous and should not be confused with that one place on Mallorca called "Ballermann".

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#22

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Disneyland. It's just a lot of waiting for bad rides.

anonymous , William Warby Report

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Foxxy (The Original)
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I dunno if it's true or not but my mum says Six flags is heaps better than Disneyland.

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#23

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Whatever expectation you have of Roswell, New Mexico- it’s worse

FrontiersWoman , Amy Meredith Report

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Olivier Caissy
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So “Paul” lied to us? https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1092026/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_53

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#24

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Mount Rushmore. It's faces on a rock basically and smaller than you think.

chemaster23 , Jim & Robin Kunze Report

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Sum Guy
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

and in all the pics, they show just what we see above and fail to show that the hill is about 3 times what you see here and when you're on the observation deck, you're far. (I spend way too much on google earth finding places I see on TV)

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#25

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Bourbon Street, New Orleans. It's really just the same as any other bar district in any other large city around the world. Same old cover bands playing the same old songs that you'd hear anywhere. You can experience all you need just by walking down the street for an hour and not going in anywhere.

HappyTimeHollis , Chris Litherland Report

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Anna Banana
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

To me the purpose of Bourbon Street, just like the Red Lights District in Amsterdam, is to host all the loud bachelor/birthday destination parties, letting the others chill in any other bar in the city.

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#26

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Mall of America. It just a Mall with a lot of stuff in it. My opinion would’ve probably be different if I didn't live in Minnesota.

Zabboon , Runner1928 Report

#27

Blue lagoon in Iceland. Always super crowded and you have to book it super early. There are a lot of better lagoons in Iceland that are just as pretty (or even prettier), more isolated, definitely less crowded, and just as "blue".

sunnyy_4 Report

#28

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Bondi beach in Sydney. Overcrowded, everything there is way overpriced

koolkid131 , dronepicr Report

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Foxxy (The Original)
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2 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Seeing as Bondi Beach is the most famous beach in Australia, what do you expect. I wouldn't even bother to go there, especially when we have sooooo many amazing beaches that don't get anywhere as busy.

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#29

I did a Mount Fuji tour in Japan in March. It was hands down the worst part of the trip. No point to go up the actual mountain. It was like 12 hours on a bus. Then I saw it from a train like 3 days later, and that was a better view than anything I got on the tour.

themancp Report

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Draaideur
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2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I disagree, I climbed Fuji-san (in September) on a longer but less crowded track. We started at 20:00 to catch the sunrise at 05:30. The view was breathtaking and only the last part on top got crowded. I wouldn't do it twice, but wouldn't have missed out on the experience either. IMG_201909...f3697d.jpg IMG_20190908_053009-608191cf3697d.jpg

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#30

People Share What Travel Destinations Are Absolutely Overrated (30 Pics) Toyosu Fish Market. The one that replaced Tsukiji as the fish auction central of Tokyo in 2018. You get to watch the auction process, but only if you go early in the morning. And even then, only through small glass windows two stories above the auction block. If there are more than a couple dozen other visitors, you will not be able to see anything.

veotrade , 江戸村のとくぞう Report

Note: this post originally had 46 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.