What is an obscure tourist location you think is underrated?

[Battista Minola 1616]

Given that there recently was a thread about overrated tourist locations, I think it is fair to ask the opposite too. What do you think is an underrated place to visit?

[If my soul was made of stone]

In my youth I used to visit Frederick, Maryland, the "City of Clustered Spires", quite frequently. Its position (and politics, for this set) would seem to indicate that it's just another DC exurb, but it's a very charming and historic town, with a wealth of colonial and Civil War-era history, and plenty of well-maintained architecture in older styles that are still idiomatically American. It's a somewhat common destination to those who are from the region originally, but never seems to catch the eye of anyone visiting from further away.

More infamously, it is the resting place and former home of one of the greatest villains of American history and one of Maryland's most loathsome sons, Roger B. Taney. They removed a statue of him near the city hall a few years back.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

This place is a hoot, as is Bodai-ji in the same prefecture.

[If my soul was made of stone]

This place is a hoot, as is Bodai-ji in the same prefecture.

Is this what olawakandi meant by "Jesus studied with Japanese"?

[Starry Eyed Jagaloon]

Doing these for American tourists, specifically. Some of them are rightfully mobbed with domestic tourists. Obviously, I ignored the "obscure" word entirely.

-The entire island of Taiwan
-The San Juan/Gulf Islands
-The South Jersey Shore (for people not from the Delaware Valley)
-The Driftless Region
-Morelia
-Colombia's Eje Cafetero
-Cornwall
-Milan
-The Costa Brava
-The national parks of Southwestern China
-California's Channel Islands
-The mid-sized cities of the Mid-Atlantic Piedmont (Frederick, York, Hagerstown, etc.)
-Bamberg (over Rothenberg, specifically)

[Pheurton Skeurto]

The farmlands in Lancaster County, PA. A lot of tourists come here for the Amish and the memes about the Amish, but just appreciating the natural beauty of some of the areas out in the sticks around here brings me a lot of joy.

[If my soul was made of stone]

-The mid-sized cities of the Mid-Atlantic Piedmont (Frederick, York, Hagerstown, etc.)

With all due respect, Hagerstown as a tourist destination isn't something that I ever expected to hear anyone extol.

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

-The mid-sized cities of the Mid-Atlantic Piedmont (Frederick, York, Hagerstown, etc.)

With all due respect, Hagerstown as a tourist destination isn't something that I ever expected to hear anyone extol.

Look, it's not any better or worse than Omsk.

[Starry Eyed Jagaloon]

-The mid-sized cities of the Mid-Atlantic Piedmont (Frederick, York, Hagerstown, etc.)

With all due respect, Hagerstown as a tourist destination isn't something that I ever expected to hear anyone extol.

It actually has a sorta charming downtown and great nearby countryside/hiking.

[SWE]

In my youth I used to visit Frederick, Maryland, the "City of Clustered Spires", quite frequently. Its position (and politics, for this set) would seem to indicate that it's just another DC exurb, but it's a very charming and historic town, with a wealth of colonial and Civil War-era history, and plenty of well-maintained architecture in older styles that are still idiomatically American. It's a somewhat common destination to those who are from the region originally, but never seems to catch the eye of anyone visiting from further away.

More infamously, it is the resting place and former home of one of the greatest villains of American history and one of Maryland's most loathsome sons, Roger B. Taney. They removed a statue of him near the city hall a few years back.

I went to Frederick so many times as a kid, it's a really cool town, I absolutely co-sign this.

[Alcibiades]

- Luxembourg City is really very pretty, architecturally and geographically, a fact which is often obscured by its reputation as a staid centre of Eurocracy and banking.
- Bergamo is also very picturesque.
- Slovenia, while not exactly off the beaten track these days, is still relatively unknown in America, I think. It packs almost everything into one small country - beautiful cities, Alpine scenery, and Adriatic coast.
- I haven’t yet been (although I would love to soon), but the Faroe Islands seem genuinely stunning, and a great alternative to Iceland, which has become chock full of tourists.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Orvieto is another good one, especially for people interested in religious architecture. Its cathedral is one of the best in Italy and it has a great restaurant culture and some fascinating underground tunnels to explore, but since it only has about twenty thousand people and has a disproportionately low number of famous former inhabitants, Americans in Italy often pass it by.

[_.]

Outside the U.S., Pakistan

It has incredible levels of natural beauty and striking diversity in geology of historical events, landmarks, and architecture, very hospitable people, and rich cultures and cuisines. They all are also extremely inexpensive places to visit for an American (barring the flight cost).



Lake Saif-ul-Malook in KPK



Mohenjo-Daro in Sindh



Derawar Fort



The capital city Islamabad



A view of the Badshahi Masjid in Lahore



Hingol National Park in Balochistan



The rightly named "Fairy Meadows" in Gilgit-Baltistan

Among many, many more places

There are disadvantages, though, for example, low infrastructure quality, as well as a lack of tourist culture. Many amenities that are basic in the Western world such as internet access and electricity are frequently lost. Also, a local guide is a must-have if you want to visit any part of the country if you have no prior connection.

The security situation has gotten much better in Pakistan over the last few years, so much so that civilian fatalities of terrorists have plunged by 95% since their peak in 2012, and the country is getting better by the day.


I also hear Iran, Turkey, and Central Asia are very great places to visit as well.

[parochial boy]

Kiev, Ukraine - Surprisingly attractive, lot to do, but just a lot of fun. I had a great time when I went, which I wasn't really expecting at all

Durban, South Africa - not one of the big attractions in the country, but it has a really cool chilled out vibe, Zulu and Indian cuisine, and the beaches north of the city are some of the most incredible I have ever visited

Oman - the one gulf country worth visiting, actually has a culture, and jaw dropping scenery

[Pro-Israel, anti-Bibi]

Montenegro.

It's been my international travel wish for a while now.

[Santander]

I also hear Iran, Turkey, and Central Asia are very great places to visit as well.

Turkey (Istanbul and resort towns at least) are extremely popular destinations. Istanbul was the "hip" city to visit for Americans ~5 years ago.

Oman - the one gulf country worth visiting, actually has a culture, and jaw dropping scenery

Most normal people like the UAE's culture.

[TDAS04]

Nova Scotia.  I’m sure the rest of Atlantic Canada is as well.

Also, the San Juan Islands of Washington.

[Santander]

Montenegro.

It's been my international travel wish for a while now.

Good answer.

Galicia (in Spain) is pretty cool, too. So is Alabama.

[John Dule]

Lol, as if I'd tell you people about it.

[Geoffrey Howe]

Orvieto is another good one, especially for people interested in religious architecture. Its cathedral is one of the best in Italy and it has a great restaurant culture and some fascinating underground tunnels to explore, but since it only has about twenty thousand people and has a disproportionately low number of famous former inhabitants, Americans in Italy often pass it by.

The façade, oh dear...

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Orvieto is another good one, especially for people interested in religious architecture. Its cathedral is one of the best in Italy and it has a great restaurant culture and some fascinating underground tunnels to explore, but since it only has about twenty thousand people and has a disproportionately low number of famous former inhabitants, Americans in Italy often pass it by.

The façade, oh dear...

Even if the façade is too much for one (I have maximalist tastes in art so it's not too much for me at all), the spare, contemplative interior more than makes up for it.

I know a woman who swears by Durban (she talks about it as incessantly as I talk about Hakodate or Perugia), and I've wanted to visit some of the sights in western Turkey--Ephesus, Hierapolis, Konya--since seeing a travel documentary about them last year.

[Geoffrey Howe]

Orvieto is another good one, especially for people interested in religious architecture. Its cathedral is one of the best in Italy and it has a great restaurant culture and some fascinating underground tunnels to explore, but since it only has about twenty thousand people and has a disproportionately low number of famous former inhabitants, Americans in Italy often pass it by.

The façade, oh dear...

Even if the façade is too much for one (I have maximalist tastes in art so it's not too much for me at all), the spare, contemplative interior more than makes up for it.

I know a woman who swears by Durban (she talks about it as incessantly as I talk about Hakodate or Perugia), and I've wanted to visit some of the sights in western Turkey--Ephesus, Hierapolis, Konya--since seeing a travel documentary about them last year.

Well my tastes are rather more minimalist (with an exception for High Gothic). Though surprisingly I was somewhat fond of the Christian bit of Cordoba (fonder than Charles V at any rate).

[brucejoel99]

The Everglades in winter.

[Хahar 🤔]

This may be cheating since I was there just a week and a half ago, but I hadn't heard of it before last month, so I assume that most people haven't either. The most scenic drive I've ever experienced is the Mattole Road in the Lost Coast of Humboldt County, California, which runs from Ferndale out by the ocean through Petrolia and thence to Humboldt Redwoods State Park. On one end you have some of the very tallest trees in the world, and on the other you have the prettiest town in all of California. In between you get bucolic views of cows grazing on the slopes of lush green valleys that open out to the endless Pacific Ocean.

The photos you see online are all picturesque, but none of them can really capture the whole experience. The road quality is often poor (in places it's an unfinished road only really wide enough to let one car go at a time) and the location is remote, but even in an exceptionally beautiful part of the country this road stands out.

[If my soul was made of stone]

This may be cheating since I was there just a week and a half ago, but I hadn't heard of it before last month, so I assume that most people haven't either. The most scenic drive I've ever experienced is the Mattole Road in the Lost Coast of Humboldt County, California, which runs from Ferndale out by the ocean through Petrolia and thence to Humboldt Redwoods State Park. On one end you have some of the very tallest trees in the world, and on the other you have the prettiest town in all of California. In between you get bucolic views of cows grazing on the slopes of lush green valleys that open out to the endless Pacific Ocean.

The photos you see online are all picturesque, but none of them can really capture the whole experience. The road quality is often poor (in places it's an unfinished road only really wide enough to let one car go at a time) and the location is remote, but even in an exceptionally beautiful part of the country this road stands out.

I never made it out to Humboldt, but during my sole sojourn to date to the West Coast (to visit my brother in Ashland, OR), I drove all the way along US Route 199 through the Klamath Mountains (road was pretty scary at times) and the redwoods, and then down the coastline to the mouth of the Klamath River. Crescent City was pretty dumpy, especially given that it was April, but the rest of the scenery was gorgeous and pristine, and other people were admirably scarce. A picture that I took at a hill overlooking the Klamath spilling out into the Pacific is still my phone background, although I unfortunately couldn't quite capture the seals that were hanging out on the sand below.