Recently Reddit and Russian blogosphere were discussing world’s biggest tourist traps. Rome, Athens, Venice, and Paris were topping the list. Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Cape Code were the American cities on the list.
I haven’t been to every place on the list, but I have been to many. And I cannot say I was utterly disappointed with any particular place. Every really popular place will suffer from having too many tourists: smell of urine, garbage, overpriced food… But if you live like a local – off season, live in an apartment, walk around town slowly, talk to people and make friends – every place will offer its charms.
Take Hawaii, for example. When I first got there, I thought it was very overrated – muggy, hot, crowded, terrible and expensive food. But once I got outside of Waikiki and ended up living in Honolulu, I fell in love with the place, its people, and yes, its food. Same could be said of Paris or Venice, or any other place.