Why do you visit X or Y?

Old May 22nd, 2017, 07:05 AM
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Why do you visit X or Y?

Often, people post saying they are going to X or Y and ask some version of, 'what should we see or do, what are the must sees, what are the best, etc.'. When I read posts like that, I find myself asking, why or how did they choose to go to that place to begin with if they don't know what they are going to see and do there.

It seems as though they pick places to visit simply because they have heard of the place, it is 'famous' and everyone else goes there. They don't seem to have any real reasons of their own for going. How else can their questions about what to see and do be interpreted?

If I decide to go to X or Y, it is because I have my own specific reasons for wanting to go there. I can't imagine posting, 'I'm going to Europe(or a specific country, region, etc.), where should I visit in my 2 weeks?' How can anyone decide to go somewhere without first having a reason for wanting to go?

So how do YOU decide where you want to go and why?
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 07:21 AM
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I understand your question, and I sometimes wonder why people chose a particular city to visit when they seem to know very little about it.

That said we tend to randomly pick an area to visit.

Last year we went to Brittany, because we have never been. We knew very little about the area, but with a guide book we got around and saw a lot of it, and not just the coast. The year before we did the same thing in Provence and north eastern Germany (two trips!)
We went to the SW of the US and to the Pacific Northwest, because we had never been, and wanted to see what was there. We drove Route 66 because we could, not for anything along the way. We use guide books and a good paper map to find things of interest to us.

But we don't visit cities, don't feel the need to tick off museums and monuments, and generally just take it easy and if we find something interesting along the way that is great but just the journey of itself is enough for us.

Our holidays would be most Fodorites idea of hell, but that's OK, each to his own.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 07:26 AM
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<It seems as though they pick places to visit simply because they have heard of the place, it is 'famous' and everyone else goes there. >

What's wrong with doing this, exactly?
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 07:31 AM
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To clarify:

I always wanted to see London and Paris and Rome because I had heard about them my whole life, they're famous, and everyone goes there.

I could justify myself after the fact by saying, oh, but I knew the names of the museums I wanted to see, or the parks I wanted to stroll, or whatever, but I knew about those through reading and movies and what have you.

This seems like an effort to distinguish between the sheeple who are tourists, and me who are a TRAVELER, a premise I can't abide.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 08:23 AM
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It's a genuine question NewbE and intended exactly as asked. Don't try to suggest what some 'hidden agenda' motivation for asking it might be. Just take it as read.

There is a current thread which is a perfect example of what I am talking about. It basically says, 'We are going to Switzerland for a week, what are the best places to visit?'

So my question is how did this person decide to visit Switzerland in the first place? Threw a dart at a map?

Hetismij2, I understand what you are saying but I don't know if I buy that it is quite as 'random' as you suggest. Something had to have got you to choose Brittany, etc. I can't imagine Brittanny ever even coming up on my own radar for example but I also know that I could hear or read something tomorrow that suddenly puts it on my radar. See what I mean? It has to get on your radar somehow.

NewbE, there may be nothing wrong with wanting to visit a place because you have heard of it and it is 'famous'. I suppose my question would be is 'famous' alone enough though?

Perhaps to clarify then I need to say if that was why you chose a place, then would you choose to post and ask others, 'what should I do when I get there?' Wouldn't what you had heard about it that made it 'famous' be the answer to that question?

'I want to visit Paris because it is famous and I want to see the Eiffel Tower, shop on the Champs Elysee, visit the Louvre and stroll along the Left Bank, etc.'

To me, going somewhere because it is 'famous' and THEN posting, 'what should I do when I get there' sounds like a decision made on nothing BEYOND 'I've heard of it, it's famous.'

Famous simply means 'known by many people'. That's all it means. Famous does not mean it will be of interest to any given individual. So how can it be reason enough on its OWN to decide to visit a place? Do you not first have to determine if what it is famous for is of interest to you? To do that, do you not need to know more than just that it is known to many people and is therefore 'famous'?
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 08:28 AM
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My reasons have varied over many decades. I first wanted to "get under my belt" some of the famous places - why not? Then I traveled to more unusual places to test out my language proficiency and at the same time see places that weren't on most people's radar. Now I travel to wherever it's least expensive to go to, because we have so many options where we live. So yes, people do just randomly choose to visit a place without having a particular draw to it. It's only recently that that has been a way of travel for me, and I can't see people doing it if they have few chances to travel abroad or are coming from far away and paying hefty airfares,, but for the slim minority of people like us who can float all over Europe for very little money, sure, we go places without knowing a whole lot about them in advance. Of course, we do copious research in guidebooks and on the internet once we think we've selected a place we want to visit.We don't ever just fly by the seat of our pants.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 09:02 AM
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I agree with you dogeared, I can't understand why a person would choose a place to visit without knowing what they want to do/see/experience there. While any of us might benefit from suggestions from a local or someone who has visited often, I think those suggestions are only useful if a person knows what (in general) they want to do in the place they have chosen.

This questions seem to me like they might be re-worded to "What am I interested in?" If the poster doesn't know, we really can't help them.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 09:09 AM
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Similar to StCirq my reasons have evolved over the decades. I took my first solo trip to Europe when I was a college grad. I signed up for a Contiki tour on a bus that went to 11 countries in 21 days. At the time it was a grand adventure to me but looking back it was a perfect "sampler" so that I could get a introductory feel for each country and then return years later when I could devote more time to get in depth.

When I visit a new country I still visit the most "well known" cities and see the "top" destinations but I also spend plenty of time in lesser known parts of those famous cities to get a feel. Part of me doesn't want to miss the top destinations but now that I have more experience traveling I can imagine what it's like. i.e., the Louvre in Paris is a must-see but the room with the Mona Lisa is a mob scene with people elbow-to-elbow trying to take selfies with a painting that's much smaller than they've imagined. I end up spending less time at the "must" places but then linger in other places that aren't as well known but are more meaningful to me.

For example, Vatican City was massively packed and felt like a factory tour. Alternatively, the Borghese Gallery was equally impressively and much more my pace. And I love Caravaggio paintings so I was excited to see the ones housed at the Borghese Gallery.

I think where you decide to go and why is entirely up to you. I always like to read about the top 10 destinations but then I'll decide which of those places I'd like to visit. My husband and I love to eat and try new foods so a lot of what we do centers around food so we use that to guide our itinerary. We're also very driven by activities and experiences so we're drawn to experiences in which we can participate.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 09:20 AM
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We have many reasons for choosing places. Some even make sense.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 10:41 AM
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In the case of Switzerland, I can imagine that someone would want to visit on the basis of the stunning photos they've seen, or because they read (or saw) Heidi. They might have no idea where they should go to see these beautiful spots. I suppose my first visit to Switzerland was based on some such vague idea. However, I did read up before going.

Even now, I have some vague ideas of places I'd like to visit. I've never been to Norway and have a vague idea of seeing a fjord or two. I have an idea, based on almost nothing, that I'd like Budapest, or Krakow. And, vaguest of all, I'd kind of like to visit India.

I'm with NewbE on this: I can't abide this tourist/traveler delusion.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 11:34 AM
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I don't think it matters why a person chooses a place, but it is difficult to advise on what to see and do with no relevant information. No point telling someone where the best shopping is if they hate to shop, or where the best hiking is if they hate to hike. If it is just major sights, then any guide book will tell them that.

However, the question is how do we choose?

When I was younger, it was places and things that I had studied in school, but especially Greek and Roman Architecture and Sculpture, so Rome and Athens were high on the list. Being an Art major, Art history minor lead to a desire to see home and towns of famous artists and museums, so The Netherlands and Florence.

Now, I know I like more exotic (at least to me) cultures, so Turkey was on my list and I still want to go to Morocco. We visit palaces more, museums less.

Often I read a book or article or see a movie or read a trip report that triggers an interest. That changes day to day. It is more random and depends on time and money, like, "Crete looks beautiful. Let's go. Or let's see where Doc Martin was filmed."

Finally, as we get older, we still do some sight seeing, but hardly any museums. I look for places where we can have dinner, outside by fountains with music playing, with a beautiful view or in a beautiful square or piazza, etc. That has become a bigger part of our trips.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 12:03 PM
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It seems as though they pick places to visit simply because they have heard of the place, it is 'famous' and everyone else goes there. They don't seem to have any real reasons of their own for going>

Those are reasons of their own for them. Where did you go on your first trip to Europe - off the path places or Paris, Rome, London, etc. Places friends have gone and they have heard about their whole lives.

and they come here and apparently clueless ask 'what are the best places to go to?' they want to know what others liked and that is understandable to me.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 12:07 PM
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RICK STEVES! love the videos to get ideas, love the guides to plan the trips. He's been my Europe travel muse for about 20 years now.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 01:32 PM
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Neither one of us has had any real interest in going to Spain. We've looked at it a couple of times, but ended up elsewhere. We try to go for 2.5 -3 weeks, I put a lot of time into trip planning, and just wasn't feeling Spain.

Last fall we had an extra single week and wanted to go somewhere. Madrid had the cheapest airfares of all, by far, I found us a reasonably priced apartment, and it seemed like an ideal way to suss out whether we wanted to pull the trigger and spend more time there.

So that's how we decided to go to Madrid, a place we had no real interest in going to, because it was cheap, and there was minimal commitment in terms of planning time.

Totally and completely out of character!
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 01:37 PM
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Sugar maple,
How did you like Spain? Any time outside Madrid? Spain was one of the last countries we visited in Europe, and we were sorry we had not made it sooner. We have returned several times and love it.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 01:42 PM
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It depends.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 05:55 PM
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Sex. If there is a remote chance of meeting NYCsnob.
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Old May 22nd, 2017, 09:22 PM
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Thanks for the interesting topic!

I was lucky enough to have been born to a father with Wonderlust. He moved his bride to Saudi Arabia in 1948 for a job, started a family, stayed there for 18 years, and travelled every year. Every other year we would have a "long leave" of 3 months, and we would literally circle the globe, spending time in Europe, the USA, and Asia. In between the long leaves, we would have a "short leave" of 2 weeks that we would typically spend in Egypt or Lebanon.

As a result, by the time I was 13 years old and my father retired and we moved to the US, there wasn't a lot of the world that I hadn't at least stepped foot in. But travel and expatriate life was definitely in my bones or in my blood. When on my own, I spent a year in school in Paris, and then I was stationed in Germany for 3 years with the Army. I now live in Germany.

But I am almost immune to that notion that I "need" to see something or "have to" travel somewhere. I feel really almost no pull of the unknown or unexplored.

But when I do travel somewhere new, I do the research. I am going to a few places in Germany next month, and I bought 3 guidebooks to help me with my daily plans and itinerary. I also spend a LOT of time at the website of each town to learn about tours and history and historical sites.

As for the decision on where to go ... these days, it's normally a visit to somewhere that has special meaning to me. My normal trips are to Montreux, Switzerland, where my sister and I attended boarding school, and to Paris. Trips to my past, when the world was young.

My visits to Germany next month were decided as a way to get into Germany's past: Aachen (Dark Ages Germany), Trier (Roman Germany), Baden-Baden (Germany in the Romantic Age), and Regensburg (Medieval & Roman Germany). I have lined up historical tours and cathedral tours.

s
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Old May 23rd, 2017, 06:12 AM
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I think the kind of posts I am talking about can be summed up with what Kathie wrote, "This questions seem to me like they might be re-worded to "What am I interested in?" If the poster doesn't know, we really can't help them."
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Old May 23rd, 2017, 07:09 AM
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I completely understand what you're saying dogeared.
If I am going to a place I have never been before I
Google everything I can get on it and then look at guidebooks. This help me to decide what to see and do.
Then I check the country on this forum and look up all the threads on it.
I can't understand all the vague posts about what to see in a whole country. Like 'I'm going to Italy what can I see and do there'. I want to say get some info, narrow things down and then ask your questions.
I choose countries because I have an interest in things there. I have gotten interested in World War II and have been to a few concentration camps, cemetaries, battlegrounds etc.
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