Jocelyn_P

USsnobs (I like your screen name!),

Check out my report from our trip to Verona in May. Search for:

Vendors in Venice, Valpolicella in Verona

There are two threads. The first one was frozen by fodors because I was being accused, very harshly, of being a sort of snob, myself. The nasty stuff was deleted.

jdraper

Looking for a place without many Americans? Try Iraq (well they are there but easy to avoid because they are all in uniform), Iran, Syria, etc. I would think you should be able to immerse yourself in the local culture without running into a lot of Americans in those places. Perhaps saying you wanted less touristy areas would have been more appropriate. In all of my years of travel running into other Americans has never ruined the experience. Good luck finding that ideal location.

paula1470

I would second Ira's reply about some of the regions of France such as Bordeaux, Burgundy, etc. Just returned from Bordeaux recently and saw almost no Americans. I also believe what Suze said, just get off the beaten path a little, go to restaurants that locals frequent and you won't be rubbing shoulders with other Americans. I must also be lucky, even though I was in Paris and London during August I almost never ran into Americans, lots of tourists from other European countries and the Middle East.

suze

topping this interesting thread reiterating my thought that it's not so much where you go it's what you choose to do when you get there.

Chatters

Well, I have been lucky I guess.... because the Americans that we have encountered on our travels to Europe, have been, for the most part, courteous, appreciative, and a pleasure to be around. It makes you wonder....

Toninha

Hello!
An opinion, if you want a romantic holiday in Europe:
Choose PORTUGAL, whith very nice villages, excellent cafes and so on.
You must visit:
Lisbon (Charming city)
Sintra
Aveiro
Bragança
Madeira (http://www.madeira-web.com/)or Açores (http://www.acores.com/)
See
http://www.turihab.pt/
http://www.portugalinsite.pt/

RickyCorrie

I know this forum topic has passed, but for anyone looking for the same type of place, I recommend going to Galicia, Spain.

Galicia is a state in north-western area right next to the atlantic ocean.

The reason I mention Galicia is because it is still undiscovered by tourists from all over the world.

I went on december 2004 and it was the most beutiful place i had been to. It is very Green and Hilly (they call it "Green Spain&quot. It also has alot of history; celtic, roman, bit of moorish, etc.

Some of the city's i suggest are:
-Santiago De Compostella (has a world famous cathedral)

- Lugo (it completely surrounded by and anicent roman walls.

And there are many other VERY SMALL vilages nestled in the mountains. The nice thing about galicia is the Mix of Medieval towns with the Celtic culture and Scenenery. It is a very humble and economic place, and the people are very friendly.

jules4je7

France is a lovely place to go where you won't run into too many Fox-News watching, Bill O'Reilly Republicans.

The ones that are there now (and I'm speaking for ALL of them of course, LOL) are fine examples of Americanism.

I understand not wanting to go somewhere overrun with the people you left the U.S. to escape -- after all, we go someplace foreign so we can see foreign things (at least I do).

Paris is perfect. Just stay out from under the Eiffel Tower at 9 a.m. on a Saturday and most Americans are quite nicely spread out around the city for the small dosage your friend requires.



Jules

Grahamh49

Most people have a poor opinion of their compatriots on holiday; usually fully justified, in my view.
Suggestions, only involving one hop from a major airport to avoid too much hanging about.
Montreux. Train from Geneva
Menorca. plane Madrid or Barcelona
Biarritz. Hubs Paris/Toulouse?

tcreath

I don't see why the question was offensive. There are many Americans on this board who ask for recommendation for places to visit "off the beaten path", which I always assume means they want to go somewhere not flooded with Americans or other tourists. I think Jan's friends are basically asking for the same thing.

I haven't been, but I have heard good things bout Malta, and I don't think its too crowded with the American crowd. Although I don't know about the cafe scene, perhaps they can consider that. When I think of cafe's I usually think of France and Austria. Both have areas that I think aren't as crowded as others. Or perhaps some regions in northern England (such as the lake district)?

Good luck!
Tracy

escargot

I think Prague, like any major city, has lots of tourists including Americans - we were there in spring '04 and couldn't tell you who were Americans or what else, it was delightful, but it certainly has plenty of tourists and isn't the "nice village" but I am not sure what amount of "people watching" you get in small villages - but more of a knowledge of the locals and if it is that remote, less cafes with people watching as I have found most cafes for people watching in major cities. However, we loved Prague. Slojan you asked when did Prague become so popular, and I did notice w// my kids in college, that Prague became in the past 5 yrs a hot semester abroad location for kids looking for something different than what many of them deemd the "usual" of the England, France, Italy choices that seemed to be some of the more common choices before - college kids today travel more and seem to opt for less "touristy" destinations each year, the hot ones this year at my sons school are Tanzania, India, Antarctica and China. So maybe that's part of it but I am guessing.
As said, we loved it and smaller destinations along the Danube from Budapest towards the bend and beyond. But still, how far are they flying from for 5 days? There were some amazing suggestions listed I thought for "less usual" destination spots that I am going to note for someday trips for us !

kleeblatt

Hi SloJan,

Someone mentioned Menorca. We really liked Menorca because of it's beautiful beaches, laid-back non-touristic towns, traditional way of life and the beauty of the island.

We stayed at Club Royal Son Bou. I highly recommend it.

Nikki

I'm thinking Jan's friends have come and gone in the fifteen months since the question was posed.

kleeblatt

Wait. Only go to Club Royal Son Bou Hotel if you have children or don't mind being around children. It's a great family hotel with a children's disco and then a show for adults (magicians, flaminco dancing, etc.) every night. They also offer buffet breakfasts and dinners.

kleeblatt

Thanks Nikki. I saw the word Menorca and started reminiscing.

kvenker

Sorry. The place of my post isn't that!