Asheville NC and specifically the Biltmore Estate. The tourism officials for Asheville have done a bang up job to entice visitors. Problem was we couldn't find anything to do after 9pm (except watch the rats scurry around the town square). Naturally we did the Biltmaore tour, but that too was disappointing because most of the rooms were completely or partially roped off. You could only see bits and pieces of the mansion and some areas were totally off limits. For $33 per person, I expected more!

Great Thread!<BR><BR>My vote would be for the "Coral City" (that may not be the exact name) in Miami, Fl. It is a large garden/home built of Coral. What makes it unique was that it was built by one man and of course, "NO ONE KNOWS HOW HE DID IT!"<BR><BR>Anyway, we were visiting Miami and my mother had seen something about it on TV and this is all she talked about and this was where we had to go. <BR><BR>So we went - 12 years later we are still kidding her about what a terrible place it was.<BR><BR>

Above - its the coral castle, I believe. I haven't been there, but am not surprised its a rip.<BR><BR>I'm sure they've already got a lot of credit above, but I'd like to add Myrtle Beach - godawful collection of ugliness, t-shirt shops, and mini-golf. Unbelievably depressing and sad, and Epcot centre - a boring ripoff that isn't even worth the humor value of comparing bad fake french restaurants to france.<BR><BR>Walt Disney World itself probably also belongs on this list. High prices, mobs, and not that interesting. I liked it when I was a kid, but I hadn't seen much at the time. As an adult its lame.<BR>

Atlantic City is the most overhyped tourist destination. It's a bunch of ugly, gaudy casinos set on the edge of a ghetto. The people who hang out there have no class - everyone walks around in sweatsuits, chain-smoking and drunk. The boardwalk is full of beggars and scary weirdos who follow you around.<BR><BR>This is coming from someone who loves Coney Island AND Vegas!

OK, my gosh - so much fodder ! Here goes:<BR><BR>New Orleans: Don't even bother going to Bourbon St, except for a curious walk through (better in AM before the booze flows and the hucksters arrive). Plenty of good hotels (stick with big chains - Marriott is nice). Lot's of history preserved in Garden District and Franch Quarter. Must get off beaten path to really enjoy it. Audubon Park (inc Zoo) are fun for all. The Jazz and Heritage festival is great. Be smart - DON'T VIST DURING MARDI GRAS AND STAY OUT OF BACKSTREET NEIGHBORHOODS WHERE CRIME IS VERY HIGH !<BR><BR>Wisconsin Dells: Tourist trap central - did find it nice in Winter, hiking at State Park nearby.<BR><BR>Frankenmuth, MI: Chicken dinners are tasty and relaxing, served Family Style. Nothing like watching a game in one of the public areas after a 2 hr long, all you can eat meal. Great way to spend a Sunday - not a total waste of time. Touristy, but not a fascade - settled and populated by Bavarian Germans.<BR><BR>DisneyWorld - Where else can you go to Germany, England, Asia, Africa without leaving our sunny shores ? Hey, you want to go to New Orleans, that is here too - but is the sanitized version any fun ? Is it real or is it virtual - the distinction fades. Fun for kids (once), but adults who keep comming back on their own accord should get checked for a life.<BR><BR>Hampton Beach NH, TN (whole State, except Memphis), Maine (whole state, but especially Arcadia NP and Bar Harbor) - don't waste your time.<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR>

I hate to mention a great West Coast icon, but my wife and I both did NOT enjoy the Monterey Aquarium.<BR><BR>(Pause for the boos and hisses to die down.) When we visited last Sept., it was on the final half of a LA-SF, several-day trip up Hwy 1. Loved Santa Barbara, Morro Bay, McWay Falls in JF Burns State Park, and got to the Monterey Peninsula, where we spent two days.<BR><BR>We went to the aquarium. Saw a tank with fish. Another one with fish. One with jellyfish. Exhibits showing nature things. One about the Monterey Bay area. There was a nifty little beach aviary, though.<BR><BR>After we came out, we looked at each other, and quitely confessed our disappointment(s). We dared not speak out loud....<BR><BR>Hey, I know! It's an aquarium--fish--what did I expect? <BR><BR>I guess something to live up to the hype. And, perhaps, the price...<BR><BR><BR><BR>

Hi, oh you are so brave to state what's true about the aquarium. My kids did not like it either. Maybe something about captive fish. Left for lunch after 1 hour and they asked if we HAD to go back. Didn't return. Went to the beach and saw the real wildlife. Grew up at the beach and have seen plenty of real tidepools myself so no big deal. Ah there I've said it.

For me, the Aquarium at Monterey Bay was the only thing worth seeing in Monterey. I loved the deep-sea exhibit. Where else would you learn about shrimp that are translucent and glow in the dark? The rest of Cannery Row stunk. Such a tourist trap, and no good food either.<BR><BR>I did *not* enjoy Morro Bay at all. Everyone said it was so beautiful, a must-stop on the CA coast. I thought the town was ugly and dirty, worn down by sand and wind and no one has bothered to clean it up. (Except for that two-block strip of high-end restaurants.) My biggest problem is this: Why did someone build a huge refinery on the coast, right in front of the big ole rock? The big steel towers just mar the view. What a disappointment.

Wendy, you are right about the deep sea part of the aquarium. That was pretty cool but not enough for the hassle and cost.

Anyone ever visited Branson MO? Talk about a cardboard hillbilly camp without a soul! I think they invented the T-shirt shop there. And Bob Evans must have been a home town hero, because you can't swing a dead cat without hitting one of his restaurants.<BR><BR>There's not an attraction in town that isn't scornworthy. This place should be renamed "Clampettville".

Has anyone mentioned Memphis, TN? We went for the Memphis in May festival and it was a disgusting bunch of rednecks who got drunk and cooked ribs. Graceland I wasn't surprised about but the city as whole was horrible. Dirty, nasty and unappealing. Beale Street was just one lousy street with a few blues and rib joints. The ducks at the Peabody was the highlight of the trip.....need I say more?!? I couldn't wait to go home.........and unless forced I won't go back!

Rednecks, drinking and ribs!!!<BR><BR>Now I know why my buddy moved there! Gotta give him a visit!

That's a power plant at Morro Bay, not a refinery. And Monterey is the gateway to one of the most beautiful land and seascapes in the world. Just stay off Cannery Row. Try a kayak next time!

<BR>An attraction that is a lousy fiasco on its own merits and the boldest tourist trap ever seen is the so-called “Monterey State Historic Park”, which Fodor’s Guide describes as a “beautifully preserved collection of adobe buildings … [like] the Custom House, built by the Mexican government in 1827, and where Commodore John Sloat raised the American flag over the building in 1846 and claimed California for the United States”. Baloney! It’s a set of dry-wall buildings indeed, with steel structure erected thirty years ago. I think all those fake adobe buildings are the most hyped pieces of historical garbage in America.

My vote goes to Sea World in Orlando. We visited on a Saturday in April. Too many strange people or, as my husband put it, "...a breading ground for the Jerry Springer show." The restaurants were a mob scene with waits on the food lines of over an hour. Take my advice and SKIP IT, not worth the money.

Williamsburg, Virginia - boring, boring and overpriced! Maybe it was because I was pregnant - it was a little hot - but this unbelievably overpriced history class needs some work. Yes it is pretty and yes it is "historic" but you can only take so much. We had dinner in one of their little old restaurants - in the basement. The food was awful and such a small portion for the price. Didn't get to go to Busch Gardens - maybe that would have improved our stay - but I don't recommend this trip.

Loved Chattanooga with the kids in October. Really. It was a pleasant surprise!! You will be tempted to visit the historic Chattanooga Choo Choo - DONT DO IT!!! There are so many fun things to do in Chattanooga, it is a shame they are best known for this lousy excuse for a tourist attraction.<BR><BR>Elsewhere, BUBBA GUMPS Restaurants are definately worthy of SKIPPING as are RAINFOREST CAFEs. Food was just garbage in both cases.<BR><BR>A one day trip to NANTUCKET is worth SKIPPING... spend a week and plan to do very little if you want to get the most of this place... <BR><BR>On aquariums... for some reason we have been to several this year... MONTEREY WAS THE WORST - too expensive and too spread out. CHATTANOOGA WAS THE BEST. (Really) NEWPORT KY was awesome for sharks and gators. SHEDDS was great but I can't believe I am saying this, but CHATTANOOGA was better... their giant wall design beats them all.<BR><BR>Enjoy your travels!

Any religious shrine made out of trash. I know it sounds strange, but I've seen more than on - my mother made sure we every one in the midwest.<BR><BR>Some priest, brother, or nun goes wacko and builds the stations of the cross or the nativity out of concrete, inlaid with trash (marbles, coins, broken glass, doll parts). The someone decides it would be great to open it to the public.<BR><BR>I sweltered through more of these in the summers of my childhood than I care to admit. There was one near the Six Flags in St. Louis, so every trip to Six Flags had to include a visit to the "shrine 'o trash."

Cooperstown/Baseball Hall of Fame. We are all big baseball fans, but found it boring. Sure, a shrine to many great old players, but the presentation left much to be desired - you can only stare at old uniforms, bats, names on plaques for so long.

"Alpine" Helen, Georgia--you couldn't pay me enough to go back! One or two grim blocks of dusty shops decked out in ersatz Bavarian cutwork and circus colors, awful, awful food everywhere you turn, and a host of depressing "cabin resorts" to choose from, any one of which gives you an authentic taste of what it would be like to actually live in Hooterville. Avoid it at all costs!