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!

The alleged "Old Town Alexandria" in Alexandria, Virginia gets my vote. What is old-town about a Banana Republic and a Restoration Hardware? And, oh yeah, an Ann Taylor and a Crate and Barrel outlet? The wait for a mediocre restaurant on a summer evening isn't worth it, and the cobblestone sidewalks lead you from one uninteresting "antique" store to another. The view across the Potomac overlooks the Blue Plains Treatment Facility. I live nearby, and cringe when visiting family and friends want to see Old Town.

I am a sports junkie. Go to all the venues I can when I travel. But I must say that Chicago, for being the home of the great Wrigley Field, has a horrible place to watch hockey and basketball. The United Center might be my least favorite sporting venue in the country.

New Orleans. Bourbon Street no longer offers great jazz and blues. The French Quarter and, to a lesser extent, the Garden District are worth a look but don't plan a visit to NOLA just for Bourbon Street.<BR>Miami-to-Key West. The drive is tedious and scenery just average. Fly into Key West and enjoy one of the more unique destinations in the U.S.

Please forgive the whiney post but...<BR><BR>How did anybody manage to travel to Gatlinburg, TN or Cherokee, NC or Branson, MO without knowing they were headed for a hillbilly hellhole? <BR><BR>and...<BR><BR>The rooms are roped off at the Biltmore House for the same reason they don't let you touch the paintings at an art museum. Duhr.

San Jose, don't bother.

Meteor Crator in Arizona, DON'T BOTHER,<BR>after visiting the Grand Canyon and Sedona we figured we would check this place out. First of all it is in the middle of NOWHERE, second it's a privately owned place, don't remember what it cost to enter (think it was $10) and it <BR>is just a big hole in the ground. Even if it was free it's a total waste of time. There is only one outside observation point and again it's only a big hole in <BR>the ground. They have some old NASA stuff inside to make the place resemble a museum but again bogus. Then the have the typical gift shop selling garbage.<BR>I've traveled all over the U.S. and this is without a doubt the biggest waste of time I've encountered........

This is too much fun not to comment.Pigeon-god-awful-Forge unless you are into wife-beater t-shirts, beer guts, tatoos and Jerry Springer. Ditto for Gatlinburg, unless you rent a little cabin WAY up on a mountain w/hot tub and lots of alcohol<BR>What about CRACKER BARREL? <BR>Please throw in Daytona Beach, ugh.And Ft. Myers Beach. They have ruined Florida- read some Carl Hiassen novels/articles please.

I'd say Orlando and all of Florida, 'cuz it's people like me that go there and whine about the humidity and how much everyting costs. I must be livin under a rock, cuz I had no idea it was a touristy, over-priced place! <BR><BR>Then there's the Biltmore House in Asheville. There's all these dumb white-bread Northeasterners who think it's all historic and fancy, when in fact it's only one hundred years old and only built to appear old. And if you think Asheville is the place to be, then obviously you've never been anywhere at all. No, not because of the rednecks, it's just a slightly industrial town (see Northern towns).

And, Patooty.

If you're coming through Houston and decide to come down to Galveston for the day, you've just wasted your day. I LIVE here and I hate it. Too dirty and run-down...and who likes brown sand & water? This town leaves up dilapidated buildings forever. It wouldn't look as bad as it does if the city would condemn and tear the buildings it needs to. Of course, then the island would be desolate! Ha! The train museum used to be a neat place, but ever since some guy bilked them out of a bunch of money the place is a dump. And I mean A DUMP. If you like to stroll and shop, the Strand area ia ok...ok for about an hour or so and then you're done. Moody Gardens is ok for a short visit, but I don't think it's worth going out of your way for...not to mention it's WAY over-priced. And the Grand Prize for tackiness on this island goes to The Flagship Hotel that sits out over the water. The one with the ugly mermaids on the side. Gawd, exactly WHAT was someone thinking? The city is trying to unload that property and they can't GIVE it away!!! If you go south on I-45 out of Houston, you are DEFINITELY headed in the wrong direction. Yes I know about Nasa, but that's not the same anymore after the terrorist attacks (can't see as much). Oh, and by the way, what exactly would bring you to the 2nd worst city in Texas (Houston)?<BR><BR>From someone who can't wait to move later this year!

Dear Galvestonian...<BR><BR>I was in Galveston for 6 years, then Houston for 5. I am gone from there now and I understand how you feel.<BR><BR>Oh, and why didn't you mention the "tar removal stations" at the entrances to the beach hotels. You know, where you use that solution to get the tar/oil from the beach off of your feet so it won't soil their carpeting. We can thank all of the Bush's and other cronies for the beautiful oil rigs you can see off in the Gulf. <BR><BR>Glad they decided against Dubya's proposal of drilling for oil along the Florida Gulf Coast, and the Great Lakes. I think Alaska is still on the drawing boards though. :-(<BR><BR>Just my two-cents worth.<BR><BR>Happy Trails,<BR>Paul

Paul, you better hope we drill for more oil in our own country or you will pay $5 a gallon for gas pretty soon the way things are going in the middle east. Oh, and I hope you live in texas where you won't need any heat because you won't be able to afford it any more. You liberals idiots will be the first ones wanting the government to subsidize your oil consumption when it gets too expensive, but OHHH, don't drill for oil in the US!

Dear "Need Oil" - *HA*<BR><BR>Perhaps you should read your response you wrote me again and listen to what an idiot you sound like. "Left" or "Right" thinking plays no mind when we are conversing on a travel forum regarding beache quality. Wonder why Florida and Michigan both put up a stink and said "no" to drilling in their fine water coasts.<BR><BR>Perhaps the budget cuts in Bush's (Spence Abraham's) energy policies regarding research and development of alternative energies were in response to his friends and family members own "personal interests." Also, Spence lost his congressional seat last year, and so that qualifies him to be energy secretary, I guess.<BR><BR>I'll remind you of this next year when Japan (once again) is ahead of the Big 3 with their fully functional/affordable hydrogen fuel cell automobiles. Look for them next year at your local dealerships. <BR><BR>BTW - I live in the Detroit area and KNOW what is going on. You need to read up or shut up!<BR><BR>Happy Trails,<BR>Paul

First, of course, not everything appeals to all people. I've seen some things mentioned that I enjoyed (Disney World, Rocky Mountain Park to name a few). Also, I feel like distance travelled and money spent matter. A lot of people are knocking Salem, but I think it could still be OK for a daytrip, but if I planned a week long trip and took a plane to get there I would be disappointed.<BR><BR>So, my contributions:<BR><BR>I agree with Plymouth Rock - very small and disappointing.<BR><BR>I agree with the Cheers bar in Boston. Fans of the show won't see a thing that looks like Cheers and I found the staff rude to bbot.<BR><BR>Hot air balloon ride in Napa - took forever to get up in the balloon. Was fun for the first 10 mins., then boring. Spent way too much money.<BR><BR>Sorry, this isn't US, but the Eiffel Tower. You wait in an hour line to get in the elevator. After the elevator ride that only goes halfway up you have to wait in another line to take a different elevator to the top. All the while the people are rude and trying to cut in line. Very disappointing.

I don't like cruises. Once was enough - to anywhere!

I agree totally, Happy.<BR>Different strokes for different folks, I guess, huh.

Wisconsi Dells-hands down-is one of the tackiest places I have ever been to. I've been there several times since my dad owns a condo north of town. Developers took a beautiful area and with no regards to trying make it a somewhat classy place to visit instead slapped as many junky tourist traps as possible along the main strip. Plus, we have yet to find a decent restaurant. How many times can you eat burgers and chees curds?

A Broadway play at full price. Get your tickets at the ticket booth in Times Square day of performance. For some shows, they can't give them away!<BR><BR>Not in the US, but the Acropolis in Athens. YOU CAN'T GET CLOSE TO IT because it's decaying. Crowded, a difficult climb, can't take pictures because of the crowd. Save the money and aggravation. Look at it from anywhere you may be in Athens. It's high on a hill and can't be missed.

New Orleans---for all the reasons stated above.<BR>Plymouth Rock--what a laugh!!!

Gastown in Vancouver BC!<BR><BR>It's not in the States but we get tons of visitors from Seattle and the Alaskan cruise ships so I want to warn you about Gastown. <BR><BR>It's a "heritage" redesign for the tourists. The architecture is pretty but the souvenir shops are overpriced and lousy. Nothing opens before 10 am, not much stays open past 6, the restaurants are terrible except the expensive Continental ones that do dinner only. And what's with the famous steam clock?? I get such a laugh watching the tourist hordes videotaping this thing - which by the way is usually broken. Gastown really isn't very interesting. Locals don't go there because it's just for tourists. One good store if you are there. Yes Vancouver has tasteful tshirts, bags etc and good quality too.<BR><BR>Oh, and don't cut through Gastown to get to Chinatown. You have to cross Hastings Street West where all the junkies are adn you'll get mugged for you tourist trappings. A little something your guide book doesn't tell you.