Europe has its fair share of tourist traps, designed to
charm your wallet empty with worthless and over-hyped activities. Over the past
three years, we’ve spent extended stays in Italy and Spain, and seeing all the
countries in between. One thing we’ve
learned living abroad is that there are two sides of Europe, the touristy
Europe and the local Europe. While seeing the touristy things (like the Louvre
in Paris, the Colliseum in Rome, etc.) can be fun enough, getting away from the
crowds and experiencing Europe like a local can be much more rewarding. The
result of our travels – this list of what to see and what to skip. Call this a
volume 1, if you will.
Skip it: Expensive
Gondola Ride in Venice
Truth be told, we’ve never taken a Gondola Ride in Venice,
even though we spent 3 months living an hour from this tourist hot spot. Sure, there is a lot to enjoy about
Venice—it’s charm, it’s history…but it all comes at a steep cost: really
expensive tourist traps. Gondola rides are probably number one on the list. One
ride can cost you 80 euro, or close to $100, and to be honest, you can get the
romantic charm of Venice in so many other experiences (a nighttime stroll in
St. Marks when the tourists have gone vacated the area is one) without paying
the high price of sitting in a gondola.
If you want to save money and still get the amazing views of
the Venetian canals, take the Vaporettos. They’re basically water buses that
travel on a regular schedule around the island of Venice and in and out of the
canals. They also take people out to the outlying islands, including Murano,
famous for its glass blowing. The
Vaporettos also have a stop at the most easily accessible free bathroom on
Venice (in McDonald’s). And trust us, Venice is one of the most difficult
places to find a free bathroom in Europe.
Skip it: Pisa, Italy
Yes, we know, it’s probably heresy to suggest someone would
skip Pisa. Don’t skip Pisa, just don’t plan more than an hour there. It’s an
unremarkable city with a football field size center where everything worth
seeing, including the Leaning Tower, is all crammed in to one walled-off field.
Yes it’s beautiful. Yes it’s touristy (battling the throngs of tourist shops
and vendors on the way in is fun enough), and yes, you’ll take a ton of pictures,
but you’ll have more fun in….
See it: Lucca, Italy
The real charm around Pisa is actually Lucca, an old but vibrant
town surrounded by a large wall that serves as an exhilarating bike riding
path. Lucca was also one of our favorite towns to get lost and explore in, with
amazing local food and plaza markets. A must try is their Cecina, a brick-oven
type pizza made of garbanzo beans, it’s delicious and quite inexpensive! Of
course, you’ll take more pictures in Pisa, but you’ll have more fun in Lucca.
Skip it: Dublin,
Ireland
We’ve seen the hype about Dublin and, yes, it’s a fairly
easy city to walk around and it has its historical and cultural draw, but its
cultural gems (the Book of Kells, St. Patrick’s, etc.) are hidden behind some pricey
entrance fees, and the foot traffic and crowds are almost unbearable (and this
is coming from a family who spends every Summer in metropolitan Barcelona).
See it: Pretty much
everything else in Ireland.
Ok, so much of the sites worth seeing cost some money in
Ireland, but we definitely got more out of the sites outside of Dublin than
walking through a cathedral or touring a several hundred-year-old copy of the
Bible (both of which are still cool in their own right). The best parts of Ireland are out on the coasts
and country, especially the Cliffs of Moher, where you can spend an entire day
enjoying the sea-carved cliffs. Driving the small backroads where two cars are
supposed to fit on a one-lane road is also an adventure to say the least.
Skip it: Pula,
Croatia
Ok, you’ve probably never heard of Pula, many haven’t. But
it’s billed as a tourist destination for Roman ruins (they have their own Roman
Colliseum) and beach-side views. Pictures do it much better than it actually
is, in our opinion. However, we only mention Pula here because we really liked…
See It: Rovinj,
Croatia
This town is the type of seaside fishing town you would see
on postcards. There are beautiful coasts, islands, fun walks through the
cobble-stone town, and plenty of places to jump in the sea and swim (with lots
of fish to swim with). You can also get a pretty good deal on an inexpensive
glass-bottom boat tour, especially if it’s in the off-season.
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