Self and girl friend were lured to Ilfracombe by attractive
posters advertising the wonders of the resort on almost every railway station - resulting in 7 days of the most
boring holiday ever !
The only highlight (for onlookers) being attempting to
negotiate the dreaded Porlock Hill on the way there.
Apparantly offering regular entertainment to the locals who
lined the route, watching for those unable to negotiate its
notoriously steep hill and hairpin bend. This was in 1955.
Went there with Mum and Dad when I was 5, and got german measles.
Lanzarote. More specifically Puerto Del Carmen - yes yes yes I know, but it was a last minute deal in November to escape the relentless British winter.
I've never been to a less Spanish Spanish place in all my life. It was basically full of overweight working class Brits abroad. Bars proudly advertising the fact they were showing the UK soaps and the X Factor.. *shudder*, full of people who clearly have no concept of sun protection, red, drunk and common.
A lot of holiday makers won't come out of their comfort zone, why don't they just go to Blackpool instead. Scum in the sun as Rab C Nesbit once said.
I've never really been to anywhere I hated. A friend and hubby took their 4 small children to Butlins for a mid-week break and came home the same day.
That was a few years ago when Butlins were supposed to have gone more upmarket and on a par with Center Parcs.
It wasn't and my friend was horrified. She couldn't find one thing she liked ..........the accommodation, the food, the staff, the visitors ......... so they packed up and left.
Actually, I don't know why I put Vietnam. I've been pickpocketed in Spain, screamed at in Morrocco for refusing to stay in a hotel, been harrassed by touts in every country I've been to, suffered some bad illnesses, been ripped off by taxi drivers everywhere, threatened by nightclub goons in Istanbul, slept outside train stations, had property stolen, lost my bank card, witnessed awful poverty in India and saw some forced labour in Burma (I think).
Yet I thoroughly enjoyed every holiday. Perhaps Vietnam just seemed boring by comparison.
A lot of holiday makers won't come out of their comfort zone, why don't they just go to Blackpool instead. Scum in the sun as Rab C Nesbit once said.
I know. We've stopped going to "Brits abroad" places so much now. Got sick of seeing enormous, red blotchy people in bad leisurewear eating, drinking, and experiencing things they could have without ever having left the UK.
Actually, I don't know why I put Vietnam. I've been pickpocketed in Spain, screamed at in Morrocco for refusing to stay in a hotel, been harrassed by touts in every country I've been to, suffered some bad illnesses, been ripped off by taxi drivers everywhere, threatened by nightclub goons in Istanbul, slept outside train stations, had property stolen, lost my bank card, witnessed awful poverty in India and saw some forced labour in Burma (I think).
Yet I thoroughly enjoyed every holiday. Perhaps Vietnam just seemed boring by comparison.
I know. We've stopped going to "Brits abroad" places so much now. Got sick of seeing enormous, red blotchy people in bad leisurewear eating, drinking, and experiencing things they could have without ever having left the UK.
I just love the Algarve, the places I go to they have no loud fellow Scots or other noisy Brits for that matter flying their colours. Just the laid back type.
Anyway, I don't like anywhere else, Spain, Turkey etc
My husband and I used to go to this gorgeous hotel in Portugal which was our home from home. We adored the hotel and the resort.
But after about 4yrs we decided to try somewhere else and went to Spain. The minute we landed it just didn't feel the same. I then twisted my ankle on night one. My husband got sunstroke. The hotel was horrid and we spent the whole time saying 'I wish we were back in Portugal'.
Pathos, Our holiday was ruined by timeshare reps, jumping out at us wherever we went, even walking on a quiet road, someone would go past us and stop their car to try and sell us a timeshare. Never again.
Alice Springs & Ayers Rock - okay it was part of a tour, but those 3 days I will never get back. Dull beyond belief.
Lol...there was me thinking that'd be brilliant, i'd be taking my geology field kit and going to town hacking that bad boy and surrounding area to pieces...
One mans dull is anothers fun. Not sure what that says about me though...
Aye, you beat it. How come we all spend willy nilly while abroad but watch our pennies at home. I suggested to wife we should go on a mad spending spree at home for a week spending £500 quid on food and booze:D
Isle of Wight - like a police state and very stuck up unfriendly people.
Great Yarmouth [day trip] - can't believe people actually book up to stay there.
That's because the Solent yachting crowd live around there, and unless you have money, a yacht, and dress and talk like them, or all three they look down their nose at you, especially if you come from the north of England. Never been the the IOW, and I am glad.
Aye, you beat it. How come we all spend willy nilly while abroad but watch our pennies at home. I suggested to wife we should go on a mad spending spree at home for a week spending £500 quid on food and booze:D
Seems sensible. We live in an English seaside resort so a stay-at-home holiday isn't a bad idea
To be fair I did go for the cheapest deal I could find! So that probably had something to do with it, 'you get what you pay for' etc. Its not put me off going back to other parts of the country though .
Well, exactly. The good stuff, anywhere, is reserved for those who a) know a bit about the place and/or b) have money.
You don't expect to live like a king at home on meagre resources, do you, so why some people expect this "amazing experience" in other countries with the same resources, I have no idea.
It's this silly idea that "elsewhere" must always be better when in fact it's invariably worse. We're pretty lucky, all told.
Paris .
Dirty place full of rude French people and a large amount of dog poo .
Eiffel Tower plagued by beggars . Rip off prices .
Never again will I set foot in that toilet of a place .
Sacre Bleur :eek:
I SO agree! I was also amazed at the beggars and dodgy handbag salesmen in the grounds of the Sacre-Coeur, which, incidentally, stank of urine, as did many other parts of Paris...
If you can't appreciate the unrivalled culture, history and probably grandest architecture of any world City just because of a few tramps and smells, I feel very sorry for you.
If you can't appreciate the unrivalled culture, history and probably grandest architecture of any world City just because of a few tramps and smells, I feel very sorry for you.
People are entitled to an opinion . If they dont like it its how they see it . I liked Paris , I was glad I went , I enjoyed the sights and the architecture .I am in no hurry to go back as its by no means my favourite city . I appreciate culture and architecture but also hate tackyness, dirt and dog shite .And Paris has that in abundance . It distracts from the beauty at times
The locals in the shops pester you like made to go into their shops and the place is generally quite dirty
its a cultural thing. shopping is a sit down, chat, have tea, think hard about the bargaining, social event in egypt...
i was recently in taba and got chatting with local shopkeepers in the souk, they said that english people always come on the last day to do their shopping in an hour, and if you even speak to them before that they get cross and angry. italians come in every day. on monday and tuesday they look, on wednesday they decide, on thursday they haggle on friday they buy and on saturday they stop by to say hello.:D
I can understand people going on holiday to Crete or somewhere and then being disappointed because it rained or the hotel was dirty or something but to be honest if you go to somewhere like Cairo what do you expect? I've been to Cairo and I thought it was a fascinating place but I went knowing it would be dirty etc with mad drivers and that I'd have to take care - I would have thought everybody would realise that?
It's not just Cairo that's dirty and stinks out there so it's best to avoid Egypt full stop.
Once place that I'll always remember is Edfu, a god awful place.
And btw I'd heard that Cairo was dirty etc but I didn't expect it to be as bad as it was.
Comments
Went there with Mum and Dad when I was 5, and got german measles.
A lot of holiday makers won't come out of their comfort zone, why don't they just go to Blackpool instead. Scum in the sun as Rab C Nesbit once said.
That was a few years ago when Butlins were supposed to have gone more upmarket and on a par with Center Parcs.
It wasn't and my friend was horrified. She couldn't find one thing she liked ..........the accommodation, the food, the staff, the visitors ......... so they packed up and left.
Yet I thoroughly enjoyed every holiday. Perhaps Vietnam just seemed boring by comparison.
I know. We've stopped going to "Brits abroad" places so much now. Got sick of seeing enormous, red blotchy people in bad leisurewear eating, drinking, and experiencing things they could have without ever having left the UK.
I loved Vietnam...where did you go?
I just love the Algarve, the places I go to they have no loud fellow Scots or other noisy Brits for that matter flying their colours. Just the laid back type.
Anyway, I don't like anywhere else, Spain, Turkey etc
But after about 4yrs we decided to try somewhere else and went to Spain. The minute we landed it just didn't feel the same. I then twisted my ankle on night one. My husband got sunstroke. The hotel was horrid and we spent the whole time saying 'I wish we were back in Portugal'.
I'm not a "joiner in" and that kind of place kind of encourages people to be entertained en-masse and do things with their fellow 'campers'.
Center Parcs is basically Butlins for smug people.
Lol...there was me thinking that'd be brilliant, i'd be taking my geology field kit and going to town hacking that bad boy and surrounding area to pieces...
One mans dull is anothers fun. Not sure what that says about me though...
Aye, you beat it. How come we all spend willy nilly while abroad but watch our pennies at home. I suggested to wife we should go on a mad spending spree at home for a week spending £500 quid on food and booze:D
Great Yarmouth [day trip] - can't believe people actually book up to stay there.
That's because the Solent yachting crowd live around there, and unless you have money, a yacht, and dress and talk like them, or all three they look down their nose at you, especially if you come from the north of England. Never been the the IOW, and I am glad.
Seems sensible. We live in an English seaside resort so a stay-at-home holiday isn't a bad idea
Well, exactly. The good stuff, anywhere, is reserved for those who a) know a bit about the place and/or b) have money.
You don't expect to live like a king at home on meagre resources, do you, so why some people expect this "amazing experience" in other countries with the same resources, I have no idea.
It's this silly idea that "elsewhere" must always be better when in fact it's invariably worse. We're pretty lucky, all told.
I SO agree! I was also amazed at the beggars and dodgy handbag salesmen in the grounds of the Sacre-Coeur, which, incidentally, stank of urine, as did many other parts of Paris...
If you can't appreciate the unrivalled culture, history and probably grandest architecture of any world City just because of a few tramps and smells, I feel very sorry for you.
People are entitled to an opinion . If they dont like it its how they see it . I liked Paris , I was glad I went , I enjoyed the sights and the architecture .I am in no hurry to go back as its by no means my favourite city . I appreciate culture and architecture but also hate tackyness, dirt and dog shite .And Paris has that in abundance . It distracts from the beauty at times
its a cultural thing. shopping is a sit down, chat, have tea, think hard about the bargaining, social event in egypt...
i was recently in taba and got chatting with local shopkeepers in the souk, they said that english people always come on the last day to do their shopping in an hour, and if you even speak to them before that they get cross and angry. italians come in every day. on monday and tuesday they look, on wednesday they decide, on thursday they haggle on friday they buy and on saturday they stop by to say hello.:D
It's not just Cairo that's dirty and stinks out there so it's best to avoid Egypt full stop.
Once place that I'll always remember is Edfu, a god awful place.
And btw I'd heard that Cairo was dirty etc but I didn't expect it to be as bad as it was.