Europe’s Most Overrated

These are Europe’s attention hogs. Basking in their limitless limelight, these places receive way more than their fair share of tourists’ time, and I’m not convinced they deserve it. These overly-famous places have all underwhelmed, annoyed, or confused me, even after multiple visits. This might be one of those “oh no, my lobster is too buttery” posts, but my goal here is just to give some balance to the always-romanticized travel inspo all over the Internet and maybe help some of you with picking better destinations. I will say that all of these places have their redeeming qualities too (as you can see from my magnanimously-chosen photos), and most are worth at least one visit (however brief). It’s also true that my list focuses on big cities, and while I admit to being more of a nature lover, I also love some attention-hog cities that do live up to the hype, like Rome, Venice, Edinburgh, Istanbul, and Dubrovnik. All this to say: your mileage may vary.

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Amsterdam

I KNOW, I know. I’m starting off with a doozy. Amsterdam is unique and charming. It’s a UNESCO heritage site. I’ve been there half a dozen times and I always have fun when I’m there, at least from what I can remember. However, if I were to rank all the places I’ve been to in the Netherlands (a country that I adore), Amsterdam is near the bottom of that list. Its overwhelming popularity has shot itself in the foot. It’s overcrowded, overtouristed, and waAaY overpriced compared to the rest of NL. It’s worth a visit, especially if you’re flying into Schiphol anyway, but don’t make it the only place you see in the Netherlands! Rotterdam, the Hague, Haarlem, Leiden, and Zandvoort are lovely alternatives within a 1-hour train journey of Amsterdam, depending on if you want big cities (the first two), a small city (the middle two), or a beachside hamlet with sand dunes (Zandvoort).

Amsterdam / Rotterdam

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Athens

Athens is a tiny district of super-impressive Ancient Greek ruins surrounded by a sprawling concrete mess that’s reminiscent of Gotham City sans Batman. In the early 1800s it only had 10,000 residents and now it has over 3 million, which meant unchecked concrete urban sprawl. The Acropolis and nearby Plaka is definitely worth seeing, the changing of the guard was pretty cool, and Kalamaki Beach is ok-ish, but the rest of the city was a hard pass for me. It probably didn’t help that I stayed in the “alternative” Exarcheia neighborhood (read: gritty and graffiti-ed) for a few nights after I visited the islands of Santorini (touristy, but worth a visit) and Naxos (a lovely place). A single night in Athens would have been plenty and I don’t see any reason to return.

Temple of Athena Nike at Acropolis / The rest of Athens (from Lycabettus Hill)

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Dublin

The first time I planned a trip to Dublin, I asked an Irish friend what I should do in Dublin, and his immediate answer was “leave Dublin.” It’s possible his deadpanned response colored my opinion of the city before I ever arrived, but I could see his point, especially after I rented a car and saw the northern and western coasts and then returned to Dublin. It’s not that there’s nothing to do in the city, it just lacks a lot of the Irish flavor and charm you can find literally anywhere else. My main recommendations are finding some cozy pubs with live Irish music (the Celt or the Cobblestone are good bets) or take the metro to the cute little seaside suburb of Howth (aka leave Dublin). Ireland is nice and compact, so you can easily do day trips to the worthwhile Wicklow Mountains, Kilkenny, and even Cliffs of Moher from Dublin, if you want to use it as a home base.

Dublin along the River Liffey / Kilkenny

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London

London has never quite gotten me, and vice versa. Similar to Amsterdam, it gets all of the attention on the international stage, and I don’t know why. Obsession with the royal family? Business? Anglophiles? Someone explain it to me. In any case, there are some famous nuggets worth seeing, like Winchester, Tower of London, and Trafalgar Square. If you insist upon visiting, do yourself a favor and avoid staying in the City of London (a lifeless business district after hours) in favor of a more colorful neighborhood. There are also charming places in the nearby countryside (Cotswolds, Bath), so if you’re going to London, at least plan on doing a daytrip to see a bit more of England while you’re at it.

Horse Guard parade in London (free!) / Bath

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Versailles (and maybe Neuschwanstein)

As far as opulent Baroque suburban palaces go, Versailles is…an opulent Baroque suburban palace. Versailles is huge and crowded and repetitive (how many almost-identical golden rooms filled with paintings of dead people can one person appreciate?). The gardens are nice for sure, and it’s really close to Paris. Versailles made the list because I think there are much better intact royal buildings in Europe, particularly in Spain (for example Granada’s Alhambra and Sevilla’s Real Alcazar) and Germany (Munich’s Nymphenburg and Herrenchiemsee). This one-woman jury hasn’t quite made up her mind about Neuschwanstein, one of Europe’s most famous castles. The setting and exterior of the 19th-century castle is cool, but the interior tour is rushed and underwhelming. A much better interior tour is at the nearby Hohenschwangau castle, where the royal family actually lived.

Crowd in one of the Versailles bedrooms / ceiling at Nymphenburg (Munich)

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Vienna

Every time I wind up in Vienna, I have the same thought: “Wow!…I am not cultured enough for this place.” It’s a gorgeous city, just as grand and opulent in real life as it is in the million photos I’ve taken of the place. The thing is, there’s not much for me to do there as a tourist because I’m not a high-end shopper and I only rarely enjoy museums or black-tie events. So I walk around for a few hours, admire the architecture, get a drink at a traditional coffee house, and then it’s only noon and I don’t know what else to do with myself. On the upside, Vienna is an incredibly international city and it has a lot of little pockets of culture if you wander outside the city center, and the mid-Danube island is a nice place to stroll for awhile. If you’re looking for a more approachable big Austrian city, Salzburg gets my vote, otherwise the mountain towns like Kitzbuhel are neat.

Swanky rides in Vienna / Kitzbuhel in winter

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Zurich and Grindelwald

Here you get a twofer, because these are probably the only two Swiss places I’ve visited that I just don’t care for. Switzerland itself is bonkers-beautiful and deserves to be an attention hog, since most of the country is lakes and mountains. Zurich and Grindelwald are both pretty enough, they’re just absurdly expensive even by Swiss standards and too famous for their breeches. Grindelwald’s tiny size makes the crowds and traffic feel even denser, and Zurich’s outrageous prices make it feel even more expensive (seriously, it’s crazy). Lucerne and Interlaken both rank higher on my list than Zurich, and they’re both closer to the mountains. Instead of Grindelwald, you can try nearby Mürren, a car-free village on a cliff that’s only accessible by cable car.

Upper: Zurich vs. Lucerne; Lower: Grindelwald vs. Mürren

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And there you have it. Thoughts? Counter-arguments? Have I insulted one of your favorite places, and do you have any specific recommendations to improve my opinion?