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Most boring places you've visited

snowstorm445

While we're all reminiscing about places we'd like to go back to after COVID subsides, is there anywhere you've been to that you found totally forgettable?

My own contender is Hannover in Germany - stopped there once out of curiosity on the way from Amsterdam to Berlin and I was pretty familiar with the name from history etc. Apart from an impressive city hall, and some nice palace gardens outside the city (pretty modest by German standards though), it was basically just filled with shopping streets. A few Germans I've talked to since told me it's a big hub for people travelling around Germany by train, but there's pretty much nothing there. And like a lot of German cities, it's historic parts were gutted by bombing in the war, and only some reconstructed facades remain.

Closer to home, I was in Sligo for the first time about two years ago. The county is lovely (Ben Bulben, Strandhill etc.) but Sligo town is pretty unremarkable tbh. Not shockingly boring, but not very memorable either. Plenty of Midland towns have a reputation for being fairly forgettable as well, but then that's fairly well known. :pac:

Any other nominations?

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Covid21

hahashake wrote: »

Melbourne and Sydney are world class cities. Both aren't perfect but their upsides are massive.

Just my opinion, I have been fortunate to travel most of the world and probably found Australia the least appealing. I actually spent almost 3 months traveling Oz.

The reason I said I said it’s Overrated is maybe I was traveling through Asia the 3 months before that and South America the 3 months after.

Compared to those continents Australia was :
Crazy Expensive
Average Nighlife
The Australians aren’t the friendliest and can be a touch racist.
Some of the main attractions are underwhelming, Sydney Opera House, Ayers Rock, the great ocean road.

All extremely overrated, just my opinion

breezy1985

fryup wrote: »

any irish midlands town....thank god for the motorway network

Any European midlands town I reckon.
Leicester is the most boring place I have ever been. I have never seen a city so flat and monotone, almost every street looks the same and they place seemed completely devoid of any landmark like a river, hill or architecturally nice buildings.
Cuidad Real is the Spanish Leicester and also in the midlands.

As for all the people bashing Galway it's a fine spot but you would get sick of people going on about it. It's grand but I couldn't pick out anything special about it

iamwhoiam

chosen1 wrote: »

I spent a week in Berlin
It's lacking a proper city centre and massively spread out in smaller districts. Probably due to the damage caused by the bombings in the war.

I spent 5 years in Berlin and believe me it is far from boring .There are two distinct " city centres " because of the Wall .One was in the West ,Kurfurstendamm area and one in the East , Unter den Linden area . There are amazing museums all on Museum Inseln and you could spend days in that are with lovely cafes and restaurants . Take a bus to the lakes or the beautiful Grunewald forest and to Spandau and wander there in the small streets and shops . Wander in the Tiergarten and walk to the Brandeburger Tor which is steeped in history . So much to do there and enjoy

mikemac2

I found Nottingham to be very boring.

Hop on a train to Lincoln and it was super, lots to see and do and they get lots of tourists

feargantae wrote: »

Athens

A smelly kip of a city with cockroaches at tram stations and plumbing so old you can't flush toilet roll in many buildings. Just a bin beside the toilet full of shıt-covered tissue in 40°C weather

The city peaked thousands of years ago

I knew before going there about the graffiti but sure that's unique for them. And the street protests over austerity, hey power to the people

Wander into the wrong street and you'll find huddles of refugee men with nothing to do but lounge around and look you over and the streets with so much rubbish. Ripped open rubbish bags and people selling knock off tat. No far from the tourist parts at all.

I might have been the only person in Athens to buy tickets for the metro. Many times I would scan through the barrier and teenagers would tailgate me and I might get a bump in the back. It was explained to me these barriers were new and people resented having to pay

There are nice parts of course but I saw what I wanted to see and won't be back

orangerhyme

There seems to be different perpectives on whether a place is great to visit or to live. Berlin is certainly both. I spent 10 days there and only touched the surface whereas in Dublin you could do everything in 3 days, but you could go out any night of the week and find a bit of craic.

The Greek islands are lovely to visit but I wouldnt want to live there.

People seem to love living in Galway but visiting there's just going on the piss for a few nights.

The "energy" of place is probably a function of number of tourists, birth rate, populaiton density and also the culture.

I think internet, smartphones, online tv, falling birthrates in Europe has probably decimated the "energy" of many places. Before if you wanted to keep in contact with people you had to physically meet them somewhere or if you were simply bored on a week night youd pop out for a pint.

Lots of desolate towns in the midlands were probably hopping up until the recession.

Spanish cities have a great energy cos they have such high population density and everyone lives close to the city center, whereas in Germany they have similar birth rate but are much more spread out. Also the culture of tapas and bar hopping injects life into the city. Also you'll see 3 generations of a family out late eating and drinking which you wouldnt see here.

In Italy socialising revolves more around food and the family, so I guess they socialise at home more often.

chosen1

The Nal wrote: »

Irish nominations

Mullingar
Athlone
Longford
Navan
Portlaoise
Cavan
Dundalk
Drogheda
Carlow
Tullamore

Don't know what people are expecting in medium sized towns between 10 and 30 thousand in population.

Most of these wouldn't exactly be touristy apart from maybe Drogheda and Athlone which have a few interesting sights, but all of them will at least have a few decent pubs and restaurants to keep you entertained in the evening. Stayed overnight in most of the towns on the list and have always found myself having a decent night.

On the other hand, I've visited towns and cities in the UK with much larger populations and they have shut up shop by 10.30 on a weekday evening. English towns tend to be more picturesque by day but very little happens come evening time in a large number of them.

breezy1985

iamwhoiam wrote: »

I spent 5 years in Berlin and believe me it is far from boring .There are two distinct " city centres " because of the Wall .One was in the West ,Kurfurstendamm area and one in the East , Unter den Linden area . There are amazing museums all on Museum Inseln and you could spend days in that are with lovely cafes and restaurants . Take a bus to the lakes or the beautiful Grunewald forest and to Spandau and wander there in the small streets and shops . Wander in the Tiergarten and walk to the Brandeburger Tor which is steeped in history . So much to do there and enjoy

I stayed right by Friedrichstrasse Station and I found it really hard to pinpoint anything resembling a nice city centre and it's hard to find an area to settle if you are a tourist even in Kreuzberg . Everything feels like an approach road and every area I visited looked really ugly and industrial.
Certainly not boring though as I love both WW2 and cold war history also good beer, meaty food and cabbage so really enjoyed the place. It's just hard to navigate

EmptyTree

chosen1 wrote: »

I spent a week in Berlin and couldn't find much night life the first couple of nights we were there. Looked up a few highly rated clubs but were refused entry on dresscode as everyone wearing blazers going in. Some door men not too keen on tourists either.

Wasn't till the third night when we got chatting to some locals that we found the underground techno clubs in what looked like abandoned industrial estates. Had great nights after that but we met several tourists who hadn't found any of it in their entire stay.

It's lacking a proper city centre and massively spread out in smaller districts. Probably due to the damage caused by the bombings in the war.

Ah ya, that's fair comment, but it's definitely far from the most boring place, I was only there for a few days on my own and found plenty to do. If you want boring try Geel in Belgium.

bosco12345

jiltloop wrote: »

Ah jesus I can't believe Berlin is getting a mention. Some of the places mentioned here would lead me to believe that it's the person rather than the place that's the problem.

Berlin has everything you could ever need in a city for an exciting trip, great museums, clubs, bars, restaurants. You can't get a much better nightlife than Berlin.

Until you spend a night in Berghain you havent experienced Berlin. If you know you know

orangerhyme

bosco12345 wrote: »

Until you spend a night in Berghain you havent experienced Berlin. If you know you know

Berlin has a pretty elitist door policy which is annoying.

In some places the bouncers will stop tourists just for being tourists.

The Nal

chosen1 wrote: »

On the other hand, I've visited towns and cities in the UK with much larger populations and they have shut up shop by 10.30 on a weekday evening. English towns tend to be more picturesque by day but very little happens come evening time in a large number of them.

Oh no doubt. Turned down a job last year that required "up to 30% travel" mainly in the UK. Sprung on me at the end of the process (spun as a positive thing) and the HR guy was a bit miffed that I didn't want to spend 2 or 3 nights a week in Guilford, Bracknell, Reading, Birmingham, Luton, Woking and Watford. "Err yeah I've been to those places before".

breezy1985 wrote: »

I stayed right by Friedrichstrasse Station and I found it really hard to pinpoint anything resembling a nice city centre and it's hard to find an area to settle if you are a tourist even in Kreuzberg . Everything feels like an approach road and every area I visited looked really ugly and industrial.
Certainly not boring though as I love both WW2 and cold war history also good beer, meaty food and cabbage so really enjoyed the place. It's just hard to navigate

Stay in Mitte around Alexanderplatz and work from there.

Berlin is one of the greatest cities in the world. Can't wait to go back.

[Deleted User]

Berlin is a fantastic city, lots to do during the day, and like others posted, great nightlife if you go to the right areas.

FixdePitchmark

Larbre34 wrote: »

I'll be shot for this, but..........New Zealand.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Stunning - amazing place - but rock up into a town at 8pm and try do something in NZ - very sleepy, no real action. Makes you realize how great a city Dublin is.

hahashake

Covid21 wrote: »

Just my opinion, I have been fortunate to travel most of the world and probably found Australia the least appealing. I actually spent almost 3 months traveling Oz.

The reason I said I said it’s Overrated is maybe I was traveling through Asia the 3 months before that and South America the 3 months after.

Compared to those continents Australia was :
Crazy Expensive
Average Nighlife
The Australians aren’t the friendliest and can be a touch racist.
Some of the main attractions are underwhelming, Sydney Opera House, Ayers Rock, the great ocean road.

All extremely overrated, just my opinion

Great barrier reef, Blue mountains, Whitsundays etc. are great. Melbourne is often ranked as one of the best cities in the world to live in and Sydney isn't far behind. More expensive than the developing world but what do you expect? When people from all around the world want to live there then the prices go up.

Plus you are comparing continents with billions of people and diverse cultures to a country of 20 million.

Eoinbmw

Fanore Co.Clare it's basically like the "Park" in Fr.Ted.

luketitz

I normally try and make some kinda fun happen wherever I go and don't bore easily but have been obliged to visit Penang for 3/4 days on various visa runs over the years and it's an incredibly dull place.

The Indian/Chinese food is its only saving grace.

They even have Asia's only Guinness brewery, and that's not even fun.

frosty123

Eoinbmw wrote: »

Fanore Co.Clare it's basically like the "Park" in Fr.Ted.

Great beach, and lovely burren backdrop

as for boring??? anywhere is as boring or as exciting as YOU make it

The same could be said about life in general

breezy1985

The Nal wrote: »

Oh no doubt. Turned down a job last year that required "up to 30% travel" mainly in the UK. Sprung on me at the end of the process (spun as a positive thing) and the HR guy was a bit miffed that I didn't want to spend 2 or 3 nights a week in Guilford, Bracknell, Reading, Birmingham, Luton, Woking and Watford. "Err yeah I've been to those places before".

Stay in Mitte around Alexanderplatz and work from there.
Berlin is one of the greatest cities in the world. Can't wait to go back.

Wow you have listed some grim places there Guilford, Luton, Woking and Watford are practically giant suburbs and Watford in particular barely has anything that could be called a centre.

Practically every UK town and small city I have been to has sold over completely to the chains. All the town centres are just a copy and paste street with a Spoons, Nando's, Pizza Express and Greenking.
Even the ones that are supposed to be great like Oxford and Cambridge were crap for food and drink.
I'm home now and would take Limerick over any of them for it's independent bars, restaurants and cafes

Aurelian

The Nal wrote: »

Irish nominations

Mullingar
Athlone
Longford
Navan
Portlaoise
Cavan
Dundalk
Drogheda
Carlow
Tullamore

You're wrong on a certain level.

There are cities in Germany with a 100,000 people that have literally no bar or restaurant scene at all. Let alone a club. You literally couldn't go out in them on a week night.

Without question there's more of a nightlife in Carlow or Portlaoise. A tourist in Portlaoise might have nothing to do during the day but at night they could definitely get a meal and have a choice of pubs with a bit of life and craic in them.

GT89

I just don't know what people see in Berlin. Of course it probably depends on what your into but I've been there twice (not by choice) and thought that it was very dull and drab and seemed to lack any decent restaurants and the like everywhere looked like it was geared towards crusties.

Also the locals seem to be very unfriendly and customer service in shops, hotels and restaurants etc. is awful it's like no one can crack a smile they don't even say danke.

The Nal

breezy1985 wrote: »

Wow you have listed some grim places there Guilford, Luton, Woking and Watford are practically giant suburbs and Watford in particular barely has anything that could be called a centre.

Practically every UK town and small city I have been to has sold over completely to the chains. All the town centres are just a copy and paste street with a Spoons, Nando's, Pizza Express and Greenking.
Even the ones that are supposed to be great like Oxford and Cambridge were crap for food and drink.

Yeah. Greggs, Pret a Manger, Premier Inns and Asdas too.

breezy1985 wrote: »

I'm home now and would take Limerick over any of them for it's independent bars, restaurants and cafes

I love Limerick. Always a great night out.

orangerhyme

Aurelian wrote: »

You're wrong on a certain level.

There are cities in Germany with a 100,000 people that have literally no bar or restaurant scene at all. Let alone a club. You literally couldn't go out in them on a week night.

Without question there's more of a nightlife in Carlow or Portlaoise. A tourist in Portlaoise might have nothing to do during the day but at night they could definitely get a meal and have a choice of pubs with a bit of life and craic in them.

I agree with this.

Its probably unfair to compare midlands towns to the likes of Killarney or Westport but are probably much better than similar sized towns on the continent or Uk even.

I think people will still pop out during the week for a pint, cards, pool, darts, watch a pl game on the telly.

I think I heard a German economist saying that theres many small cities in Germany with a population over 100,000 and they wouldnt have a cinema even. I think this is due to the small birthrate since the 70s.
Apparently Germanys native population peaked in the 70s and any growth since then is due to immigrants.

onrail

FixdePitchmark wrote: »

Stunning - amazing place - but rock up into a town at 8pm and try do something in NZ - very sleepy, no real action. Makes you realize how great a city Dublin is.

Exact same. Lived there for a year and absolutely loved the place, but the late night atmosphere, particularly in small towns was terrible.

Kiwis just have a different set of values and would rather be in bed early to give them a full day or skiing, hiking or surfing the next day

GT89

The Nal wrote: »

Yeah. Greggs, Pret a Manger, Premier Inns and Asdas too.

And Poundland

keano_afc

Deleted User wrote: »

Vienna, next level boredom

Surprised to see this. Spent two days there and would go back. The arsenal museum was a particular highlight.

All down to personal preference I guess.

lawred2

Covid21 wrote: »

Just my opinion, I have been fortunate to travel most of the world and probably found Australia the least appealing. I actually spent almost 3 months traveling Oz.

The reason I said I said it’s Overrated is maybe I was traveling through Asia the 3 months before that and South America the 3 months after.

Compared to those continents Australia was :
Crazy Expensive
Average Nighlife
The Australians aren’t the friendliest and can be a touch racist.
Some of the main attractions are underwhelming, Sydney Opera House, Ayers Rock, the great ocean road.

All extremely overrated, just my opinion

Jesus the great Ocean road is a snooze alright... The nobbies are the most mundane things going. You'd see the same every 20km up the West coast here with no fanfare..

Route 1 California stands up to its billing much better than the great Ocean road

[Deleted User]

keano_afc wrote: »

Surprised to see this. Spent two days there and would go back. The arsenal museum was a particular highlight.

All down to personal preference I guess.

A museum, I rest my case

Eoinbmw

frosty123 wrote: »

Great beach, and lovely burren backdrop

as for boring??? anywhere is as boring or as exciting as YOU make it

The same could be said about life in general

So i take you go there on Holidays

!
Whatever your into!

Munstergirl854

I did the burren walk as part of that Gaisce ****e in school.

Looking back it was like a final journey a starving family would make before catching a famine ship to the states...

Nothing wrong with Clare though.

breezy1985

onrail wrote: »

Kiwis just have a different set of values and would rather be in bed early to give them a full day or skiing, hiking or surfing the next day

Vancouver is like that. Hated the place