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Your most exotic places and any plans to visit others ?

(83 Posts)
nanna8 Wed 18-Feb-26 09:33:43

I was thinking over our past of distant places we probably will never see again and a few of the most ‘ exotic ‘ were
Norfolk Island
Xian in China
Dubai
Vanuatu Tanna Island when we nearly got killed by an erupting volcano
And in Europe Bergen, Dubrovnik and Corfu. I have never been to Africa or the USA and I don’t think we will,now.
We are going to Samoa in a couple of weeks, could be another ?

Susieq62 Thu 19-Feb-26 14:56:12

I have been to Samoa and stayed Aggie Grey’s guest house!!
I loved visiting Bosnia after reading “ The Cellist of Sarajevo” , a wonderful, stunning country as is Croatia! Both survived wars as did Cambodia where the best restaurant is The Haven in Siem Reap!!
Looking forward to seeing The Italian Chapel in The Orkneys this year !

Messyme Thu 19-Feb-26 14:42:31

Wow lovely journeys. I’ve just joined a travel business so I can earn while taking some extra trips.

Coconut Thu 19-Feb-26 14:20:55

Month long South Sea Island Cruise: Australia, New Zealand, Bora Bora, Tahiti and Hawaii ….. still cannot believe I have done this, just paradise 🌴🏝️

leeds22 Thu 19-Feb-26 14:18:19

Most exotic places visited are probably Chichen Itza in Mexico and jungle temples complex in Belize plus Cuba and Namibia Now we just travel in Europe but DH keeps wanting to revisit New Zealand and Kenya. I just want to go to Copenhagen and Puglia.

Maggiemaybe Wed 18-Feb-26 20:00:48

It’s really beautiful, GrannyGravy and so many interesting things to see. We didn’t go up in a balloon, but reckoned the best view was from the ground. smile

BlueSapphire Wed 18-Feb-26 19:37:04

Lady Gracie ours too was off Mersing; hired a local boat to take us out, and three days later to bring us back.

GrannyGravy13 Wed 18-Feb-26 19:32:46

Maggiemaybe Cappadocia is a place on Turkey I would love to go. (Love Istanbul, and done of the unknown non-tourist beaches)

Maggiemaybe Wed 18-Feb-26 19:20:19

“Exotic” is a difficult one to define really. We’ve been to some wonderful places but perhaps I’d put the following in that category:

Sri Lanka the year after the tsunami. We had a tour by private taxi because no one else turned up for it. I was the only person climbing Sigriya Rock with my guide and later on the trip we had massages lying on wooden slats over open fires.

Seeing whirling dervishes in Turkey, and all the hot air balloons over Cappadocia.

A tour of Cuba, some of which was way outside our experience.

Travelling on the Via Train sleeper across Canada, hearing nothing but the eerie whistles of other trains in the distance.

A stay on an eco farm in the Sahara desert. I didn’t know darkness could be so dark!

Riding the White Pass and Yukon gold rush railway in Alaska.

Death Valley, where we saw real cowboys riding into town and queuing at Burger King!

And yes, Buenos Aires with its tango halls on every corner, and the Iguassu Falls. To my shame, I’d never heard of the falls till we went to South America. They make Niagara look like a toy town waterfall.

I’d still love to go to Mexico and Japan, despite the fact that long haul travel isn’t something that appeals these days.

LadyGracie Wed 18-Feb-26 19:15:47

BlueSapphire. I also stayed on an uninhabited island off Mersing on the east coast of Malaysia but in 1969.
Truly wonderful.

Grandma70s Wed 18-Feb-26 19:05:36

Kate1949

Favourite place we've visited for me Venice. Five times. I'm obsessed with the place. Never been anywhere you could call exotic but have been to

Santorini
New York
The Amalfi Coast
Seville
Paris
Florence
Many others.

Place I would love to go - Venice again grin

I quite agree about Venice, especially out of season. When I went in January I seemed to be almost the only tourist.

I’ve been to Australia (Sydney and Canberra, and Lawson in the Blue Mountains). I don’t know if that’s exotic. Sydney suburbs are much like England, but with different plants and more sunshine.

The places I want to visit, but probably won’t now, are actually quite close to home - those amazing German castles like Neuschwanstein, and more of Germany generally. I can’t think why I didn’t do this when I was younger.

B9exchange Wed 18-Feb-26 18:58:09

We have been fortunate to have travelled widely before DH's stroke left him in a wheelchair. All seven continents, but most exotic was probably the remote village two hours drive from the nearest town in Andra Pradesh in India. Our son was marrying a girl whose grandparents lived there, so we all went out fot the full Indian wedding. So colourful, although the bugle band playing the same music throughout the day was a little tedious! I would not like to repeat the walking barefoot on the hot stones round 3 different temples either, or some of the embarrassing faux pas I made during my mother of the groom duties!

BlueSapphire Wed 18-Feb-26 18:35:12

A little uninhabited island off the east coast of Malaysia where late DH and I spent a long weekend; slept on the beach, snorkelled, walked the beaches, marvelled at the moonlit nights on the beach, and the glorious sunrises and sunsets. This was 1970, engaged but not yet married. It was the most idyllic and most romantic holiday ever.

MartavTaurus Wed 18-Feb-26 13:20:19

I've no idea why, but I always find islands exotic destinations! So, even closer to home than the far flung places mentioned, I've enjoyed Scicily, Madeira, Sardinia as being unusual and captivating. 🏝

kittylester Wed 18-Feb-26 13:11:32

We are right off flying long haul nowadays but Japan was fabulous.

We stayed in an Onsen too but I opted out of the batheing. The best thing we did there though was visiting the Peace Park in Hiroshima. It was so moving. The Japanese people were so lovely.

crazyH Wed 18-Feb-26 12:15:36

The most exotic yet scary place I’ve been to, is Colombia, in South America.
Would never have dreamt of going there if it wasn’t for the fact my brother and s.i.l,(teachers) were offered jobs there, on an exchange scheme, I think. They invited me over.
It was a 26hr travel-time, from Wales to Heathrow /Heathrow to Bogotá/ Armenia / rickety bus drive to my brother’s apartment .
It was an experience - there were guns everywhere 😳 security guards with guns even at the apartment block.
Beautiful country, some trees almost reaching the sky, lovely people, lovely food. I can go on and on……..

62Granny Wed 18-Feb-26 11:56:27

Haven't done anything long haul and probably won't in the foreseeable future due to DH's disability, but we really enjoyed Istanbul and Reykjavik and I would love to explore them again, always loved a city break and love anything with a bit of history, old buildings.

PeterJi Wed 18-Feb-26 11:44:12

smile Im first time in internet!

Michael12 Wed 18-Feb-26 11:38:02

The most exotic place I have been to was in Oman in the South West of the country at Salalah .
The place is tropical, surrounded by the Jebel , I was working out there but at Thumrait which was in the desert.
But I new a former RAF colleague who was based in Salalah ,and outside his accommodation, Bananas where growing, he used to pick them and make wine with the juice produced from mashing the plant .
Myself in the desert ,camels roamed freely sometimes in herds ,camel spiders and scorpions were the norm this was in the late 70`s before tourism . in Salalah itself I worked with a Indian colleague, he took me to Salalah to pick up some items , and had a local meal with him a soup with lime juice and a chicken curry,no rice you washed your hands before and after eating but it was a cheap meal.
Mick

Farmor15 Wed 18-Feb-26 11:22:46

I'm actually in India at the moment, but sounds more exotic than it is! Visiting OH's family in Mumbai, been many times before and also travelled around other parts. Just worked out that this is 19th trip to India. Most exotic part was probably Kashmir.

We've travelled to a good few other places, but India continues to be fascinating. On the surface it's totally chaotic, mad traffic, hot, noisy, people everywhere. However, somehow it functions- transport, services, food in the markets. At the moment Mumbai is developing at an alarming rate with high rise luxury apartment blocks being built right beside slums.

Fallingstar Wed 18-Feb-26 11:18:49

Am so glad we travelled to many wonderful places before my DH had a massive stroke which has left him disabled, no regrets, we have some lovely memories of travelling to Mexico, the US, Egypt, India, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Australia, and many European countries.
I hope others manage to fulfil their wishes to travel to far flung and exotic places, nothing like it to broaden the mind.

Jaxjacky Wed 18-Feb-26 11:12:15

I did that too Athrawes I was on a business trip with 6 male colleagues, so I had to go in on my own, at 5’ 11” I was so tall compared to the other ladies. We also rode the bullet train and visited Mount Fuji.
I also stayed on an island off Tunisia, Kerkennah, , a very basic holiday, in a hostel in Port Douglas on my own, holiday tagged on to business trips.
I’ve been very lucky seeing a lot of the world, much of it combined with business.

Elless Wed 18-Feb-26 11:11:45

We have been to the Maldives five times. We went to Vegas then drove to LA, on to Santa Barbara and ended in San Francisco. Next year we are going to Canada then driving across to Washington visiting Niagara Falls on the way, on to New York and then on to (my biggest bucket list item) Boston so we can visit Cape Cod and go whale watching.

Athrawes Wed 18-Feb-26 10:55:40

I was visiting Japan several years ago and went to a swimming pool with a Japanese friend. As everyone there were Japanese and were starkers so I had to join in as such too and I could feel the ladies eyes on me as I was the only English person there. I felt embarrassed at first but I soon got used to it and the ladies accepted me and to my surprise I really enjoyed it. It was certainly an interesting experience. My husband was in a male only area but he had to swim along with his Japanese colleague in a similar situation. It was certainly an interesting experience!!

tanith Wed 18-Feb-26 10:36:39

I’ve not done any exotic travel but have been to the US where we drove from San Francisco across the desert to Las Vegas and did a helicopter flight down into the Grand Canyon and then on to Los Angeles. Also walked up the Rock of Gibraltar several times, nothing special but priceless memories to me. I always wanted to go to Australia but that’s not going to happen now. Paris and Vienna and Thiepval to find my Grandfathers name on the memorial when I was much younger.

Cossy Wed 18-Feb-26 10:19:29

We won’t do long haul again, but last years Canada trip was amazing, especially Vancouver Island and The Rocky Mountaineer. I loved my road trip around parts of Turkey and parts of old Spain.

Now get my fix virtually following others