Most lists of exceptional travel destinations are just SEO-optimized garbage written by people who haven’t left their home office in three years. They tell you to go to the Blue Lagoon in Iceland or the Amalfi Coast because those places look good on a grid. But they don’t tell you about the smell of sulfur that sticks to your skin for three days or the fact that you’ll be elbowing a tourist from Ohio just to see a patch of blue water. I’ve spent about $4,200 on flights in the last twelve months, and honestly? Half the places I went were a waste of time.
The “Bucket List” is a lie
We’ve been conditioned to think that “exceptional” means “pretty.” It’s a scam. An exceptional destination isn’t a postcard; it’s a place that makes you feel slightly uncomfortable until you figure out how it works. I used to think I needed to see every capital city in Europe. I was completely wrong. Most of them are just the same H&M and Zara stores rearranged in different old buildings.
I want grit. I want places where the history is still leaking out of the walls. What I mean is—actually, let me put it differently. I want a place that doesn’t care if I’m there or not. That’s the real metric.
Why I changed my mind about Georgia (the country, obviously)
I might be wrong about this, but I think Tbilisi is the most underrated city on the planet right now. But it didn’t start that way for me. On October 14th, 2022, I landed at Shota Rustaveli Airport at 4:15 AM. I was exhausted, cranky, and I let a taxi driver named Gogi scam me for 100 GEL—which is about $37. That’s a fortune for a twenty-minute ride there. I sat in a 24-hour khachapuri shop in Liberty Square and almost cried into my cheese-filled bread because I felt like such a target. I hated the city for the first 48 hours. I thought it was gray, crumbling, and mean.
But then I walked. I tracked my movement on my watch—18.4 kilometers in a single day. I saw the Soviet-era concrete of the Magti building clashing against the ultra-modern glass Peace Bridge. I drank Saperavi wine that tasted like fermented earth and cost less than a bottle of water at an airport. Tbilisi is like a favorite old sweater that’s been through a house fire—smoky, slightly torn, but the only thing that makes you feel warm. It’s messy. It’s loud. It’s perfect.
The best travel experiences usually start with a moment where you want to go home.
Anyway, I digress. The point is that Georgia ruined other destinations for me because it felt earned. If you want a place that feels like a movie set, go to Disney. If you want to feel alive, get scammed in Tbilisi and then find a hidden wine cellar in Sololaki.
Sarajevo and the 80-cent coffee
Sarajevo is another one. People still think of the war when they hear the name, which is fair, but it’s also lazy. I spent a week there testing out how far $500 could actually go. I tracked every cent. A Bosnian coffee in the Baščaršija (the old bazaar) cost me 1.50 KM. That’s roughly 82 cents. I sat there for two hours. Nobody moved me. Nobody asked if I wanted the check.
- The Bobsled Track: Hike up Trebević mountain. The abandoned 1984 Olympic track is covered in graffiti and moss. It’s haunting.
- The Food: Eat the Ćevapi at Željo. Don’t ask for a menu. Just tell them how many pieces you want.
- The Vibe: It’s the only place where you can hear the Adhan (call to prayer) and church bells at the same time.
I know people will disagree, but I think Sarajevo is more “European” than Paris will ever be again. It’s got a soul that hasn’t been polished away by over-tourism. I actually tracked the tread wear on my Salomon X Ultra 4 boots while hiking the hills there—I lost about 2mm of rubber on that limestone, and it was worth every step. Sarajevo is a city that demands you pay attention. You can’t just coast through it.
The place I refuse to recommend
I’m going to say it: I hate Iceland. I know, I know. “The waterfalls! The northern lights!” I don’t care. It’s a glorified screensaver full of people wearing $800 North Face jackets they bought just for the trip. Everything is overpriced, the food is mostly mediocre unless you want to pay $45 for a burger, and you’re constantly surrounded by influencers trying to get the perfect shot of a rock. I refuse to go back. I’ve had friends tell me I just “didn’t do it right,” but I spent six days driving the Ring Road and all I felt was like I was in a very expensive cold-weather theme park. It’s sterile.
Total waste of money.
A very specific failure in Tokyo
Tokyo is usually on every list of exceptional travel destinations, and for once, the internet is right. But not for the reasons you think. Everyone goes to Shibuya Crossing. Whatever. Go to Shimokitazawa instead. It’s where the vintage shops are. I had a massive personal failure there last April. I spent three hours trying to find a specific stationary shop I’d read about, got completely turned around because my pocket Wi-Fi died, and ended up eating a convenience store egg sandwich on a street corner while a group of teenagers laughed at my inability to use a paper map. I felt like a total idiot.
But that’s the thing. Tokyo is a clockwork orange where the gears are made of neon and polite apologies. Even when you’re failing, it’s fascinating. I’ve bought the same brand of Japanese notebook—Life Noble Note—four times since that trip. I don’t care if I can get cheaper ones at Target. I need that specific paper. It reminds me of being lost and overwhelmed in the best way possible.
I think the best time to visit Japan is August. I know everyone says don’t because the humidity will melt your soul, but the heat makes the 7-Eleven frozen beer slushies taste like nectar from the gods. It’s a hill I’m willing to die on.
I don’t really know how to wrap this up. I’m sitting in my kitchen in Chicago, looking at a piece of shrapnel-scarred stone I found in a park in Sarajevo, and I’m wondering if I’ll ever find a place that feels that heavy again. Is a destination still exceptional if you’re the only one there to see it? I don’t know. Just stop going to the places everyone else goes. It’s boring.
Go to Georgia. Get lost. Get scammed. It’s better that way.