It’s another new year, so time to dust off the old travel list and see what places are on the bucket list to visit this year. There are always some obvious ones on the list, to see the regular world wonders, the best attractions that always get talked about and visit the countries that friends said they would visit together back when they were young. But a lot of those places you should consider striking from the bucket list in 2019 and instead, pick something different for a variety of reasons.
Maybe the place is too visited and has too many tourists to really be an amazing trip, or maybe there is just a better option than going to the cliché place everyone else has gone. The world is full of wonderful experiences, so your bucket list shouldn’t be just the same trips everyone else has taken over and over again. Make 2019 the year you spread your traveling wings and try new places, and with this list, we’ll tell you which places to strike off the 2019 bucket list and which places to go to instead. You never know, you may just awake a whole new side of traveling that you didn’t know before.
30 Remove: Isle of Skye, Scotland
Scotland’s largest island has a serious problem in controlling the number of tourists who want to come and see the Atlantic Ocean for its shores. One of the largest problems is the number of cars and tour buses that clog the streets, making it difficult to find any parking or to even let locals drive by. According to CNN, residents of the island complained about the noise and visitors being disruptive, which got the police involved and forced people out who didn’t have a place to stay. Best to take this place off your bucket list and look somewhere else.
29 Visit Instead: The Belize Barrier Reef
The Belize Barrier spans 185 miles of the country's coastline and is the largest reef system in the Northern Hemisphere. The reef's crystal blue waters are a haven for its marine community and an enticing exploratory region for scuba divers and snorkelers. According to BBC news, this hot destination is Belize's top tourist destination and nearly 260,000 visitors pass through to see the reef each year. Therefore, if you are looking to have a sea life adventure then this is the place to add on your bucket list for 2019.
28 Remove: New York City
New York is the largest city in the United States and has so many amazing attractions, such as Time’s Square, Broadway, the Statue of Liberty and the World Trade Center. According to MSN, they had 13 million tourists last year alone, and with already over eight million people calling New York City home, it can mean plenty of traffic jams and large crowds at the best attractions. New York is the city that doesn’t sleep, but it’s also the city that will make you wait, either in traffic or long lines. With so many other cities in the United States, take New York off and go somewhere else.
27 Visit Instead: The Wave, Southern Utah
The sandstone rock formation near the Arizona-Utah border is a must add on to your 2019 bucket list. This sandy slope can be found on the Coyote Buttes. Although it is quite a hike to get to, it’s well worth the opportunity to snatch that picture-perfect scenery. According to the Bureau of Land Management, to hike to The Wave you must obtain a hiking permit that cannot exceed more than 10 days. Should you go in large groups, be careful, as this is a lottery based system and you may not have the chance to explore this gorgeous land of rocks.
26 Remove: Barcelona, Spain
Barcelona is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, and the locals would be more than happy if tourists didn’t come. According to CNN, Barcelona saw over 34 million tourists in 2016, which made for some very crowded beaches across the entire city, which led to some very angry locals who even started putting up anti-tourist graffiti in the city. Residents have complained that the number of tourists using Airbnb have also made it expensive to rent, so the local government has had to pass laws to limit tours in the city.
25 Visit Instead: Salar De Uyuni, Bolivia
A salt lake that freezes at night and is scorched by day, these flats harbour some of the most extreme daily temperatures in the world. You can't help but think how cool it would be to walk on ice by night and see crystal clear water by day, as this should be added to the bucket list for 2019. Accounting to Found the World, the site was created when a prehistoric lake dried up and left a salty crust behind, which becomes a giant mirror when it rains.
24 Remove: Santorini, Greece
Santorini may have the greatest sunset in the world, so of course, tourists want to line up to get a photo of it and see it for themselves. It has made this small island city very overpopulated with tourists. According to CNN, over two million tourists visited in 2017, with 850,000 of them coming off cruise ships. The city has capped tourists to 8,000 a day because of it and they are worried the city will start to lose its charm if the population grows even more. There are plenty of places to see great sunsets, so if that is all you want from Santorini, take it off your list and go somewhere else.
23 Visit Instead: Mendenhall Ice Caves, Juneau, Alaska
These ice caves are found in the Mendenhall Glacier, located 12 miles from downtown Juneau. The glacier is in a surrounding area that protects Tonga’s, National Forest. According to the United States Forest services, over 500,000 tourist come to visit these glaciers each year. In recent years, the Mendenhall glaciers have been known for their massive stumps that are 1,400 years old and the oldest stumps are around 2,350 years old. So why not come and discover your inner grizzly.
22 Remove: Taj Mahal, India
Travel brochure photos of the Taj Mahal have it as this alone iconic building with virtually no one around. That couldn’t be further from the truth. According to CNN, over eight million tourists visit the Taj Mahal each year, with international visitors making up over half of that total. Oddly, authorities are thinking of limiting how many discounted fees to domestic visitors to just 40,000 a day, while international tourists can come as much as they want. But if you are expecting a quiet day and a great photo with the Taj Mahal, you would be better to stick to the brochure photos.
21 Visit Instead: Tipaza, Algeria
The Royal Mausoleum of Mauretania is a funerary monument located on the Tipaza province of Algeria. This tomb is a must see in 2019 as it is believed to be the buried site of King Juba and Queen Cleopatra according to the World Heritage Site of Algeria. Although no remains have been found, many tourists find this destination very appealing because of the history that it tells about the 1st century. It is also believed that the Royal Mausoleum of Mauretania was built on a hill 250 meters above sea level.
20 Remove: Mount Everest
Mount Everest is on the bucket list of every mountain climber, because it's the tallest mountain in the world it is the one chance to stand on the highest peak. But with the lure of the tallest mountain comes plenty of garbage and inexperienced climbers, which is very dangerous for the mountain, as people have got stuck on their way up and not been able to make it back down. According to CNN, Nepal has started to limit the number of people who get permits to climb from their side of the mountain and have raised the fees to get a permit to over $11,000.
19 Visit Instead: Capilano Suspension Bridge, Vancouver
If you're afraid of heights, skip this one. To cross the Capilano Suspension Bridge, which is 460 feet long and 230 feet above the Capilano River, you will have to trust a relatively simple structure. According to Vista Nature, the wire cable bridge is much safer than the original bridge made of hemp rope and a deck of cedar planks. This bridge has been featured in well-known television series such as MacGyver, the Crow and Psych. The suspension bridge attracts over 800,00 visitors each year, so why not take your inner daredevil and test your fears on your bucket list in 2019.
18 Remove: Machu Picchu, Peru
UNESCO recommended that only 2,500 people a day be allowed into Machu Picchu, Peru. In 2016, according to CNN, they had more than double that amount. Despite travellers having to have an official guide when they go, which has helped a little bit to limit numbers, it hasn’t stopped people from coming in masses. It’s now hard to get in, as they only offer three time slots a day, so perhaps take it off your bucket list and pick another destination that you can go to anytime you want.
17 Visit Instead: Pamukkale, Turkey
As the hot, calcium-rich eaters come from deep within the earth to pour over a cliff, they cool down and form white calcium into pools. This has been a popular spa for tourist since the Romans built the spa city of Hierapolis. According to the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, this popular tourist destination in Turkey is a World Heritage site. This natural spa has also created caves that are used for religious purposes for priests who found ways to appear immune to the suffocating gas.
16 Remove: Paris, France
Paris is one of the most visited places in the world, as they welcome millions of tourists in a year to come see the Eiffel Tower and everything else the French capital has to offer. But because of that, according to MSN, it has made Paris make the overrated list because of the large number of tourists who come, forcing lines to be very long and views to be blocked. The city of lights is on everyone’s bucket list, but there are so many other cities to go and see if you want the France experience that make it so Paris can be taken off the bucket list.
15 Visit Instead: M'Zab Valley, Algeria
Located 600 kilometres south of Algeria, in the heart of the Sahara Desert, The M'Zab Valley is a must add on to your bucket list in 2019. This tradition human habitat has been preserved over the centuries. Each house in the Valley has been constructed with local materials and it was made sure that it adapted to its environment. According to UNESCO, this site has been deemed as a World Heritage site and attracts well over 200,000 visitors each year.
14 Remove: Beijing, China
Beijing has plenty of great things to see and the capital of China definitely has a lot of attractions for tourists, but the problem is, with a population of over 21 million people, Beijing has a huge smog problem. According to MSN, Beijing had to issue a red alert in 2016 because of the pollution in the air. Locals wear masks to protect themselves from the pollution and it has really hurt their tourism industry. Maybe take this off the bucket list until they clean up the city.
13 Visit Instead: Grand Prismatic Spring
The Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone National Park is one of the mysterious places that you should add on to your bucket list in 2019. Known for its many spectacular wonders, it is in the largest hot spring in the United Starts and the third largest in the world. The striking coloration patterns are created by the pigmented bacteria in the microbial mats that grow around the edges of the mineral-rich water. According to the National Park Service, this historical park is deemed a UNESCO World Heritage site for the number of volcanoes available in the area.
12 Remove: Dubrovnik, Croatia
When UNESCO, the people who bring you the World Heritage List, want to take away your status due to extreme overcrowding, you know a place has a tourist problem and needs to take steps to fix it. According to CNN, that is exactly what happens, as the city took steps to limit the number of tourists. Large cruise ships cause lots of problems and on any day, multiple can dock and let out their passengers who flood the beautiful city. In one day, it was reported that over 10,000 tourists where in the city. The problem for locals is, they don’t spend on local businesses. Take this off your bucket list unless you are willing to give back and not just go for the views.
11 Visit Instead: Seas of Stars, Vaadhoo Island, The Maldives
The Sea of Stars is a must-add on to your bucket list in 2019. The Vaadhoo Island has a population of 500 and it is best known for the marine life that lights up the blue sea at night. According to Harvard University, the small island in the Maldives is famous for bringing the night sky down to land and it is all credited to the tiny Phytoplankton that creates bioluminescence, which makes the stars dance through the waves.