The popularity of various travel destinations changes every year. Just as we like to focus on trendy new places to visit, some common vacation spots also become less popular, or even obsolete, with time. But often, travellers are too quick to assume a destination is, for whatever reason, past its prime! So here are a few destinations you may consider obsolete but are still every bit as spectacular as ever to visit.
Australia’s Great Barrier Reef
Why You’ve Heard It’s Obsolete: As part of the global discussion on climate change and declining natural environments, we tend to hear every year about the Great Barrier Reef disappearing. Last summer, according to BBC, there was even some debate on the part of UNESCO about labelling the Great Barrier Reef as being officially “endangered,” due to rapidly declining conditions and dying coral.
Why You Should Still Visit: To begin with, it’s important to separate long-term environmental concerns from short-term beauty. The Great Barrier Reef is famous in part because it’s huge. Even in decline, it offers mind-blowing visuals to scuba divers and tourists. Additionally, there has been recent renewed hope for the reversal of the reef’s decline. Toward the end of 2014, The Guardian detailed new plans and initiatives by the Australian government to preserve and restore the reef. A visit in the next few years, and hopefully well into the future, should still be incredible.
Las Vegas, Nevada
Why You’ve Heard It’s Obsolete: These days, there are all kinds of incentives for people to gamble online, as opposed to at major casino hubs like Las Vegas. Not only are there numerous viable options, but many offer perks that make them more financially strategic for gamblers. At the Betfair casino online, users can even take advantage of a range of promotional bonuses that essentially amount to free money as an incentive to play online. Options like a £5 welcome bonus and a 100% matching bonus for a deposit up to £200 make it seem almost foolish to play games in an ordinary casino by comparison.
Why You Should Still Visit: While online casinos offer a great alternative for people who are in it for the games, it’s important to remember that Vegas has always been about more than just the gambling. The popular casinos in Las Vegas double as full-fledged resorts and entertainment centres. The range of recreation—spas, shows, fine dining, and so much more—is unlike almost anywhere else in the world. This has kept tourism alive and well in Vegas, and the atmosphere is as vibrant as ever. It certainly looks as if this destination will survive the boom in online casinos, which was once viewed by some as a threat.
The Greek Isles
Why You’ve Heard It’s Obsolete: In fairness, no one is really saying a trip to the Greek Isles is a bad idea. But Greece has gotten so much bad press in recent years over economic and administrative concerns that it’s conceivable the country has begun to look unappealing to tourists from around the world.
Why You Should Still Visit: In 2012, at the height of the Greek economic crisis, Peter Sommer’s travel blog featured a thorough analysis of the idea of travel to Greece. Not only did the article assert that the country was no less hospitable due to its various national crises, it pointed out wisely that an economic downturn in Greece may directly benefit travellers. With a renewed discussion of late about Greece possibly departing the Euro system, exchange rates could conceivably make a trip to Greece more affordable than ever. And most important of all: no economic crisis can diminish the beauty and splendor of the Greek isles. They’re just more accessible.
