I’m curious to learn about places around the globe that have a significant amount of underutilized tourism infrastructure. In many cases, I suspect that governments are propping up unsustainable tourism operators or investing in tourism with a “build it and they will come” mentality.
Here are a few examples that I’m aware of:
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Qatar - The country has an oversupply of hotels relative to the number of visitors, and its tourism economy heavily relies on layover tours due to the strength of Qatar Airways’ network.
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Saudi Arabia - In an effort to diversify its economy away from oil, the country is pushing a massive tourism development agenda, despite having many factors that make it less appealing to visitors. Religious tourism seems to be a primary focus.
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North Korea - For obvious reasons… For example, only a few floors of the Ryugyong Hotel are ever occupied.
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Northern Japan (Aomori, Akita, Sendai) - These places are heavily fueled by domestic tourism, and are basically deserted for half of the year (despite attractions and so on still functioning).
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EDIT: Maybe the Caribbean islands outside of Cruise ship season?
To clarify, I’m not looking for hidden gems or places that are simply underrated travel destinations. Instead, I’m interested in learning about locations where there is a clear mismatch between the available tourism infrastructure and the actual number of visitors.
I want to find places where I might end up being the only visitor to a museum or one of few tourists on an airport bus. The fact that these museums and airport limo buses even exist is where the question stems from.
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I was in Ha Long Bay, Vietnam, recently and it was like a ghost town. Can’t say I’d recommend it but our hotel put all the guests on one floor and it was still deserted. Great free breakfast but it felt weird being there. There’s lots of tourist infrastructure there. Multiple cruise lines, hotels, night markets, etc. But unfortunately the country experienced a lot of corruption and COVID cut off their tourist supply. Now a lot of buildings lay half finished or abandoned. Would highly recommend other places in Vietnam but this seemed apt for your question.
Thats bizarre, i was in Vietnam a few years ago, and it was packed full of tourists. I would have thought that given covid is basically over for most people, that it would have bounced back.
I was in Cambodia in the summer, and I had been there for quite a long time before Covid . I thought that it seemed like the amount of people was about the same, but when someone posted the numbers from immigration about the amount of visas handed out in a certain major port, it was still about 10% down.
Huh, Ha Long Bay is a ghost town? It’s one of the most crowded places in Vietnam, I didn’t go there when I went because it has a reputation of a factory; tourists in, tourists out, on a schedule.
This response definitely took me by surprise too. I’ve heard it described as one of the most overrated, overtouristed places in Southeast Asia.
Ho tram resorts were very normal December 2022, still a great experience
Kyrgyzstan and central Asia in general. I recall a video there where a guy went to a ukranian-kyrgz heritage site and the lady running it was excitedly following him around telling him facts because she hasn’t seen anyone in a long time ago was interested.
Spent a couple of weeks in Uzbekistan last year and couldn’t recommend it more! Incredible architecture, fantastic people, fascinating history, … food.
Seriously though food is interesting if not my favourite, and you can find plenty of western options in Tashkent if you just want some KFC!
I’d love to see that video if you end up remembering which vlogger it was.
Bald and Bankrupt maybe?
Just went back to look for it and yes that’s it!
it’s this video, I think somewhere around 11 minutes in.
NGL I’m in this thread for hidden gem places because crowds are awful and part of the reason I don’t travel. I mean… the other, larger, part is that I’m broke.
But also your premise is really interesting. It reminds me of somewhere in Asia - either Vietnam or Laos ? - that was building infrastructure with future populations in mind. IIRC it was an episode of Top Gear and they drove on a like a 12 lane highway that was barely used but is ready for future nightmare traffic.
Not exactly what you’re looking for but I like your question and am interested in any answers.
That was Burma
Yes! Thank you :)
Keep in mind that tourist areas that aren’t busy will likely have a lot of businesses closed. Purple use off seasons for time off. It’s usually cheaper to close if you have staff. And if you don’t, it’s the best time to take your own vacation.
NGL I’m in this thread for hidden gem places because crowds are awful and part of the reason I don’t travel.
I completely agree with you. I didn’t really want to obliquely complain about “tourism” in general, the same way that complaining about traffic is an oxymoron - because if you’re stuck in traffic, you ARE traffic.
By the time that a hidden gem gets out, it isn’t long before it gets overtouristed and the crowds ruin it for me. Think Portugal - amazing country, but I could already start to see the negative impacts that my presence and tourism was having on Lisbon because I was one of the many that started arriving once Conde Naste Traveler and all the other travel publications started pitching Portugal as the must-see hidden gem. I didn’t feel like I left my comfort zone at all - pretty much everything catered to tourists in some way.
On top of that, because of frequent flyer miles, I do have the option to getting to some of these places pretty reasonably cheaply since cash fares to some of these places are pretty silly.
Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina spent $21.5 million back in 2005 building the Randy Parton Theater that was supposed to be the anchor of a new entertainment/shopping/tourism destination. Roanoke Rapids is the first town in North Carolina as you drive south on I-95, kind of hitting a halfway point for people driving to Florida from New York/New England. Randy Parton is Dolly Parton’s brother. The idea was people would stop for the night, get dinner, see the show, maybe do some shopping, and leave the next day. I remember a quote from a local politician saying tourists were great: they come, they spend money, and then they leave. You don’t have to build schools for their kids or have any other large expenses. That was the theory and plan anyway.
Nothing else was built besides the theater; I don’t think they even built a new hotel. Attendance was actually a sellout at first, but after 2 years was averaging under 100. Tourists never really came in and with no other acts besides Parton’s the locals had no need to keep returning. The theater’s still there and I think used occasionally but it’s a burden on the local tax base as they’re still paying off the bond, without all the tourist revenue that was supposed to pay for it.
Here’s an article I found with a quick search: https://www.carolinajournal.com/randy-parton-theatre-still-haunts-roanoke-rapids/
There are a lot more articles out there and there was video from when Parton was fired; I think someone tipped off the news because there were reporters and cameras waiting and Parton appeared intoxicated. Just a big mess all around.
Infrastructure usually follows tourism. So you’re limited to two scenarios in my mind.
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As you said, government investment that didn’t pan out.
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Popular places that went out of fashion.
For much of the west I can’t see much #1. I think you got many of the others.
As for #2, nothing really comes to mind. Reno Nevada maybe. I think Fiji was the exotic one that doesn’t get coverage anymore.
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I live in an area that was built on tourism in the 1920s. Prohibition turned it into a rum runners haven as the customers were always coming and the proximity to Canada made it a prime location. Now, the infrastructure is all gone and the only thing left is it’s past is the local high school mascot. Mt. Clemens Michigan used to be something amazing.
I travel a lot and Tijuana is one place I can think of. I don’t know if Tijuana has mismatched capacity but during US prohibition, it was a fancy place celebrities went. The Caesar salad was invented there at a luxury hotel that catered to Hollywood stars who wanted to drink legally.
I don’t know if they host the same amount of guests as in the past such that there’s spare infrastructure. But it’d be one to check out.
I live in a tourism-dependent place (New Orleans) and our excess capacity is actually used a few times a year for Mardi Gras, Jazz Fest, and sports events. But that isn’t the same as like Istanbul where the hoteliers are worse off due to mild instability.
It seems like most tourist spots are seasonal, so that’s an option. Cape Cod is fantastic in fall and even winter when there are no crowds. The Caribbean is cheaper when you risk being cancelled by hurricanes. Etc
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