There are certain destinations that seem practically required to earn a spot on every traveler’s bucket list. Watching the sunset in Santorini. Tossing a coin into Rome’s Trevi Fountain. Cruising along the Amalfi Coast. Wandering among the colorful palaces of Sintra.
But just because millions of travelers dream of going somewhere doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the trip travel experts would choose themselves.
So we asked five travel advisors and experts which popular bucket-list destination they’d skip—and where they’d send travelers instead.
Their answers revealed a surprisingly consistent theme: Sometimes the problem isn’t the destination itself. It’s the crowds, timing and the way everyone else is trying to experience it.
From sweltering European cities packed with tour groups to beaches that can look very different depending on the season, these are the bucket-list trips travel pros say they’d reconsider.
And one iconic Greek island came up more than once.
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Santorini, Greece
Those blue-domed churches, whitewashed villages and caldera views have made Santorini one of the most recognizable vacation destinations in the world. But two of our experts independently said they’d think twice before booking the Greek island.
Fora Advisor Caroline Bernthal isn’t suggesting travelers write it off entirely.
“Not to clickbait you here, because I’d never tell someone to totally skip Santorini (it’s iconic for a reason!), but I would skip it in the peak summer season,” Bernthal tells Parade. “The crowds completely change the experience, especially in Oia.”
Instead, she recommends visiting from late September to mid-October, when travelers can still experience the island’s famous scenery and beautiful weather “but with a bit more room to actually enjoy it.”
And don’t assume you need to stay smack in the middle of Oia, either. Bernthal prefers the quieter side of town, where travelers can have more privacy while remaining close enough to walk into the center.
Butterfield & Robinson Experience Designer Laura Benn takes an even stronger stance: She’d avoid Santorini and Mykonos altogether, along with another famously crowded Mediterranean destination, Dubrovnik.
For Greece, Benn would send travelers north instead.
“So many travelers go straight to the Greek islands, but there’s so much more to the country,” she says.
One of her favorites is Zagori, known for its stone villages, mountains and hiking trails. She also recommends Meteora, where centuries-old monasteries appear to perch atop towering rock formations.
“It feels like a very different side of Greece and gives you a chance to experience the landscape, food and culture without being focused solely on the islands,” Benn says.
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The Amalfi Coast in Summer
Few destinations sell the Italian summer fantasy quite like the Amalfi Coast. But visiting at the height of summer can mean sharing that fantasy with an awful lot of other people.
Halie Brarda of ETK Travels/SmartFlyer would skip the Amalfi Coast during summer, when she says it’s simply become too hot and crowded.
Instead, Brarda urges clients to visit in May, late September or October, when they can experience the spectacular coastline outside of its busiest summer stretch.
And if the goal is an Italian beach vacation? She has a couple of alternatives.
“I would send them to Sardinia or Taormina, Sicily, for stunning beaches, but fewer crowds,” Brarda tells Parade.
In other words, you don’t necessarily have to give up the Italian seaside dream. You may just want to rethink where—or when—you chase it.
Rome in July and August
Rome is always bucket-list worthy. Where else can you spend the morning wandering around the Colosseum, stop for pasta at lunch, toss a coin into the Trevi Fountain and end the day with gelato?
But Lyndsey Matthews, managing editor of points and loyalty at The Points Guy, would avoid doing it in July or August.
“Rome is popular for a reason,” Matthews says. “Landmarks like the Trevi Fountain, St. Peter’s Basilica and the Colosseum are must-sees at least once in your lifetime, plus the Italian capital has some of the world’s best cuisine.”
The problem is peak summer.
“If you go in July and August, you’ll spend most of your time sweating in the sun alongside busloads of other tourists,” she says.
Her solution? Save the Eternal City for the off-season.
Matthews visited around Thanksgiving in late November and says she had room to actually take in the sights—and it was still warm enough to enjoy a gelato every day.
Frankly, that doesn’t sound like much of a sacrifice.
Sintra, Portugal
Portugal may be having a moment, but Carly Ritter, a Luxury Travel Advisor at SmartFlyer, would steer travelers away from one of its most famous day trips: Sintra.
“I would personally skip Sintra, Portugal,” Ritter tells Parade. “While the palaces are undeniably beautiful and incredibly historic, the reality is that it has become extremely crowded, particularly during peak travel periods.”
The very geography that makes Sintra so enchanting can also make navigating it frustrating. Ritter points out that there is essentially one main road winding through the area, which can lead to significant traffic when visitor numbers swell.
Instead of following the traditional Lisbon-to-Sintra itinerary, she recommends venturing farther into Portugal.
Porto is her pick for travelers looking for culture, architecture and incredible food and wine, while oenophiles should consider the Douro Valley, where vineyard-covered hills along the Douro River set the scene for wine tastings and private experiences.
For something more laid-back, Ritter recommends Comporta, known for its beaches, rice fields, pine forests and relaxed luxury atmosphere.
And travelers willing to venture even farther off the typical Portugal circuit should consider the Azores, where volcanic landscapes, hiking, thermal waters and whale watching offer a completely different side of the country.
“It feels adventurous, incredibly beautiful, and far removed from the traditional Portugal itinerary,” Ritter says.
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Cancún During Sargassum Season
Matthews also flags another vacation where timing can dramatically affect the experience: Cancún.
Its abundance of all-inclusive resorts and relatively easy accessibility make Cancún an obvious choice for travelers craving a low-effort beach escape. But Matthews says travelers need to pay attention to sargassum season.
Sargassum is a floating brown seaweed that can wash ashore in large quantities in Cancún and elsewhere throughout the Caribbean, potentially piling up on beaches and producing an unpleasant smell as it decomposes.
“If you’re looking for an easy-to-get-to beach destination with dozens of all-inclusive resorts that require minimal planning, Cancun is likely your dream vacation,” Matthews says. “But you need to be mindful that sargassum, a type of seaweed, can arrive in massive mats that stink and cover beaches throughout the Caribbean Sea in the peak summer season.”
Her advice is simple: Research current conditions before booking and find out how the resort you’re considering handles sargassum removal and beach maintenance.
Because if you’re booking a vacation primarily for the beach, it’s probably worth knowing what that beach might actually look like when you arrive.
Related: 10 Caribbean Vacation Destinations That Are Perfect for Families, According to a Getaway Guru
The Maldives for a Honeymoon
Bernthal’s other surprising pick isn’t about crowds or weather at all. It’s about using a honeymoon to take the trip that may become harder to pull off later.
“I do love the Maldives (they are really as stunning as the pictures look) but I’m always surprised by how it automatically gets categorized as the ultimate honeymoon destination,” she says.
If she were planning a $30,000 honeymoon and had to choose between the Maldives and an African safari, Bernthal says she’d choose the safari “hands down.”
Her reasoning isn’t that one destination is necessarily better. It’s that the Maldives can be surprisingly family-friendly, making it a vacation couples may still be able to take relatively easily if they have young children down the road. A safari, she says, can become more complicated until children are older.
“A honeymoon is a rare opportunity to take a trip that may become significantly harder in the next stage of life,” Bernthal says, “so take full advantage of it!”
It’s a smart way of looking at a bucket list: Don’t just ask where you most want to go. Consider when in your life you’ll have the best opportunity to go there.
Related: Four Bucket List Trips Will Make Your Dreams Come True
Skip the Usual Turkish Beach Vacation, Too
Benn has one more alternative for travelers drawn to Mediterranean beach destinations: Turkey’s Turquoise Coast, particularly around the Lycian Way.
“For Turkey, I’d look beyond some of the better-known beach destinations and explore the Turquoise Coast, particularly around the Lycian Way,” Benn says.
Here, travelers can pair the Mediterranean coastline with hiking through mountains, exploring ancient ruins and passing through small villages rather than spending an entire vacation at a beach resort.
“It’s a really beautiful way to experience the coast beyond just staying at a beach resort, and there’s so much to discover along this stretch of Turkey,” she says.
Related: 115 Best Destinations for a Quick Weekend Getaway
Should You Really Skip These Bucket-List Destinations?
Probably the biggest takeaway from the experts isn’t that you should cross Santorini, Rome or the Amalfi Coast off your list.
It’s that the most popular way to visit a bucket-list destination isn’t necessarily the best way to experience it.
Visiting Santorini in October instead of July, saving Rome for the off-season or trading an overcrowded Mediterranean hotspot for somewhere travelers haven’t already seen a thousand times on Instagram could turn out to be the better trip.
And if Santorini has been sitting at the top of your bucket list for years? You don’t necessarily need to take it off.
You may just want to change the date.
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