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Not overlooked, but maybe under rated. Those places get a tiny fraction of tourists compared to Paris and Rome.
I would never compare a string of five coastal villages to Paris or Rome. All are worthy destinations, but you don't go to Paris for a pleasant cliff-top hike above the sea.
Having said that, the Cinque Terre have been a UNESCO site since 1997.
I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree. Whether it is backpacking or an organized tour, the Cinque Terre is quite touristy these days.
I completely second Romania! I spent a couple of weeks there last year, and I loved every minute of it. Good food, friendly locals, breathtaking vistas, a rich and fascinating history…it has it all!
I also have to put a plug in for Mongolia. I spent about 6 months there in conjunction with my studies, and I could not be more impressed with that place! The hospitality culture there is HUGE, such that if you go out into the countryside you will undoubtedly be invited in by strangers and given their traditional milk tea, plus food and lodging if you are so inclined. Almost 1/3 of the local people still live a traditional nomadic herding lifestyle, which is pretty much unheard of in this day and age. The nomad cultural heritage, communist history during soviet times, and modern booming mineral wealth create a fascinating interplay of social and cultural factors. The majority of the landscape is nothing to write home about, but the Gobi Desert in the south and the mountainous regions in the north near Lake Khövsgöl in the north are picturesque in completely different ways. (Can you tell I love that place?)
Another great but little-traveled destination is Honduras. It often gets a bad rap for supposedly being unsafe, but in reality very little crime is targeted toward random people. As long as you avoid slums in Tegucigalpa/San Pedro Sula and don’t get involved in the drug trade you have nothing more to fear than anywhere else. I loved riding the “chicken busses” from city to city for $1 or less, lunching on homemade local food for no more than a couple of bucks, and staying with locals for free or in hostels for $5-10 a night. All in, between air, housing, transportation, and souvenirs I shelled out less than $800 in two weeks and had amazing experiences. Isla del Tigre, in a bay off the southwest coast, is a quiet little volcanic island where locals go to relax in the summer, and a beautiful place to sit at a little table on the beach and eat a fish that has just been plucked from the water.
Ok, now I REALLY want to go somewhere again. The last place I traveled was a giant resort in Cancun for a work function. Not exactly my style.
I'll tell you a place that's overlooked - Ghent, Belgium. Well, Belgium period. But Ghent is as charming as Bruges, and MUCH more charming than Brussels, and it's just passed by. My husband and I loved our stay there.
I also think that the Spessart regions of northern Bavaria are overlooked by people rushing off to the Alps. No, they're not the Alps, but those gentle mountains (rather like our Smoky Mountains) are filled with castle ruins, picturesque little villages, vineyards on the mountain sides - and very friendly people. It's a beautiful region of Germany. Oh, and the city of Wurzburg is there - it's also overlooked a lot and it has some fabulous scenery, and a great museum in the fortress that overlooks the city.
I loved our recent visit to Yorkshire, which is in northern England. It's very rural, and the Yorkshire Dales and Moors are so beautiful. The northern English coast is gorgeous too, and not as packed with tourists as points south. I found the Yorkshire people to be especially friendly.
When we visited London (one of my favorite places in the world), we stayed in Westminster rather than closer to all the touristy hubbub. We will definitely do that again. Every evening we wandered the quiet neighborhood streets just looking at the interesting neighborhoods where the "real" people live, and discovering little tucked away parks...it was charming. And our hotel room still managed to overlook the Thames.
San Sebastian, Spain - A place known to the Spanish, but not many other people. Also, the villages along the Bay of Biscay. Public transportation (a train) connects the villages.
Alpujarras - A chain of mountain villages in Andalucia (accessible by bus, but best explored by car or even long-distance walking)
Tarifa, Spain - The southernmost point of Spain and the only place in Europe where the Mediterranean and Atlantic are right next to each other.
Meknes, Morocco - Few touts, quite a bit to see, village of Moulay Idriss and Roman ruins of Volubilis nearby (there was practically nobody else there when I was there in early June), VERY friendly locals.
Paraguay. The Paraguayans are totally cool people, there is less poverty than you'd expect.
Reunion. Rather expensive, but an awesome, spectacular little island
Newfoundland. Still undiscovered, the world's warmest most delightful people.
Taiwan. Typically Chinese culture, without the stress and angst of China.
Cancun City. Stay away from the beach hotel strip, and Cancun is a lovely modern but friendly, pleasant city.
I agree with the OP about Romania. I stayed several months there in the 60s and two other shorter trips, and it is so totally different from anywhere else in Europe.
Krakow and Zakopane, Poland
Olomouc, Czech Republic
Isle of Skye, Scotland
San Cristobal and Oaxaca, Mexico - not to forget the villages surrounding each (both have lots of domestic tourism and San Cristobal had a TON of German and Italian tourists, but few Americans)
Mexico City (not nearly as unsafe as made out to be - and so much to do)
Newcastle, UK
Glacier National Park (not exactly underrated, but less known and respected than some of the bigger parks)
Portland, Maine
East End of London (might have changed since the Olympics)
Iceland - most people who go to Iceland only spend a little time in Reykjavik, do the Blue Lagoon, and maybe the Golden Circle Tour. There is so much more! Isafjordur, Akureyri, the road through the remote central highlands.. so much
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