In recent years, we have been fortunate to be able to travel to a lot of new places. Some were as great as I expected while some sadly looked way cooler on Instagram, but the best were the ones that surprised me! The ones no one really talked about that blew me away and that we still talk about to this day.
And so, here are the top 5 destinations I think are wildly underrated. Add them to your bucket list NOW!
1. Montana
With all of the travel we did the past few years, a very common question we would get was “What has been your favorite destination?” and our answer surprised nearly every single time.
Montana.
Hands down.
The landscape is so varied – from mountains to streams to lakes to meadows – and it is so untouched. It is natural beauty at its finest. The air is so fresh. The wildlife. The options for outdoor activities. You could rent a cabin for a week and enjoy being off the grid or do what we did and roadtrip around through Yellowstone National Park. You really can’t go wrong.
I talked more about Montana HERE.
2. Northern Michigan
We found ourselves here by chance the year we were living in South Bend. We had just moved so we didn’t know anyone in the area yet and it was Fourth of July so we had some days off work. We decided to take a roadtrip up the western coast, stopping in Grand Haven, Harbor Springs, Petoskey, Charlevoix, and ending in Traverse City. We had no idea what to expect and certainly didn’t think we would find so many charming lakeside towns.
Since this area experiences real Winter, when the Summer months roll around, everyone is out on the water, strolling around town popping into shops, dining al fresco.
I talked more about each of the towns we visited in Northern Michigan in this post HERE (though warning: when I transferred my blog to WordPress, it removed all the pictures – sad face).
Last two photos via Hello Adams Family and The Fresh Exchange (since my son broke our external hard drive that had the rest of my photos from our trip, all I could salvage was the first one from my Instagram circa 2015).
3. Mexico City
Another one that surprises people because everyone associates it with rampant crime which is not a fair representation of the city as a whole at all. Here we found the most welcoming locals, cheap eats, authentic neighborhoods, and warm weather.
A visit to Our Lady of Guadalupe is a truly wondrous experience, then spend your time hanging in these three neighborhoods: La Condesa, Roma, and Polanco.
I talked about the city a bit more HERE.
4. Lima
If you are a foodie, you need to make a trip to this South American city. The food is so fresh, so inventive, and top-notch. In 2017 it actually ranked as the best food city in the world!
Whether you make a trip specifically to Lima or use it as a jumping off point to visit Machu Picchu, you would be remiss not to set aside at least a few days to explore this culinary hotspot.
Bonus: as it is located below the equator, their seasons are opposite those in the US making it a perfect Winter getaway!
5. Philadelphia
If you are a history buff then this might not be underrated to you but for someone like me who isn’t super into history, I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this city as much as I did.
However, I was pleasantly surprised by the charm of the city, how walkable it was, the food (you’ve got to try the fried chicken + honey donut combo at Federal Donuts!) and also did get kinda into the history of it after all!
And for an honorable mention…
6. 30A
For any Southerner reading this post, you’re like “30A is underrated? Literally everyone vacations there.” And you wouldn’t be wrong. However, we have found that besides Southerners, most people have never even heard of 30A! What a shame because this area on the panhandle of Florida is truly a gem!
Adorable planned communities, a bike path connecting them all, bright blue water, white sand, fresh food – it’s a dream.
I shared an entire guide to 30A HERE.
