Done right, a vacation provides the perfect reprieve from the day-to-day grind. Done wrong, and you might never come home. Without the proper planning, it’s easy to get caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. So consider this a public service announcement.
Redditor u/Agreeable-Monk-5046 asked:
Americans, what place in the US should tourists avoid?
These answers come from a real place of lived-in experience. Use them wisely. The last thing you want is to wind up with a toe tag, or worse, eating at Applebee’s.
1.
Grand Canyon.
Nice and cool at the rim, that’s Temperate forest area.
The canyon floor, due to the elevation change, is like Phoenix. Unless you are super prepared and a very skilled hiker, going from rim to floor to rim in the same day is a terrible idea.
BlankofJord
2.
Because every year people prove this needs to be said: It’s called “Death Valley” for a reason.
iprocrastina
3.
Desert hiking trails in the summer. No you cannot handle the heat. No you did not bring enough water. Yes someone could die.
pandasbitez
4.
Plymouth Rock. It’s a random chunk of rock that’s in a hole with railings around it. And it’s not even really where they landed.
hayleybeth7
5.
The inside of a Waffle House at 2am. It’s not a restaurant anymore. It’s an ecosystem.
InkedRewind
6.
The White House
The Smithsonian is right next to it (well, across the park) and is 1000% more worth your time.
If you’ve arranged a tour inside the White House (do they even still do those?) then ok, sure, but otherwise you’re just going to be mostly peering at a fence through a crowd, with a little bit of white visible through some trees.
But the Smithsonian is something else. What are you interested in? They’ll probably have an entire dedicated BUILDING full of that! If you were planning on spending a full day visiting the Smithsonian then you’re barely going to scratch the surface.
D-Alembert
7.
If you’re not within .25 miles of the ocean Florida in the summer sucks. And even then, the sun down there is ANGRY.
Blamethewizard
8.
Hollywood Walk of Fame. It’s basically a crowded sidewalk full of souvenir hustles, cracked stars, and underwhelming photo ops. You’ll catch a more authentic slice of LA by spending that time at Griffith Observatory or exploring neighborhoods like Los Feliz instead.
Ancient-Pangolin3172
9.
Everyone should come and see the National Parks, they are truly the best thing our government has ever done. But for the love of your own life DO NOT GO NEAR THE BISON. They are not nice.
_Ruby_Tuesday
