Let’s face it – it’s almost impossible to explore cities likes Rome or Prague without getting stuck in hordes of tourists at historic sites or spending hours looking for decent restaurants with a vacant table. I hate crowds. More specifically, I hate large groups of loud and disrespectful tourists. At the same time, however, my bucket list contains a few super touristy cities, including Budapest and Florence.
Let’s face it – it’s almost impossible to explore cities likes Rome or Prague without getting stuck in hordes of tourists at historic sites or spending hours looking for decent restaurants with a vacant table. I hate crowds. More specifically, I hate large groups of loud and disrespectful tourists. At the same time, however, my bucket list contains a few super touristy cities, including Budapest and Florence.
Now, to be honest, I do indulge in touristy activities when I’m in a new city. I mean, you can’t go to Paris without scaling the Eiffel Tower, right? However, I also try to explore a city beyond its main attractions.
If, like me, you enjoy getting away from rowdy tourists and discovering a city’s hidden secrets, I have the perfect travel companion for you. Hint: it’s small, super knowledgeable and doesn’t complain.
My husband and I got married in Cuba last December, and we spent our honeymoon in Havana. Before our trip, I headed to my local Waterstones to get a Lonely Planet guidebook. We have been collecting Lonely Planet’s guidebooks since our trip to Morocco in 2014.
Well, I was out of luck that day, so I just grabbed a few guidebooks by other leading travel publishers and tried to decide which one to get. As I was about to head to the cash desk with one of the books, I spotted a shelf lined with beautiful guides to different cities. I grabbed the Havana book, flipped through its pages and immediately fell in love with the style of the guide. I thought this would be the perfect guidebook for us.
And I was so right. Thanks to The 500 Hidden Secrets of Havana, Douglas and I got to explore the city beyond its ‘glamourous’ and touristy side. We dined at quirky cafes, explored urban neighbourhoods and found hidden gems right in the heart of the city.
The 500 Hidden Secrets series promises just that – 500 secrets about a particular city, which are neatly divided into different sections, for
– 5 Best Places for Coffee
– 5 Amazing Local Markets
– 5 Most Interesting Bookshops
– 5 Best Bars for Live Music
& loads more.
These are just some of the cities included in the series:
I wish I had come across these books sooner! I am actually tempted to choose my next destination by randomly grabbing a 500 Hidden Secrets book from that shelf at Waterstones with my eyes closed. Would you do that?
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