Your vacation is just a copy of a copy of an Instagram post.
In the age of social media, the path of the modern traveler has become a deeply worn and predictable groove. A handful of hyper-photogenic destinations have achieved a kind of cultural ubiquity, becoming the default choice for a generation that is chasing the same photo and the same experience. A trip to one of these places can feel less like a personal journey of discovery and more like a pilgrimage to a content creation studio.
Visiting one of these spots doesn’t mean you’re a bad person; it just means you’re having the exact same vacation as everyone else on your feed.
1. The “influencer” photo shoot in Tulum, Mexico.
Tulum has become the undisputed capital of the “boho-chic” influencer aesthetic. A trip here is not complete without a photo in a flowing dress in front of the giant sculpture at the Ahau resort, a yoga pose on the beach, or a shot at a trendy, overpriced jungle restaurant. The entire tourism experience feels like it has been designed as a backdrop for an Instagram photo shoot.
The once-sleepy, bohemian town has been completely transformed into a caricature of itself, a place where the primary activity seems to be proving that you were there, a victim of its own photogenic quality, as shared by Indie Traveller.
2. The blue-domed church photo in Santorini, Greece.
There is a specific spot in the village of Oia, Santorini, with three blue-domed churches that is arguably the most photographed, and most cliché, location in all of Greece. At sunset, there is a massive crowd of people all jockeying for position to take the exact same photo that they have seen a million times on social media, according to BuzzFeed.
The island’s incredible, unique beauty has been reduced to a single, over-photographed viewpoint. A trip here that is focused on getting this one shot is a sign of a travel imagination that is running on empty.
3. A trip to Bali that is just a tour of the “Eat Pray Love” sets.
The book and the movie “Eat Pray Love” had a massive impact on tourism to Bali, particularly the town of Ubud. A huge number of visitors, even now, are essentially on a pilgrimage to relive the story. They go to the same healers, the same yoga studios, and the same rice paddies that were featured in the book, seeking a pre-packaged spiritual awakening, as stated by Where Angie Wanders.
This has turned a deep and complex culture into a simple, consumable product. It is a travel experience that is based on someone else’s journey, not on a genuine and personal exploration of the island.
4. The generic all-inclusive resort experience in Cancún.
A trip to a massive, all-inclusive resort in the hotel zone of Cancún is one of the most generic and unoriginal travel experiences a person can have. The entire experience is designed to be a comfortable and completely sealed-off American bubble, where you never have to interact with the local culture or even use the local currency.
You could be in the Caribbean, Mexico, or Florida, and the experience would be virtually identical. It is the opposite of adventurous or curious travel; it is a vacation designed to be completely predictable.
5. The Trevi Fountain coin toss in Rome.
Every single day, thousands of tourists crowd around the beautiful Trevi Fountain in Rome to perform the exact same ritual: turning their back to the fountain and tossing a coin over their shoulder to ensure their return to the city. The sheer density of the crowd, all trying to take the same selfie, can be overwhelming.
While it is a fun and historic tradition, it is also one of the most predictable and mandatory-feeling tourist activities in all of Europe. It is a box to be checked, an act of travel conformity rather than a moment of genuine discovery.
6. A “Game of Thrones” tour of Dubrovnik.
The city of Dubrovnik is a beautiful, historic wonder, but for a huge number of modern tourists, its primary identity is as the real-life filming location for King’s Landing from “Game of Thrones.” The city is now filled with tours that take you to the exact spots where famous scenes were filmed, and souvenir shops selling branded merchandise.
The show’s popularity has completely overshadowed the city’s own rich and fascinating history. A trip that is focused solely on the filming locations is a sign of a travel experience that is being dictated by pop culture, not by genuine curiosity.
7. The obligatory Blue Lagoon photo in Iceland.
The Blue Lagoon is a man-made geothermal spa in Iceland that is famous for its milky-blue, silica-rich water. It has become an obligatory first or last stop for almost every single tourist who visits the country, and a photo of yourself covered in the white silica mud is a required part of the experience.
While it is a unique and relaxing spa, its immense popularity and high price tag have turned it into a crowded and somewhat artificial attraction. There are hundreds of other, more natural and authentic hot springs all over Iceland that offer a much more genuine experience.
8. A pub crawl through Dublin’s Temple Bar district.
The Temple Bar district in Dublin is marketed as the heart of the city’s authentic pub culture. It is packed every night with tourists on organized pub crawls, enjoying live music and pints of Guinness. The problem is that you will find almost no actual Dubliners there. Locals avoid the area, viewing it as an overpriced and inauthentic tourist trap.
It is a fun party, but it is a party that has been created for tourists. To choose to spend your entire night in this one district proves that you have done the absolute bare minimum of research.
9. A visit to the “Friends” apartment in New York City.
On the corner of Grove and Bedford Streets in the West Village, you will almost always find a small crowd of tourists taking a photo of a fairly unremarkable apartment building. This is the building that was used for the exterior shot of the apartment in the TV show “Friends.” It has become a major pilgrimage site for fans of the show.
The show was, of course, filmed on a soundstage in California. This is a pilgrimage to see the outside of a building that was used for a few seconds in a sitcom. It is a perfect example of a travel experience that has been completely dictated by television.
10. A weekend spent only on the Las Vegas Strip.
A trip to Las Vegas that is confined entirely to the four-mile stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard known as “The Strip” is a journey into a completely artificial and hermetically sealed world. The entire experience is a carefully designed machine for separating you from your money, with no connection to the local culture or the surrounding natural beauty of the Mojave Desert.
It is one of the most popular and also one of the most predictable vacation choices an American can make. A trip that never leaves The Strip is a journey that has gone nowhere at all.
11. Trying to get the “perfect” shot at the Eiffel Tower.
The Eiffel Tower is one of the most beautiful and iconic landmarks in the world. A trip to Paris that is focused primarily on getting the same, clichéd photos of the tower from the same few angles—from the Trocadéro, from the Champ de Mars—is a sign of a deeply unoriginal travel imagination. The city of Paris is so much more than its most famous landmark.
A trip that is defined by the quest for the perfect, generic Eiffel Tower photo is a trip that is being lived for the social media post, not for the genuine experience of being in one of the world’s greatest cities.