Off the beaten track
By Porcospino
@Porcospino (31366)
Denmark
August 3, 2012 12:13pm CST
Today while I was surfing the internet I found a list of the least visited countries in the world. The least visited country of all is Tuvalu which is a tiny country in the Pacific. They only get 1100 visitors per year, and it is not easy to there because there are few flights and it is expensive as well. Some of the African countries on the list are Chad, Central African republic and Guinea-Bissau. In Central Asia the least visited countries are Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. Some countries like Bhutan get few visitors because of the prices, other countries get few visitors because it is a hassle to get a visa or because of the safety situation in the country.
Did you ever visit one of the countries that most tourists skip? Which less popular countries are you interested in visiting? Is it a challenge to visit that country because of the prices, the visa restrictions, the safety situation etc?
5 responses
@darkangel2829 (60)
• Qatar
13 Aug 12
Well, I'm now here in Qatar. It was one of the least visited country before. It was not even in the map before till year 2000. I was here since 2003 so I saw the development from that year to now. I hope that Qatar will do its best to attract tourist as preparation for the world cup.
1 person likes this
@Porcospino (31366)
• Denmark
13 Aug 12
I must admit that my knowledge about Qatar is very limited, I know where is the located and that the capital is Doha but not much else 
I think that I am going to look up Qatar when I have written this comment and read a bit about the country. It must have been interesting to follow the development from 2003 to now. Somehow the idea about a country without too many other tourists appeal to me. I like to visit or read about places that are less popular.
I think that I am going to look up Qatar when I have written this comment and read a bit about the country. It must have been interesting to follow the development from 2003 to now. Somehow the idea about a country without too many other tourists appeal to me. I like to visit or read about places that are less popular.
@diezmara22 (818)
• Indonesia
5 Aug 12
I have never visited the country that you mentioned, I was only able to imagine a new course. Karenaa maybe someday I'll go there and travel there. It seems that if you had to choose I want to go first to Hawaii and the menggelilingi pualu.
But maybe it all back to the issue of money, I do not have the money as a fee: (
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@Porcospino (31366)
• Denmark
5 Aug 12
What does menggelilingi pualu mean? Is it a name of a place and where is it? Hawaii is also on my travel wishlist. I want to go there one day when I visit the US. I think that Hawaii would be a very interesting place to explore and I have already decided that I am going to include it in my itenerary when I go the US. Unfortunately I have the same problem as you, and it is hard for me to find the money to visit all of the places that I dream about. If I had lots of money I would travel all the time, but that is just a dream 
@maximax8 (31053)
• United Kingdom
3 Aug 12
That sounds ever so interesting to me. I live in England and know airline routes can make it possible to visit less visited and off the beaten track countries. I went to Samoa on the way home from New Zealand. I visited French Polynesia and the Cook Islands on my way to New Zealand. I visited Fiji on my trip around the world. I know apart from Tonga other South Pacific Islands are hard to reach on round the world tickets. Qantas and Air New Zealand stop at a limited number of South Pacific Islands.
I am put off visiting Bhutan due to needing to spend $200 a day. I am concerned about visa costs and the challenge of getting the visas for Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan. I say the same about Russia and I really wish to be able to go there. I wouldn't choose to go to Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Chad or the Central African Republic. I don't go to countries requiring a yellow fever vaccination.
I would love to visit Tuvalu, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, the Marshall Islands and Micronesia but the flight prices are too high. I avoided visiting Iraq due to the safety situation. I do hope to visit Russia and will do so if I can go without needing a visa. Maybe that might happen in the future.
1 person likes this
@Porcospino (31366)
• Denmark
3 Aug 12
I really hope that it will be possible to visit Russia without a visa one day. I have been interested in visiting Russia for a long time, but it is impossible to enter Russia without a visa and that makes a trip to Russia more expensive and complicated than many other destinations and that it is main reason why I haven't been there yet. The countries in Central Asia are not easy to visit either. I am especially interested in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, but I have heard that it is a real challenge to get a visa for Turkmenistan 
I haven't given up the idea of visiting those countries, but because of the visa difficulties they are not on top of my travel wish list.
I think that Bhutan would be an interesting place to visit, but it is an very expensive destination and I probably won't be able to go there. I hope to visit some of the countries in the Pacific when my husband and go to New Zealand, but I don't exactly which countries we are going to visit, it also depends on the prices and the flight connections from New Zealand.
I haven't given up the idea of visiting those countries, but because of the visa difficulties they are not on top of my travel wish list.
I think that Bhutan would be an interesting place to visit, but it is an very expensive destination and I probably won't be able to go there. I hope to visit some of the countries in the Pacific when my husband and go to New Zealand, but I don't exactly which countries we are going to visit, it also depends on the prices and the flight connections from New Zealand.
@mensab (4200)
• Philippines
3 Aug 12
i think the place that I visited which is rarely visited by tourists is myanmar. it is special because it is difficult to get a visa during the time that i made the visit. second, the security was not good at that time. but because of what i had to do with my work, i needed to go there.
@Porcospino (31366)
• Denmark
4 Aug 12
I know that you still need a visa to visit Myanmar, but I don't know how hard it is the get a visa today. Some travel agencies arrange trips to Myanmar, but I still think that the country gets few visitors compared to the other countries in Southeast Asia for instance Thailand. I have never been there, but I am interested in the country because I am a voluntary language teacher for a family from Myanmar who live in my country. How long did you stay in Myanmar and what was your impression of the country?
