Interesting List of 'Underrated Cities in Europe'

I would add Hamburg to that list, and remove Porto.

Wow - I guess it depends how one defines "underrated" (given that there's no criteria given, it's more like marketing-speak). Most of these cities are firmly on the tourist track. To me, underrated cities are largely those that many or most people haven't heard about and aren't relentlessly marketed in tourist magazines, newspapers, travel books, and blogs. I'm from Poland so I'm biased, but there are many highly underrated cities there (definitely not Krakow or Gdansk or Warsaw)...there are lots of underrated cities in Romania, Bulgaria, and Hungary as well, among many other European countries.

To be fair, ratings in general are highly subjective and depend on the breadth of one's travel history/experience..one size does not fit all and that's why these "news stories" don't mean a heck of a lot. The news outfits rarely define their terms, which are supposedly universally accepted. By giving exposure to these "underrated" places, they will eventually become mainstream and the news will have to find new ones to put on their list to sell another breaking news story. I guess Cinque Terre was once underrated too...

"Under-rated" if your knowledge of traveling in Europe is limited to "National Lampoons European Vacation"...

When I first saw this list I thought it was pretty lame.... a second viewing has not changed my opinion.

Come on people. Be appreciative when someone shares something. You guys may know you are superior to any such list but then you guys are exactly typical either. Let’s keep this forum different than that other big one and try and be open minded and civil.

I work among maybe 100 licensed professionals. Of those maybe 25% have been out of the country. If you eliminate Mexico and Canada and the Caribbean the number probably drops to 10%; and of that 10% if you only count those that have made just one trip the number is probably closer to 5%. If you look at the country as a whole I would suspect that National Lampoon Vacation and other movies is as close as 95% of the population will ever get to Europe. So when a typical individual decides to make that one big trip of a lifetime I bet they do overlook most of that list.

As for the list it contains a couple of my favorite places (Verona and Budapest). But having said that if a friend had one chance to spend two weeks in Europe I would send him to London, Paris and Rome first.

Here, I found this and it is sort of what I guessed: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/william-d-chalmers/the-great-american-passpo_b_1920287.html Its sort of obnoxiously written with a bias against anyone with wealth; but you gotta take what you can find. According to the list of most popular I would suggest, that yes, the list posted here is a pretty decent list of some of the overlooked destinations.

Thank you for posting it. Made me do some research and I learned a little more. Never a bad thing.

my home city of Edinburgh is "underrated". I find that quite surprising as it seems to be on many folks wish lists and plenty of folk visit every year and during the Festivals in August and early September you have difficulty getting anywhere to stay.

Re MSN's list .... The words "straw man" come to mind.

This list is a joke...

... And MSN gets the advertisers to pay for ten clicks. I avoid those "list" come-ons. The (usually worthless) content is not the product -- you are.

@James - Your comment is well-taken, it's important to confirm that this is not criticism of the OP. Sharing is what this forum is all about. My comment was a lament for the utter decline of journalism. This isn't even an article, it's another top 10 list with no explanation whatsoever for its selections minus a few sentences - it's "click bait" at best. I'd rather see an article focused on one city that explains a bit more and gives insight as to why it's off the beaten track (and one that offers some data or information that one can learn from). I read such an article on Sofia a long way back and thought it was worthwhile - it made me want to research more.

I believe most travel writers get paid by the column inch and since they have to make a living they write all kinds of drivel. They also may do it just to get a byline. Usually the so called travel writer articles have nothing to do with reality other than their own.

Ok... more response than I expected. I too felt the list contained cities that were well know, and positively presented- but aren't really 'underrated'. A few are not on many traveler's lists, but should be. I actually enjoy reading this kind of thing. It makes me think (and sometimes make me wonder if others do). I'd really like to hear about places Ricknicks like and want to 'put out there'.

Agnes, no, I understand. Your opinion is well taken; and opinions are valuable. I suspect that the OP had in mind the opinion that someone might appreciate the article. If you a person doesn’t appreciate it, that’s okay, but to be aggressive in the face of the offer is somewhat confusing to me. It doesn’t show a lot of humanity or tolerance for opinion.

As for the marketing skew… of course. We are in a capitalist society last time I checked. That brings the bad and the good. Me, I always click through the top 10 lists and despite a good education and a lot of experience I almost always learn something.

I'd really like to hear about places Ricknicks like and want to 'put
out there'.

Any place in Central or Eastern Europe. If you go to Rome or Paris you will for the most part see and experience what the generation before you saw and experienced. The same will be true for the next generation to come. Central and Eastern Europe is a region in flux. Your experience today will not exist in 20 years so I put it in the forefront of my travels.

There are a couple of surprisingly beautiful and culturally wonderful towns. Tops on my list are
Bulgaria: Plovdiv, Veliko Tarnovo, Nessebar
Romania: Sighisoara, Sibiu
Slovakia: Banska Bystrica, Banska Stiavnica
Hungary: Pecs, Gyro, Eger, Esztergom

Kind of surprised to see Edinburgh and Brugge on this list. If you go there, you will run into a zillion other tourists, so how can they consider these underrated? They are extremely popular. Salzburg too is a fairly popular place. Certainly not underrated.

I wonder by what rating system these are considered 'underrated'? Maybe we're confusing underrated with under hyped. Too bad the authors didn't make some comment about why they consider these cities underrated.

Add me to the list of the baffled...of the 10 I've been to 5--Budapest, Tallinn, Edinburgh, Helsinki and Salzburg--and each was wonderful, though the first 3 are definite must-returns.

Next year's vacation is a good 11 months out but I will return to either Tallinn or Budapest on that trip, need to figure out where else to add.

Bruges is big on my "must go there soon" list, and Mostar is one I'd never thought of.

Total Twaddle. This list would be better titled "10 most famous tourist destination cities in Europe".
No. 1 Brugge, you can't get less well known than that.

Rankings and lists certainly bring out the opinions ;-)

I do agree that about half the list are not really underrated or lesser known at all. Sevilla, Edinburgh and Salzburg for sure. But cities like Helsinki, Budapest, Tallinn and Porto often don't get much press in the States compared to other cities. And I don't know many Americans that have been to most, if all of them. (Mostar too but I haven't been there). They certainly are great cities with a lot to offer.

hmmmm .... another post becomes a 'snipe fest'. shame.

Definition of underrated is ... "underestimate the extent, value, or importance of (someone or something)".
I guess they mean places that are not on the usual radar, as these places are ...
London Paris Rome Berlin Amsterdam Venice Florence Barcelona Madrid Vienna Prague
I don't think they mean "not widely known" or "yet to be discovered".
Somewhere can still be popular and well visited, as well as underrated.
London, for example, was considered underrated by many until a about a decade back.

djp_syd sad.

What Tom said. Underrated American cities in Vacation with a release date of July 29?

The list wasn't written for well-traveled people. And there wasn't any substance. It was only some places that are not London, Paris, Rome, Amsterdam. The sad thing is that those cities and a few other places are what many Americans think Europe is all about.

On our most recent trip, I found myself repeatedly explaining to friends and family where Croatia is and reassuring a few of them that the war ended in the 90s. Some were very surprised that we were purposefully going to places like Bosnia & Herzegovina, Hungary, and Ukraine. They only know what they knew of the Cold War and what they've seen on the news, and the news only mentions those places when they are at war. Unfortunately that level of knowledge of Europe seems to be typical.

Hard to believe that Salzburg is in the view of the article "underrated" when tons of international tourists flock to the place. That is plain to see. There is a difference as to which cities are on the American tourist radar and within their comfort zone and which are on that of other nationalities. On that list are some places underrated or not, I have no interest in going to, just as some places listed I have visited and would return, such as Brugges, or have yet to visit such as Helsinki. Underrated or not , regardless of whose definition, if that should matter at all, you as the visitor do the reading in tracking down which places are to be put on the itinerary list.

Somewhere can still be popular and well visited, as well as underrated.
London, for example, was considered underrated by many until a about a decade back.

"London was considered under rated until about a decade ago" Wow!!! First I heard of it! By whom was London considered under rated?

A lot of people were of the view ...
"London ... dirty city, horrible food, too crowded, transport sucks, Heathrow a nightmare."

On the basis of the definition of underrated, to "underestimate the extent, value, or importance of something", London was often dismissed as a desired destination in favour of Paris or Rome.

I think I would agree that most of the cities listed are most likely not on one's Grand Tour when thinking about going to Europe for the first time. If you are a frequent traveler, then they are certainly would not be considered underrated. I kind of like these kind of lists since they serve as a confirmation for some, and educational for others.

In my part of the world, London has been a destination of choice for as long as I can remember. Heck, I honeymooned in London and Edinburgh about a decade ago!

Most on the list are not underrated at all, they are well known and well visited.

A couple on the list might be better classified as overrated.

I could create a list of my own but I'd probably find out later that the sight is well known in travel circles.

There are many great places in Northern Germany that aren't highly rated, because they're a little out of the way, but could be - Schleswig and Kiel come to mind (for completely different qualities).

Don't forget value for the money. Before the Euro, Austria was my pick as best value. Today it's Poland.

Salzburg could be consider underrated, perhaps, if your view is through the narrow perspective of "Sound of Music". Sure, it's well known and popular, but the extent of its appeal may be broader than many initially perceive.

Many places in Northern Germany are underrated. They are visited mainly by German tourists. You'll see some foreign tourists from time to time but overwhelmingly the visitors (look at their license plates) and bus tour groups are German. Geography may be one of the reasons for the lack of foreign tourists. The area is also out of the traditional American comfort zone in Germany/the American tourist radar in Germany which explains the lack of American crowds flooding into north Germany. Admittedly, I have not been to Schleswig, almost did go in 1987 to see the Schloß but cancelled out: Kiel I've seen a few times. Best time to go is during Kieler Woche, the last week in June...very active, festive, etc.

"Under-rated" if your knowledge of traveling in Europe is limited to "National Lampoons European Vacation"...

I am positive that no one on this forum has that view of European travel. Even the folks who haven't gotten to go everyplace they'd like to go in Europe (yet) have a realistic knowledge about what's on their "bucket list", and not a simplistic view.