Door County Wisconsin in May.
We were in Ireland the first week of July. Dublin just seemed like normal city busy, not crushing crowds and we never had a problem getting in anywhere. We spent most of our time on the Dingle peninsula and though it was crowded on the road getting to the Killarney National Forest it did not seem crowded on the Peninsula. Never had to wait to be seated at a restaurant. Perfect weather the whole time we were there.
I hiked Hadrian’s Wall this summer. That’s the Roman wall that crossed England. Depending on how spry you may be, you can carry your stuff (the less, the better) and camp out in free camping places. Or you can sign up with a “tour” where you walk that day’s distance and the innkeeper for the evening picks you up. The tour transfers your luggage. Very nice trip. I used Hillwalk Tours. They were excellent and I thought reasonably priced. Inns include breakfasts.
Ireland. So far, posts note late July, late Sept, October, and I loved Ireland in early February. I may love it any time of year. I was surprised. It flurried in the countryside, but the weather was great for travel.
Because I loved the Dingle peninsula of Ireland so much I searched to see what the average temperatures are like there year round. Low fifties for the months of January, February and March. Though I’m sure it gets much colder in the surrounding mountains and it might be tricky getting there on those windy roads if it snowed. Once you got there though! And yes I realize the wind off the coast could be quite cold, still nothing like the wind in January in Michigan when the temp is single digits.
I went to Ireland once in mid-late December. Ireland has named storms that form off the coast of Newfoundland and head to Europe in the winter. We were there just after storm Desmond had dropped more rain than they had seen in 20 years in the west of Ireland. It washed away bridges in Scotland. Tread carefully with winter travel to Ireland for that reason! Maybe December is worse than February for those storms, I don’t know. The days are short. You really don’t have to worry about typical winter weather, just flooding left behind by the rains.
That being said, it really didn’t seem to stop people from being out and about. The cities and towns were bustling.
Part of minding crowds, I suspect, is when people are rude or stupid. And our own attitudes and expectations as travelers. We’ve had 99% positive experiences. But the people D1 and I met in ireland, city or countryside, were universally nice. I’d go back in a flash, explore more. It not that we speak the same language.
Rude = loud. We were in a cloistered medieval church in Spain last summer, a stop on the Camino de Santiago. The atmosphere was lovely. There were (recorded) Gregorian chants playing softly. The tombs of the ancient kings and queens of Navarre were there, the monarchs sculpted in marble relief. The high windows sent shafts of soft light onto the sculptures.
And then, a tour group (the bane of all travelers) came in with a very loud guide. Completely spoiled the experience. So we waited and blessed relief returned when they left.
Tours and huge cruise ships!! Horrible.
Speaking of St. Petersburg (mentioned in several posts in the other thread as a crowded city in the summer), our guides arranged an overnight river/lake cruise trip for us to this place:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valaam_Monastery
A truly magical blend of nature and history. And very few tourists, except in the main monastery (but they limit who can get in and when). That was in 2008, so YMMV.
Yosemite Valley during the second week of January. We try to go every drought year, when you can hike the paths without snow or people.
Yosemite during “off season” in October during week is lovely. A bit cooler but uncrowded and just relaxing. My BIL has mostly been there in summers so was surprised how nice it was with fewer folks. We had the entire Hetchetchy arrea to ourselves as well.
^Last year we visited the week before Thanksgiving and it was a zoo! It seemed everyone had the same idea to visit before the big crowds on the Thanksgiving weekend.
We went to Glacier and Waterton in July, shortly after road to the sun opened. Both were lovely and not very crowded. Yellowstone in early June is quite pleasant and fairly uncrowded as well.
Second the UP! Also, loved the Wind River Range in Wyoming. Great hiking and very uncrowded.
Scotland in the Fall is also wonderful and not crowded, especially when you head north. I also agree about Ireland! We were actually there at the end of July and found it pleasantly uncrowded, especially in County Mayo.
I just saw this about Lake Superior. "Scientists are monitoring bodies of water across the country for algae blooms, a phenomenon that can threaten water supplies, kill wildlife, and sicken humans. Now, reports The New York Times, Lake Superior has joined the watchlist ‘after the appearance this summer of the largest mass of green, oozing algae ever detected on the lake.’”
Darn.
@rosered55 We’re on Lake Erie and the algae bloom was so bad that we couldn’t drink the water. That was Aug. 1, 2014 in Toledo, OH. My son was supposed to move in to his college apartment that day, but was too sick. We think it was the tap water he drank around midnight.
Nantucket – in February and October. And the Cook Islands. Anytime.
We flew into and out of Frankfurt airport this summer in July. We were traveling elsewhere by car, but we stayed our first night in the wine country that is along the Rhine river about 1/2 hour from the airport.
It was beautiful and not at all crowded. The place we stayed, at a vineyard, had only 4 of it’s 8 rooms filled.
On the way back, we stayed a little more than an hour from the airport, along a part of the Rhine with high hills. We stayed in a castle. Again, only about 1/2 full and very peaceful. I would definitely go to both places again, especially the wine region. Who knew there were dry and bubbly Reislings?
I also went to Ireland first week of February this year. Off season Ireland Groupon deal $699 flew me RT from LAX to Dublin included hotels in 5 cities (plus rental car). What a steal! We had some rain and snow but nothing awful. I even drove to Cliffs of Moher in the rain and with the wind it made it dramatic and very movie-like. Highly enjoyed the country and having the castles pretty much all to ourselves!
Our experience with rain in Dublin was everyone fretting about it, but all we saw were damp roads and sidewalks on a few early mornings. And coming from New England, we laughed at complaints about the Feb “cold” temps.
In our case, we’re very easy travelers, tend to focus on the positives. But of all our travels throughout Europe, some 3rd world countries, living in Germany (fitting in and having local relationships,) Ireland stood out for the comfortable interactions. It was different for us than even being in England, with the same language. Not a single memory of anything that didn’t work as hoped, everyone gracious and helpful, when needed.
Striking, for me.