Most underrated BA destination
Jul 30, 2019, 6:27 am
#16
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: UK
Programs: IC Hotels Spire, BA Gold
Posts: 8,668
No one has mentioned Genoa yet, IMHO is a very, very underrated city with a really huge medieval old town, great restaurants and bars and as well as the old city there are some fabulous places along the coast 20-30km either side, all served by frequent coastal trains. I think the reason it is not well known is probably because when people think of Italy for a break they generally think of Rome, Venice, Florence, Naples etc.
If you head round the coast by train from Genoa (in the Rome direction) there is Nervi, Camogli, Santa Margherita, Portofino, Zoagli, Sestri Levante - all beautiful places with stunning beaches and great restaurants. Genoa airport (GOA) is only 1.3km from a main coastal line train station....so either a 15 minute level walk away or there is a frequent 5 minute shuttle bus. Genoa city center is just 9 minutes once on the train.
As others have commented I can also recommend Turin too, lovely huge old squares and great bars and restaurants but would still prefer Genoa because of the coastal location which offers more options to combine a city break with a beach location too.
It must be being discovered more and more now as Easyjet started flying there in 2018 from LTN, BRS and AMS
If you head round the coast by train from Genoa (in the Rome direction) there is Nervi, Camogli, Santa Margherita, Portofino, Zoagli, Sestri Levante - all beautiful places with stunning beaches and great restaurants. Genoa airport (GOA) is only 1.3km from a main coastal line train station....so either a 15 minute level walk away or there is a frequent 5 minute shuttle bus. Genoa city center is just 9 minutes once on the train.
As others have commented I can also recommend Turin too, lovely huge old squares and great bars and restaurants but would still prefer Genoa because of the coastal location which offers more options to combine a city break with a beach location too.
It must be being discovered more and more now as Easyjet started flying there in 2018 from LTN, BRS and AMS
Jul 30, 2019, 6:41 am
#17
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Argentina
Posts: 40,210
I tell my Argentine friends GLA is worth a visit whenever I hear they're going to the UK. The feedback from those who took my advice has been very positive....''much more interesting than EDI'' ''less touristy than EDI'' ''cheaper than EDI'' ''friendlier than EDI''. 
Jul 30, 2019, 6:47 am
#18
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: London
Programs: BA Gold; FB Silver; SPG; IHG Gold
Posts: 2,985
I have recently been through Turin and Kiev. Both places I would have described as "why would anyone want to go there" before I actually saw them.
Turin turned out to be an amazing mix of food and some great architecture (admittedly in between a lot of not so great architecture). The city itself has great restaurants, amazing bars, friendly locals and very few tourists. The surrounding area has great vineyards and old palaces as well as beautiful scenery. It is a firm "will go back there".
Kiev surprised me by being a young, quirky, vibrant place. Maybe it's because the winters are harsh, but the summer there is amazing with people out in the streets having a good time. Plus if you ever thought about dark tourism, Chernobyl is definitely a place to see. Only downside is that you better hurry if you want to do it on BA.
Do you know similar places on BA's route map? Places that don't sound very appealing but are actually hidden gems?
Turin turned out to be an amazing mix of food and some great architecture (admittedly in between a lot of not so great architecture). The city itself has great restaurants, amazing bars, friendly locals and very few tourists. The surrounding area has great vineyards and old palaces as well as beautiful scenery. It is a firm "will go back there".
Kiev surprised me by being a young, quirky, vibrant place. Maybe it's because the winters are harsh, but the summer there is amazing with people out in the streets having a good time. Plus if you ever thought about dark tourism, Chernobyl is definitely a place to see. Only downside is that you better hurry if you want to do it on BA.
Do you know similar places on BA's route map? Places that don't sound very appealing but are actually hidden gems?
Jul 30, 2019, 6:58 am
#19
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: UK
Programs: IC Hotels Spire, BA Gold
Posts: 8,668
Kiev is soon to be just an underrated destination as opposed to an underrated BA destination. I think most cities have something going for them if you bother to scratch the surface. But I will add to the list Warsaw, Brussels and Dusseldorf, none of which would top anyone's list, but all of which are decent places to visit in my experience.
Jul 30, 2019, 7:50 am
#20
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 7,237
Amongst those served by BA I’d say Turin, Naples and Zagreb.
Amongst those that BA used to serve, and that in my opinion ought to return to, I’d add Tbilisi and Almaty and Iran at large.
Amongst those that BA should serve is Sarajevo.
It really astonishes me that there can be dozens, literally dozens of flights from the London area to places such as Lanzarote, Ibiza or Alicante and none to those destinations mentioned above. It’s true that tourists are creature of habit but this uniformity of tastes always surprises me.
Amongst those that BA used to serve, and that in my opinion ought to return to, I’d add Tbilisi and Almaty and Iran at large.
Amongst those that BA should serve is Sarajevo.
It really astonishes me that there can be dozens, literally dozens of flights from the London area to places such as Lanzarote, Ibiza or Alicante and none to those destinations mentioned above. It’s true that tourists are creature of habit but this uniformity of tastes always surprises me.
Jul 30, 2019, 8:47 am
#21
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: SJJ/AMS
Posts: 4,647
Bologna and generally speaking the region as a whole, whilst way more popular nowadays than they used to be, are definitely worth a visit (amongst the nearby cities, I particularly like Parma and Veneto is not far either). Other than that and as already mentioned, I also wish they could start serving Sarajevo or restart Belgrade (but those are biased wishes more than everything) 
G
G
Jul 30, 2019, 9:40 am
#24
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Helvetia
Programs: AS; BA Silver; UA; HH Gold; Sprüngli Connaisseur
Posts: 2,912
Basel. It has a reputation as a industrial wasteland. But it's got:
- Excellent museums
- A great old town
- A nice stretch of the Rhein
- Alsace, and great wines nearby
Jul 30, 2019, 10:16 am
#25
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: Brisbane
Programs: BAEC Blue/Bronze, Krisflyer, Qantas
Posts: 419
Further afield, not sure if it counts but I think most tend to use KUL as a means to an end (usually for NZ or Oz) but I personally found it well worth the visit in its own right. Really exciting mix of cultures, awesome food, rich history.
Jul 30, 2019, 10:21 am
#26
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: London, UK
Programs: QF, TK, VA, SQ
Posts: 695
+1 for Bologna, Bilbao / San Sebastian and Ljubljana!
I do agree however that pretty much everywhere is worth going (and fully intend to make the most of living in London by seeing as much as I can!)
Have a trip in the pipeline to Turin so good to see it's turned up a few times on here!
I do agree however that pretty much everywhere is worth going (and fully intend to make the most of living in London by seeing as much as I can!)
Have a trip in the pipeline to Turin so good to see it's turned up a few times on here!
Jul 30, 2019, 10:38 am
#28
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Glasgow, UK
Programs: Seigneur des Tarifs Utils First Class Mucci with Honours :) - BA GGL / CCR
Posts: 1,551
Jul 30, 2019, 10:58 am
#29
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 1,225
We love Nice. Not for Nice itself but for the more off the beaten track parts of the Côte d’Azur such as Vence and of course Provence itself. Wonderful food (Mediterranean French), wall to wall sunshine and so picturesque. Some truly stunning hotels down there. As for NCE itself.... meh.
Jul 30, 2019, 11:08 am
#30
Join Date: Jul 2017
Programs: All the usual suspects
Posts: 342
I've been an advocate of Beirut for many years now.
The scars of the civil war were still there back when I first started going there (2008) then although the city centre had been beautifully restored.
I used to stay at the intercontinental Phoenicia which was the most fascinating lobby I've ever sat in, watching the great and good (sometimes not so good) meet up
The scars of the civil war were still there back when I first started going there (2008) then although the city centre had been beautifully restored.
I used to stay at the intercontinental Phoenicia which was the most fascinating lobby I've ever sat in, watching the great and good (sometimes not so good) meet up