[0xRusty]

Hmmm I'm afraid with my limited vacation time each year I'm now a firm believer in following the well trodden path most of the time. I've had too many trips where you try and do something completely unique like go to an island or a province "tourists never go to"...and then you discover why. There's nothing there. I went to a couple of the Pacific islands in Micronesia which don't get many tourists thinking I was being so adventurous. It was the biggest pain in the ass to get there and it turns out no one goes there it's because it's basically a sulfur mine (1 nice beach though). So call me boring but from now on I'll queue up to see the Taj Mahal with 20,000 other people and enjoy that experience just as much.

[Karrot_Kream]

I mean, that's what "adventure travel" is most of the time. If you don't like the journey then you won't enjoy it. My partner and I backpack and bike travel quite a bit, and yeah there's definitely towns you enter that are just... boring towns. Sometimes you end up at a beach you found on the map/saw in the distance and you realize it's cold and rocky. There have also definitely been occasions where we've been quite scared for a variety of reasons.

It's fundamentally a bit of a gamble. The folks that keep doing it enjoy the gamble. There are some hills I've crested while bikepacking and some towns I've been through that have been absolutely gorgeous and those certainly help, but everyone I know who enjoys this kind of travel enjoys getting outside and getting a bit rough and dirty. I encourage everyone to travel like this as long as they feel safe (and it's important to remember that different genders, sexual minorities, and ethnicities will feel differing levels of discomfort in different locations so safety should always be top priority.) But if you don't like the gamble, then head to a resort and take a tour bus to the Taj Mahal!

[cedricd]

The trick (unfortunately) is to slow down. If you don't have a tight schedule, and can sort of wander, you can start somewhere well known and end up somewhere off the beaten path pretty organically.

You'll also meet a network of longer-term travelers who exchange info about where to go (and not go). You don't have to go somewhere that literally no one has been to see something a bit unique, magical, and mostly devoid of casual tourists.

[bigDinosaur]

Going off the beaten path in my experience requires genuine friendships with locals. I guess if you're super outgoing and adventurous you don't need that, but in my experience it has helped immensely to have locals (again, as friends, so they're not trying to scam you or at least mislead you) take me to cool things.

I suppose it's not realistic to do this for a lot of destinations, but where it works it works well.

[telesilla]

That's the key. I don't have the time anymore, but I'd often book a couple of days in a bnb or small hotel in an area I was curious about, then get to know the locals for where to actually go for a longer period, usually with introductions and instant friends.

I now know well a tiny village I go back to regularly where I'm part of the small summer swell of visitors, to go fishing and sailing without a crowd of tourists, because getting there is a bit complicated without assistance.

[lotsofpulp]

There might be some things between isolated Micronesian island and queueing behind 20k people to walk around the Taj Mahal.

[divbzero]

It could also be a matter of perspective. For some an island that is basically a sulfur mine could be a fascinating place to explore.