At an unknown point in history, someone took the first selfie of themselves pretending to pinch the top of the Eiffel Tower. It was probably very funny. Since then, approximately 50 million people have taken the same picture. But there’s a growing movement that does things differently. One that looks beyond the clichés and the crowds. Some people call it untourism. It’s all about taking the path less trodden, going off-piste and under the radar.
Here’s our guide to being an untourist. It’ll help you forge better memories, have more worthy encounters and take cooler photos. (But if you really want to take a selfie where you pretend to pinch the top of the Eiffel Tower, go for it. It’s still pretty funny.)
1. Get to know the locals
The best thing about your destination – better than the food, even – is the people. You could chat them up the old-fashioned way – or try smart initiatives like Marry an Amsterdammer for the Day which, after a cutesy fake wedding, helps you explore in the Dutch capital with a bona-fide local. Or there’s Rent a Finn, which’ll pair you up with a friendly Nordic chum who may let on why Finland is consistently rated the happiest place on Earth. At the very least, they’ll probably know somewhere decent to eat.
✈ Fly to Amsterdam – book flights
3. Get lost
A defining trait of naff modern tourism is our over-reliance on gadgets, ratings websites and online maps. So put your device down, basically, and get lost. Adventure planners like Black Tomato go all out on that concept, and will cheerfully plonk you and your mates out in the Moroccan wilderness (following at a discreet distance to make sure you’re OK). Or, if you’d prefer to be discombobulated in a more urban setting, The Worst Tours is a collective of out-of-work architects in Porto who curate meandering pay-what-you-like tours of the city that are structured as ‘debates’ and modestly rated on their website as ‘so lame’.
✈ Fly to Porto – book flights
