Part Two in a series of tips for flexible non-conformist independent travellers:

Look for regions least heavily promoted in tourist literature - then go there

Places which are heavily promoted and well visited are often popular for a good reason - they are worth visiting. But this doesn’t mean that less popular, less advertised places have nothing to offer.

Some areas may lack the accommodation and other facilities to support large numbers of travellers, and are bypassed by tour companies for this reason alone. Or there may not be enough businesses and money-making attractions in the area to fund the sort of advertising that can compete with the big tourist towns. Perhaps the residents want to retain the low-key character of the area … but it doesn’t necessarily mean there is nothing to see. On the contrary, any attractions can be enjoyed with fewer crowds, a more relaxed atmosphere, and the accommodation will probably be cheaper.

I wrote about one of these less promoted areas in another blog post (here) - the Maniototo region of New Zealand. It’s not on the mainstream tourist itineraries, so I went there - and found a beautiful area, made more beautiful (in my mind) by the absence of mass tourism. Another such area is the central plateau of Tasmania around Great Lake. It doesn’t conveniently fit into the traditional tourist loop around Tasmania and has no significant accommodation or tourist sites. My travel guide described it as bleak with poor roads, of interest only to trout fishermen (which I am not). So I went there - and found a landscape that is unique in Australia, with a beauty of its own despite the superficial bleakness. The fishing shacks scattered around parts of the lake created an interesting ambience, reminding me of the dusty village by the lake in the Clint Eastwood western “High Plains Drifter”, except without all the gunfights.

If you’re fortunate enough to be planning a holiday, why not check a map and see which areas are least promoted or not included in the common routes. You never know what unexploited treasures may be hidden there.