101 Places Not to See Before You Die

By John Farrier in Book & Literature, Travel on Aug 28, 2010 at 9:23 am

Catherine Price’s new book 101 Places Not to See Before You Die is something like a reverse bucket list. It’s about the world’s most pointless or disgusting tourist traps that you should desperately avoid. One is the Karostas Cietums Prison Hotel in Lativa. It’s a prison that has been minimally converted into a hotel:

“It’s not like they took the prison and tried to like spice it up and turn it into a luxury resort,” Price explains — it really looks like a prison.

The hotel boasts that 150 people were shot there. “Ever since the first years of its existence it has been a place to break people’s lives and suppress their free will,” the hotel’s website explains.

“Guests” of the prison sleep on iron beds or prison bunks. For an extra-special occasion, you can arrange to be abducted at your workplace and delivered to the hotel.

What place would add to such a list?

Link | Image: Catherine Price

Tags: Catherine Price, hotels, prisons

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Rumson
Aug 28th, 2010 at 9:34 am
I think the prison hotel could be kinda cool. If they made it a nice hotel, it would ruin the experience. You can stay in a nice hotel almost anywhere.
thelibrarianne
Aug 28th, 2010 at 9:48 am
Newark International Airport. Newark in general, for that matter.
oolomph
Aug 28th, 2010 at 9:53 am
New Brunswick in general, and Moncton in particular.
SnarKatestic
Aug 28th, 2010 at 10:00 am
The rest of the article sounds a bit more like, “places that didn’t meet Catherine Price’s initial tourist expectations,” than places not to see. Maybe it’s actually written in a, “I think this is weird, and it is weird, and if you’re OK with that, go see it,” style, that’s not too bad. I like going to see weird things on vacation. I stayed in a converted prison hotel in Switzerland once, I would absolutely consider doing it again. It’s not a Holiday Inn, but, really, why should it be? I went to Cairo, Illinois, too, which is billed like a fantastic tourist destination and in reality is one BBQ joint and a Civil War museum in a spooky ghost town. Not what I signed up for, but still worth the visit.
lame
Aug 28th, 2010 at 2:50 pm
Message to the author of this book: Stay home, whiner.
Edward
Aug 28th, 2010 at 7:55 pm
If you are driving through Texas and happen to see a sign for Lukenbach, hum the song to yourself and keep on driving.
VM
Aug 29th, 2010 at 1:47 am
I have been to Newark Airport and New Brunswick (because of inlaws) and to Florida (same inlaws but in the winter) and I’d rather repeat the former than the latter.
Will L
Aug 29th, 2010 at 6:52 pm
Naples, Italy.

A work friend of mine who’d been around the world in the military said that Naples, Italy is the worst place he has ever been in his entire life.
Fran
Aug 31st, 2010 at 10:41 am
Sometimes it’s the tourist traps that don’t quite live up to our expectations that give us the most joy.

While in Nova Scotia, I had to see the Bay of Fundy for it’s amazing vertical tide range. I was directed to this field in this small town and told what time the tide would come “rushing” in. We waited over an hour, cameras poised and ready. At tide time we watch this tide the equivalent of what I’d see if I turned on a tub tap come in and “fill” the river. Total tide range at this place was about a foot.

We ended up getting the silly giggles because everyone had really built up how “amazing” this tide rise was. We still laugh about that to this day. I wouldn’t have missed that for the world!

side note: there are places where you can see an amazing tidal rise; we just were there!
Fran
Aug 31st, 2010 at 10:42 am
oops. “weren’t there”
erak
Aug 31st, 2010 at 2:04 pm
I would’ve said Times Square on New Year’s Eve (or, really, just Times Square in general), but it’s already in the book!

The current NYC one I would say is Ground Zero. It’s amazing how many tourists clamor to visit it. It’s just a construction site and a PATH (a subway system that connects Manhattan to NJ) station. Maybe in a few years when the buildings and memorials are finished will it be worth a visit.

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