6 vacation activities people book once—and never again

Vacations should be the highlight reel—sun, great food, and a calmer version of you—but some “can’t-miss” activities are one-and-done.

You try them once, swear never again, and add a quiet rule to your travel playbook.

I’ve been there: In my twenties I chased glossy brochures.

With more miles—and a background in hospitality—I now care less about the photo and more about the ingredients: skilled guides, respect for place, and time to savor.

Here are six popular activities most people book once, regret, and replace (plus smarter swaps that actually make a trip memorable):

1) Animal encounters that look cute on the brochure

You know the ads—smiling travelers hugging tigers, riding elephants, or kissing dolphins.

It looks magical until you’re there.

The truth is most of these attractions are cruel, staged, and underwhelming.

I learned this the hard way in my early twenties on a trip to Southeast Asia.

A hostel mate convinced me to check out an elephant camp.

The “ride” felt wrong from the first minute; the elephant’s handler carried a sharp hook and the animal looked exhausted.

I got off halfway and spent the rest of the day feeling gross.

Even when the operators swear it’s “ethical,” the vibe often says otherwise.

Wild animals don’t ask to perform for us.

And the experience itself? Ten seconds of a photo, but a lifetime of regret when you realize what you participated in.

What to do instead? Book sanctuary visits that don’t allow riding, touching, or performances, and where your fee supports rehabilitation, or go for a guided nature walk or a kayak tour where wildlife stays wild.

If I can’t enjoy the moment without forcing the animal to do something it wouldn’t naturally do, I pass.

Choose experiences that leave every living thing better off than you found it.

2) Booze cruises with “open bar, open ocean, open regret”

On paper, the sunset party boat sounds epic.

Open bar, DJ, strangers who are “already your best friends,” and a promise that you’ll “dance under the stars.”

In reality, the drinks are low-shelf sugar bombs, the music is loud enough to make small talk impossible, and someone always gets seasick next to the snack table.

I’ve worked in luxury F&B and when you scale cocktails for volume, quality gets sacrificed.

Pre-mixed syrups, watered-down spirits, and ice that melts in the sun—your palate won’t thank you.

The real problem is the trade-off.

You’re stuck on a boat if you hate it.

No Irish exit, no slipping out for tacos, and no grabbing a quiet corner.

If the vibes are off, you’re committed for hours.

It's honestly best to book a smaller sail with a captain who limits capacity or offers BYOB with proper glassware and mixers, or skip the boat altogether.

Watch the sunset from a cliffside bar, sip one impeccably made cocktail, and leave when you’ve had your fill.

Quality over quantity wins every time—on land and sea.

3) Ten-sights-in-three-hours city tours

“See the highlights in one afternoon!”

Translation: "You’ll see the bus interior and the back of thirty hats!"

These tours promise efficiency but deliver whiplash; you’ll snap photos through tinted glass, hop out for five minutes at the biggest landmarks, and leave with a shallow sense of a place you flew halfway around the world to visit.

I did one in Rome years ago: We “visited” the Trevi Fountain by shuffling through a crowd, snapping a selfie, and returning to our seats before the guide finished his story.

I remember the bus air conditioning more than the city itself.

Travel is like a good meal.

You don’t want six mediocre courses rushed out at once, you want three great dishes with time to savor.

If time is tight, pick one neighborhood and walk it, choose a single museum and linger, or book a food tour capped at eight guests where you sit down, talk to owners, and taste what locals actually eat.

You’ll leave with memories instead of a checklist.

4) “Unlimited drinks” resort packages

This is the siren song of the beach vacation.

All you can drink, all day long, for one flat fee.

What could go wrong? Plenty, unless you’re planning to drink like a freshman during rush week, the math rarely lands in your favor.

Resorts bank on two things: You won’t hit the “break-even” number of drinks, and the included options will be the cheapest possible.

Call me a snob, but if a bar menu lists “rum” without specifying the distiller, I already know how that daiquiri will taste.

The wellness hangover is real, too.

You spend precious vacation days dehydrated, sluggish, and cranky because you’re trying to “get your money’s worth.”

Vacations are supposed to restore you, not send you home feeling like a wet towel left in the sun.

A smarter move is paying as you go; treat yourself to one or two excellent cocktails made with fresh juice and spirits you’d actually buy at home.

If you want value, look for packages that include breakfast, bikes, or spa access.

You’ll get a better experience for your money than anything labeled “house margarita” in a neon font.

5) “Free” timeshare presentations

Ah, yes, the oldest vacation hustle: “Two free nights! Complimentary breakfast! A $200 activity credit!”

All you have to do is sit through a “90-minute informational session.”

Have you ever been to a car dealership “just to look” and walked out three hours later knowing the middle name of your salesperson?

Timeshares are that, but with PowerPoint.

The script is engineered to wear you down, and they pressure you to make a decision on the spot, wave “today only” pricing in your face, and play on your fear of missing out.

Even if you’re iron-willed, you lose the most precious vacation asset: Time.

I went once for the story and it felt like being trapped inside a sales funnel.

By the end, I would’ve signed a peace treaty with my inbox if it meant escaping the room.

I didn’t buy, but I did lose a morning I’ll never get back.

If you genuinely want fractional ownership, research it at home where you can compare options without the theater.

Don’t trade a half-day of joy for a cheap buffet and a discount on an excursion you could’ve booked for less on your own.

6) Instagram-first experiences that forget the experience

Finally, let’s talk about the “get the shot” activities—jungle swings, staged “secret waterfalls,” beach picnics with letter boards, rooftop pools with lineups longer than the pool itself.

The entire premise is to capture a photo that looks like a dream, even if the reality feels like waiting at the DMV in a swimsuit.

I’ve stood in those lines, and everyone is politely impatient, shuffling forward for their 30 seconds of curated bliss.

By the time you reach the front, the magic is gone as you’re posing, but not experiencing.

If the goal is a single image you could recreate anywhere with a decent camera and sunrise, maybe the point isn’t the place—it’s the dopamine hit of posting it.

What I do instead is book experiences where the process is the point:

• A local cooking class that caps guests at six and actually teaches knife skills.
• A market tour with a chef who knows the farmers by name.
• A dawn hike guided by someone who can point out the edible plants underfoot.

If a photo happens, great; if not, I still ate well, learned something, and earned my shower.

The bottom line

Travel is like a mirror; it shows what you value when the itinerary is blank.

If you’ve done any of the activities I mentioned about, you’re a just a curious person (someone I once was).

You tried, but now you can choose better.

When in doubt, slow your pace and raise your standards; pay for craftsmanship, not convenience.

Pick hosts who care about place, and eat where people actually eat, not where they pose.

The best souvenir is a habit you bring home: Long walks without your phone, tipping for skill and kindness, choosing experiences that feel good now—and even better later.

Spend your time like it’s rare, because it is!