We all have our own dream destinations and long travel bucket list that we wish to fulfill in our lifetime. France, South Africa, United Arab Emirates, USA, China and Brazil are among the world’s most visited countries in every continent in terms of tourist arrivals. If we visit these touristy countries in a perfect timing, we can surely satisfy our expectations. Otherwise, we might end up being one of those travelers who is suffering amid the crowd just to take a decent photo of an infamous tourist attraction.
Though we know the worth of visiting these indisputably newsworthy destinations, we still ponder exploring those unspoilt places that have been completely overlooked in the tourism map. So if you like the idea of traveling places that are off the beaten track and brag about those unknown destination to your friends, then the list we have here will inspire you more. These are among the world’s least traveled countries that must be in your bucket list.
1. Anguilla (Annual Visitor: 73,000)
Anguilla is a small island country in the Caribbean. Due to its proximity to the infamous St Martin, this island has never gotten that much attention it deserves. Anguilla has everything that you might expect from other islands in the Caribbean, stunning bays, best white sandy beaches ornated with palm trees and turquoise water around. This setting is perfect for swimming and sunbathing. It also has some beautiful coral reefs off the coast which makes it also a great place for diving and snorkeling.
How to get in:
Cape Air provides two daily non-stop flights to/from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Liat also serves once daily service to St. Thomas, and onwards to other destinations in the Caribbean.
2. Liechtenstein (Annual Visitor: 61,000)
Europe is a favorite travel destination. But who have heard much about the country Liechtenstein? This small European country is one of the two doubly-landlocked countries (Means a landlocked country within landlocked contries) in the world aside from Uzbekistan. It is surrounded by Austria and Switzerland.
Since this country is very mountainous, it offers great hiking, road biking, and mountain biking terrain. You can also experience cheaper skiing and snowboarding in this country compared to Switzerland and Austria. It is also home to many churches and historic castles including the gothic Balzers Castle.
How to get in:
Liechtenstein has no airports due to its small size. You can fly to Zürich Airport which is 115 kms away then take a train or a bus.
3. Guinea (Annual Visitor: 35,000)
The country’s tourism went down low due to Ebola outbreak from 2014 to 2015. However, WHO did declare that Guinea is Ebola free since 2016 and without known cases for over a year.
Guinea offers more than what anyone could have expected. It has beaches, savannas and scenic forests great for hiking. It is also home to Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
How to get in:
Royal Air Maroc serves flight from Casablanca to Conakry. Air France flies from Paris, France and SN Brussels from Brussels, Belgium. Air Ivoire also operates to Conakry regularly from Abidjan.
4. Sierra Leone (Annual Visitor: 24,000)
This African country’s tourism also suffered due to the Ebola outbreak. Same as Guinea, Sierra Leone is already safe to travel.
Sierra Leone is rich in natural resources. It has astounding sceneries, rich colonial heritage and home to some of the best beaches in the world. Top-notch beaches can be found in Freetown peninsula.
Photo Credit: J McDowell
How to get in:
Lungi International Airport in Freetown is served by Air France from Paris via Conakry, Kenya Airways from Nairobi, Brussels Airlines from Brussels, Royal Air Maroc from Casablanca and Monrovia and Air Côte d’Ivoire from Abidjan. KLM will resume its flight from Amsterdam on March 26.
5. Solomon Islands (Annual Visitor: 22,000)
You may not have heard of this country before but this archipelago is actually located in South Pacific near Papua New Guinea.
Solomon Islands has a rich tropical rain forest that covers most of the archipelago where you can also find over 200 varieties of orchids and 70 species of reptiles.
You can also take a plunge and go diving as it has great beaches and lagoons as well. Diving tours to the numerous WWII wrecks are also possible.
How to get in:
Solomon Airlines flies to Honiara Internation Airport from Sydney and Brisbane while Virgin Australia also operates from Brisbane. Air Nuigini offers flight from Nadi and Port Moresby. Fiji Air serves from Nadi and Port Vila.
6. Montserrat (Annual Visitor: 9,000)
Montserrat used to be a popular resort in the Caribbean until it was devastated by hurricane and volcanic activities during the 80s and 90s. Since then, it has been recovering and slowly popping out in the tourism map. The Soufriere Hills Volcano is one of the highlights of the island that can be best sighted from Jack Boy Hill observation area where the view of the ash flows covering the old airport can be seen.
This British territory is blessed with natural beauty. The land has lush of tropical forests with trails of altering difficulty perfect for free-and-easy and guided hiking. Montserrat is also gifted with quiet beaches that you can enjoy without worrying much of the crowd.
The island is also surrounded by reefs that can be enjoyed thru snorkelling and scuba diving. Redonda, an uninhabited island is the favorite place for scuba diving where you can find six-foot barrel sponges, Eagle Ray, Stingrays and nurse shark.
Photo Credit: David Stanley
How to get in:
Fly Montserrat offers multiple daily flights out of Antigua into the John A. Osborne Airport. The planes serving this route are twin engine turbo props that hold a maximum of six people, with limited luggage space. Flying time is approximately 20 minutes with astounding spectacles of Antigua, Montserrat, and other islands nearby
7. Niue (Annual Visitor: 7,000)
Niue is a small island country in Oceania situated in the middle of Cook Islands and Tonga. There are many activities to do in Niue. Kayaking, fishing, snorkeling and diving are among the favorites. The Utuko Reef in Alofi and the reef pools at Hio Beach are some of the famous spots for snorkeling.
Niue is scattered with many caves and limestone arches which make this island also great for sightseeing. There are a lot of ‘sea tracks’ that guide from the road to the coast. Strolling down one and seeing what you can discover at the end is a lot of fun. Dolphins and whales can also be seen off the coast.
Photo Credit: fotonut NZ
How to get in:
All visitors to Niue, irrespective of nationality, are visa exempt for a maximum stay of 30 days. The only way to arrive in Niue is by plane from Auckland via Air New Zealand that flies in and out once a week.
8. Kiribati (Annual Visitor: 6,000)
Kiribati is a group of islands that comprises 33 atolls in Micronesia spanning the equator and the International Date Line. This country has beautiful white sandy beaches and also a great place for boating or yachting. The outer islands of the country offers a very lively traditional culture to its visitors. People from Kiribati are generally friendly and welcoming to the tourists.
The most visited place in Kiribati is the island of Kiritimati (Christmas Island). It is the largest coral atoll in the world and became popular on January 1, 2000 as the first location in the world to experience the new millennium.
Its marine life is one of the best in the world. The tranquil Phoenix Island Marine Protected Area, the world’s largest marine protected area is also located in Kiribati.
Kiribati witness some of the gory fighting during World War II and many of war remnants like tanks, ship wrecks, plane wrecks and amtracs are still around in some of the islands. Taking a guided tour will give you the full story behind the remains.
How to get in:
Fiji Airways serves from Nadi, Fiji with connections from Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Canada, and the United States including Honolulu (with codeshares on American Airlines, and other ONEWORLD alliance members). Nauru Airlines also connects Tarawa in Kiribati with Nauru and Nadi. While Air Marshall Islands does scheduled flights every 2 weeks from Majuro to Tarawa returning the same day.
9. Marshall Islands (Annual Visitor: 5,000)
The Marshall Islands are a group of atolls and reefs that lying in the Pacific Ocean in between Australia and Hawaii. Its bustling capital Majuro spreads over 64 tiny islands and is the gateway of the country for most visitors. To escape the crowds of the city, visitors can head to one of the many secluded lagoons. The island of Laura is the perfect place to unwind with its calm white-sand beaches and shallow reefs perfect for snorkeling.
Exploring its marine life is one of the things that you can also enjoy in this country. Opportunities for diving include drop-offs, coral heads, black coral and WWII wrecks. Fishing expeditions can be arranged by local hotels or the Marshall’s Billfish Club.
How to get in:
Air Marshall Islands offers regular scheduled domestic flights to 10 of the atolls. International flights are available from Honolulu and Fiji. United Airlines stops in Majuro on its island-hopper service between Guam and Honolulu. It also serves weekly flights to and from Guam and Honolulu.
10. Tuvalu (Annual Visitor: 1,000)
Tuvalu is the fourth smallest country in the world that comprises a group of 9 low-lying islands and atolls in the South Pacific. Though it is not a destination for those in search of impressive sightseeing opportunities, it offers some of the best natural sights such as reefs, lagoons, channel and island habitats. Its diverse marine life makes it a suitable place for scuba diving and snorkeling. Tuvalu’s traditional local culture is also one of the nation’s best assets. You can experience its lively traditional dancing in their local town hall “maneapa”.
How to get in:
Fiji Airways flies from Suva, Fiji to Tuvalu’s gateway Funafuti International Airport. Its airport IATA code is FUN which is really cool.
These countries may be nonpareil to Spain, Maldives, Thailand, Mexico and Australia in terms of popularity. But visiting these god-knows-where destinations is surely a great fulfillment and definitely something that you can be proud about.
Rewrite your travel bucket list now and start planning your outlandish adventures. Which among these countries would you like to go first?
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51 Comments
Lyn (aka) The Travelling Lindfields
September 19, 2017 at 5:41 AMI thought I was quite well travelled but I haven’t been to a single country on your list. Lichtenstein is on our agenda for next year though.
Ruth
September 17, 2017 at 7:58 AMHow no ideas of the number of visitors these countries get each year. Some of this places are remote but some a quite doable. Would like to stop by the two Caribbean islands in here. #TPThursday
Tanja
September 16, 2017 at 5:40 PMgorgeous places!
Jan Michael de Guzman
September 16, 2017 at 11:12 PMThey are right?
budgettraveltalk
September 6, 2017 at 11:52 AMI’ve heard goods things about Nuie. I’d like to go there and the Soloman Islands. Thanks for linking up. Great Post.
Marissa | Marissa's Teachable Moments
August 22, 2017 at 3:10 PMAdding these to my growing bucket list!
Emma @ theweekendabroad.com
August 21, 2017 at 9:19 AMThis was such a great travel read! I’m sad to say I haven’t been to even one country on this list, but I’m definitely making a point to get to them in the future. Thank you for the recommendations!
Melanie
August 21, 2017 at 1:24 AMGreat list! I love going to places with very few tourists
Diana Figueroa
August 20, 2017 at 11:36 PMI have a friend in Sierra Leone and he loves it. Just goes to show sometimes unconventional places are not so unconventional and out of the ordinary for some! Loved this.
Sara Broers
July 24, 2017 at 5:17 AMWhat a great roundup of destinations. I love that you included how to enter each country.
frizey
July 22, 2017 at 3:19 AMVery inspiring! Beautiful photos.
Jesper, The Biveros Effect
July 17, 2017 at 5:58 AMIf it would just have been easier to go to some of these amazing places as well 😀
Alana
June 20, 2017 at 9:46 PMAwesome! The ones ‘near’ Australia I really want to go to! A few at the top are just too dangerous though haahahha. Great list!! Thanks!
Jan Michael de Guzman
June 20, 2017 at 10:13 PMThank you. Hope you can visit some of these places
wp
May 8, 2017 at 12:25 AMNice
Jan Michael de Guzman
May 8, 2017 at 7:44 AMThank you
wp
May 8, 2017 at 12:23 AMNice share regarding travelling and tourism
Jan Michael de Guzman
May 8, 2017 at 7:44 AMThank you
Jakob Horvat
April 27, 2017 at 9:34 AMAlthough I have heard about most of the places, I didn’t even know where to put half of them on the map. Thanks for spreading my view here, great work! You’ve actually brought Solomon islands closer to my radar as I’m thinking about going somewhere close to Papua New Guinea this year. Keep going, Jan Michael! Cheers de Colombia
Jan Michael de Guzman
May 3, 2017 at 11:52 AMhaha! true! good luck to you
Vincenzo Sangiorgio
April 26, 2017 at 5:52 PMSo I am one the few having been in Liechtenstein, just crossing and stopping one hour or so, but I have been there.
By the way, at the beginning of the post, in the list of the most visited countries you totally forgot about Italy, and Spain too, and about the destination that for any wester person should be the first, second and third destination if one wants at least to try to understand our civilization, that is Rome.
Bilyana | OwlOverTheWorld
April 14, 2017 at 4:09 PMThis is an awesome list. I would love to visit all of them. And the fact that they are less visited makes me want to go there even more. Sierra Leone is my top one from that list.
Jan Michael de Guzman
April 14, 2017 at 8:09 PMThanks Bilyana. I also feel the same about visiting less traveled countries. Would love to see more of Africa and Pacific countries.
andamanbnbnation
April 10, 2017 at 11:45 PMEarlier I thought Monserrat was a font only as it’s one of my favourite ones but little did i know that it’s a country too! A couple of island countries that have been shared on this blog post situated in Micronesia, Polynesia group of islands are on the verge of submergence due to increasing sea water level as an adverse effect of Global Warming! So i think apart from keeping them in our respective bucket list, we should also think about sustainable travel when visiting these island countries!
On the whole, thanks for sharing the blog post!
(Ambuj Saxena)
Kim
April 1, 2017 at 11:01 PMThis is a great list and I will be checking out some of these countries. Sierra Leone is on my list…
Lawrence
February 26, 2017 at 3:25 PMThanks for sharing this great list of least travelled countries. I just hope that I could visit some of them in the near future.
Andrea Broom
February 23, 2017 at 11:05 AMI haven’t heard of more than 3/4 of these places. They are all gorgeous, gonna need to add these to my list.
Munchkin Treks
February 21, 2017 at 5:22 AMI love this piece. You have written about some really obscure locations. I was especially intrigued learning about places I’d never even heard of. You have convinced me to add some new places to my bucket list.
Doro
February 19, 2017 at 5:18 PMNever even heard of some of these small islands! I guess a big reason for the low number of visitors is that they all are places that are a bit more time consuming to get to (i.e. no direct flightts :D)
Lucy
February 19, 2017 at 9:20 AMWow, never heard about some of them, mainly the small islands. All the countries in the list look gorgeous, hopefully they’ll start to get the attention they deserve.
Jan Michael de Guzman
February 19, 2017 at 9:24 AMI hope they will, because they all have unexplored treasures
Tracy (lifeofkuhl)
February 18, 2017 at 12:23 AMThanks for sharing. A lot of these places I would have never considered for a holiday. I will be looking further into the Solomon Islands and Anguilla. Great post!
Jan Michael de Guzman
February 19, 2017 at 9:25 AMThanks. Hope you could explore some of them soon
Wanderlust Vegans
February 18, 2017 at 12:20 AMSome tourist places are busy for good reason but these are fantastic places to avoud the crowds. I haven’t even heard of most of these I’d say. It makes you wonder what other places are great but not well known.
Jan Michael de Guzman
February 19, 2017 at 9:26 AMTruly agree on that. I hope more people could visit these places
saribainbridge
February 17, 2017 at 12:07 AMwow all pretty places, that I never been there 🙂
Jan Michael de Guzman
February 19, 2017 at 9:26 AMHope you could go to these places someday
GiGi Eats Celebrities
February 14, 2017 at 10:48 PMHa! I have only heard of ONE of these countries before!
Jan Michael de Guzman
February 19, 2017 at 9:27 AMWhich one is that? Haha
youngbrokeandwandering
February 14, 2017 at 11:16 AMSo interesting! I didn’t even know about half of these countries! Absolutely interested in sierra lione!!
Jan Michael de Guzman
February 19, 2017 at 9:28 AMReally interesting. How many people know these countries? Could be .00001% of the world’s population
I do what I want to
February 14, 2017 at 5:27 AMOh! I completely agree, some places are too crowded though it is for a good reason. However getting off the beaten path is worth it! I’ll be looking forward to visiting some of these places
Jan Michael de Guzman
February 19, 2017 at 9:30 AMYup. Beautiful places deserved to be crowded but these places are treasures as well but just ignored in the map
Adam Doolittle
February 14, 2017 at 1:42 AMFantastic list. I’ve heard of most but not all of these countries so thanks for exposing me to some newer spots. The Solomon Islands and Anguilla would be fabulous but who am I kidding, they would all be superb to visit. It’s always fantastic to find a beautiful spot that seems to be less travelled by other tourists.
Jan Michael de Guzman
February 19, 2017 at 9:31 AMYou are most welcome. Most of these places are beautiful small island with awesome beaches. I hope many could consider these rather than going to crowded islands in the Caribbean or the Pacific.
tatumskipper
February 14, 2017 at 12:42 AMOMG this is awesome. I have been wanting to travel to the “less-traveled” places!! Some of these look amazing!!
Jan Michael de Guzman
February 19, 2017 at 9:31 AMThank you ?
marie
February 14, 2017 at 12:34 AMI enjoyed reading something a little bit different. I hate crowds, so perfect for me!
Lisa (Simple Sojourner)
February 13, 2017 at 9:20 PMSome of these areas look like a little piece of paradise. I love the fact that the are not too touristy too. I think Liechtenstein would be quite unique and looks like I could do some nice hiking there.
Paula Morgan
February 13, 2017 at 9:39 AMI have a really good friend who is from Niue and he is always trying to convince us to go visit. It really does look awesome but the once a week flights from Auckland mean I really need to do some planning 🙂
SheWentToSpain
February 12, 2017 at 11:39 PMI met someone yesterday who said he just went to Monserrat! At first, I thought it was a place in Mexico…then I realized I had no idea what he was talking about, so I’m happy to see it’s a least-traveled country and I’m probably not the only one who doesn’t know it haha. He said he had to take a 8-seater flight to get to the small island!