Overrated experiences I won't do again

This is the list I wish someone had handed me in 2019. None of these are bad, exactly. They're just not worth the time, the queue, or the SGD 80 ticket. Spend the afternoon elsewhere.

Bali

• Tegalalang rice terraces after 9am — bus tour mosh pit, locked behind 'donation' gates
• Tanah Lot at sunset — beautiful, but you'll see it through 400 phone screens
• Most 'Instagram' swing photo spots — a swing, a queue, IDR 350k, ten seconds of footage

Tokyo

• Robot Restaurant successor shows in Shinjuku — loud, expensive, no Tokyo in it at all
• Shibuya crossing 'sky view' tickets — the crossing itself, from street level, is the point
• Themed cafés (cat, owl, hedgehog) — the animals are stressed and you'll feel weird

Seoul

• N Seoul Tower observation deck queue — the cable car ride is the actual experience
• Myeongdong street food at 9pm — overpriced, aimed at tour groups, the good stalls closed at 6

Singapore

• Marina Bay Sands SkyPark observation deck — go to CÉ LA VI or Lavo, get the same view with a cocktail
• The Merlion. Five minutes is generous.

"The best afternoons abroad are usually the ones you didn't plan. Leave room."