Is your piece of paradise one you're happy to share?

I also knew a place like that many years ago. Now I wish I'd of kept it to myself but what can you do? It was called Lamai Beach on a very rarely visited island called Ko Samui. I wonder what it's like now?

Odd things happen. This weird Scottish guy gave me a map to a secret island location. Next morning he slit his wrists..... hey, sounds like a good idea for a book....

I remember going to Boracay (Phillipines) in 1986, it took a bloody long journey to get there, you had to order your meals 24 hours in advance (so they could pop over to the mainland for supplies) young lads would scamper up coconut trees and get one, brring it back, open it up, pour out the juice, pour in the rum and leave it all day for you to eat at night (yummy) beer was soooooo cheap, the beach was empty, the water was crystal, the best ...........some people found out about it and the people came and they did build bloody great big hotels!! It doesnt really matter what they did (IMHO they spoilt it) they will never take away the memory.

If this lady does not report it..how long until the next guidebook person comes? A week? A month? some excited young traveller will tell friends on a thread like this and then its over. Best to keep it to youself but as far the lady goes..thats her job.

I think that nowadays there aren't too many people who genuinely want to find an unspoilt piece of paradise -Why? Because it's boring. If you want some space or personal time, go join a nunnery/monestary somewhere. Go to a commune in the desert. Google 'Hippie Desert Communes' and you'll find plenty of places.
There are no unspoilt places left anyway - why? Because the people who live there want to make money and we all bring it to them. Now they can have Starbucks too, and why not?
you can always find a great place to sit, think, be alone, do whatever - just have sauna built in your house. Works for me.
I say put 'em all in the guidebooks.

Oh Lord, I'm gunna get flammed for this, but I actually agree with them, I have found several places that I think are only better because they're not in the guidebooks and it adds to their charm/attraction. There are 15 guestbooks in this particular place all mentioning that the hideaway/retreat is the best kept secret in X destination.

Sorry, but I like to travel to places like that.

Saying that, I'm desperate to find out where tezza lives, I'll be there for a yr in Apr if you could just drop me a PM to my new handle - surfer_hypocrite

;op

I would take what dear old tezza says with a pinch of salt :-)))))

I think the point of this is the other people staying at that place have no right to decide who may and may not be allowed to know of its existence. If you would rather somewhere stayed quiet and out the way thats fine but its not their right to dictate that to someone else. Its not their business, their livlihood does not depend on the place. The owner's does though and it seems she was happy enough for it to be advertised. If a couple of snotty backpackers would happily curb someones income so they can stay somewhere 'no one knows about' they are even more selfish I originally thought.

I do not agree with the fact that "there are no little paradise's anymore" ..... even in this land (Thailand) crowded with all kind of tourists there are still hidden paradise's to be found.

I once travelled around in SEA with a guidebook, but after seeing one of the writers doing his work, I trusted this book to the almighty sea (as I was on a Pelni ship in Indonesia).

Chang Noi

"... when I'm not being too serious. "

Is that .. ever?

and at the risk of being called rude and cretinish .. ;>)

I got a really nasty email once from someone I thought was a buddy after talking about writing up a trip he had related .. ff all places, the hidden city of Nong Khai.

Lots of folks seem to think that some holy moral imperative exists that should keep the locals destitute just so they might enjoy cheap holidays away from the hordes of .. their own kind.