Grew up in Michigan and only live 2.5 hours away but never went!
I think we are the opposite of touristy. Did love NYC but didn’t look to do what I would consider much touristy stuff - notable but not touristy?
Definitely not an amusement park family!
The Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo, CA. It styles itself as “delightfully tacky.”
I was in shock! But I suppose some love it.
Mackinac Island.
My husband hates the island and has never gone with me in all the years we’ve been married. T-shirt and fudge shops. I went with my sister in law because she felt bad for us.
Yup. It’s fine but I have no problem not going again. When I try to get my husband to do something, I always say, we could go to Mackinac. 
I’ll run and duck from all the lovers.
And if I never have to have another chicken dinner in Frankenmuth, I’ll be good.
Two places that are routinely described as tourist traps are Navy Pier in Chicago and Seaport Village in San Diego. But I’ve always enjoyed walking around each of them and seeing the city/water views. If you don’t spend money, it’s not a trap!
We’ve always researched quite a bit before vacations so seldom got surprised. I’m trying to think back decades but not coming up with anything in particular.
Oh wait, I remember - Plymouth Rock. Or Plymouth Pebble, as I called it.
I forgot about Williamsburg. My DD described it as “Disney for senior citizens” and it was THE reason she refused to apply to William and Mary.
We loved Plymouth Rock…just one visit was plenty. Done the same day as Plymouth Plantation.
I LOVED Mackinac Island but we were there for 3 nights during the week while the thousands of lilacs were blooming (a very sentimental flower for me) and we stayed a 20 minute buggy ride out of town.
I agree about the shops downtown though. All the other neighborhood streets/houses–beyond charming for me. Living on the west coast, I am a sucker for homes that are actually old (in US terms) because we dont have them here.
Funny seeing all the Cedar Point posts. I met my husband there when we were working there in the summer during college decades ago. So, I have a soft spot for it. I also worked a summer at Kennywood . Have also liked Disney, Universal, Busch Gardens Williamsburg visits over the years. Not sure I would think of most amusement parks as “tourist traps”, but more like something some people just don’t seem to enjoy.
And we’re going to Toronto and Niagara Falls in June. I guess I have an affinity for tourist traps! 
i also like Williamsburg, nice place to walk around !
My husband is a sailor and was crew on the races. Mostly Port Huron to Mackinac but he did the Chicago race also.
He says that being stuck on the island with thousands of drunken sailors will make you crazy. Hence his extreme dislike for the island.
The lilacs are beautiful and grow wild. Late spring is so beautiful when they are blooming.
I’d rather spend time in Petoskey and Bay View, Harbor Springs.
Lots of people love Mackinac.
It’s been decades since we’ve been to Mackinac Island and I’m sure it’s gotten even more commercial. I think you need to stay a couple of nights to appreciate the nature of the island, like biking the perimeter. Back in the day, you could hire horses and go off on your own.
Coming down towards the Grand Hotel from the far side (that was how to avoid the entrance fee):
I have not been, but my daughter agrees with you about the Alamo!!
Times Square tops the list for me (but I love the rest of NYC.)
South of the Border is the ultimate definition of “tourist trap”!
I loved Mackinac but we went at the very end of the season, mid week, and it was quiet and lovely. Didn’t set foot in any of the shops and just enjoyed hiking and exploring all the trails and enjoying the architecture. We did visit the two forts and loved the step back in time. We stayed at a small hotel on the beach and could see sunset and sunrise from our room.
Well…yes…but it’s sort of kitchy fun!!
Reading these makes me sad. So many “touristy” spots were not quite so touristy back when my family did road trips (ok, I’ll admit a long time ago). They were still points of interest, but I assume far less crowded and commercial. Or, perhaps with time, I’ve grown to dislike crowds more than I did back then.
We often look for State Parks to explore and hike now. Sometimes they’re almost as grand as the National Parks, but usually far less crowded.
I also enjoy things like parks, museums, historical sites but can still appreciate a good tourist trap now and again!
National Forests have lots of trails to hike. You can go on line to get maps for trails and other notable places.
I had a completely opposite experience. Liked Alamo (as in good place to kill 2-3 hours and learn Texas history) but hated San Antonio, especially riverwalk (not sure why it’s famous).
I was visiting friends in NC, and we drove over to Myrtle Beach for a day. Spent the whole day at “Broadway at the Beach” which is a fake boardwalk with touristy stores and attractions surrounding a fake lagoon. With the actual ocean nearby, but out of sight.
Grew up on the Jersey Shore, and I love real kitsch when it comes to seaside towns, but this sanitized fake place was awful. The friends love it so I had to be polite. But yeesh.
We are another tourist trap family. I enjoy most of the places listed. LOVE amusement parks. We made a special trek to Cedar Point so my kids could say they’ve been. We used to go to Busch Gardens the last week of May when we would be out of school, but not many others. We would go mid week and the place would be empty. We could walk right up to the front car of the rollercoasters and get on. And repeat over and over. Once we were the only people on the entire ride! Good times.
The one place I agree with is Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge. We went once in 2000 and I remember liking it well enough, but we went back maybe 7-8 years ago Christmas week and it was awful. So crowded and just Ick. Never again.
Neuschwanstein we enjoyed. We had a private guide my parents hired for the week, so he shuttled us around and took care of everything. It was wonderful! That was our first trip abroad, and I didn’t realize how spoiled we were not having to worry about all of the details.
worst tourist trap ever is Wall Drugstore in South Dakota 
Gatlinburg is pretty awful too, it’s a one and done for us
I’m ambivalent about Neuschwanstein. It looks fake from the outside (they recently renovated it and it looks more fake now than it did before) but the nature around it is very beautiful, so still worth going to, I think.
I had to laugh seeing Frankenmuth mentioned, my Michigan host family took me, the German exchange student, there a gazillion years ago.
D’s MIL is from the Middle East. She and her group of friends were members of a Christian minority in their country, and they not only adore Bronner’s, but they make an annual pilgrimage during the Christmas season. It’s a tourist trap, and they can’t get enough!
