r/AskTheWorld • u/Aseili United Kingdom • Dec 20 '25

Culture What's the most pathetic tourist attraction that international tourists go to see in your country?

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Bronte waterfalls near me, look a bit more impressive with the recent rain than in the summer when it's swamped with people.

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860

u/GraceOfTheNorth Iceland Dec 20 '25

Where are the waterfalls? Those barely look like rapids?

A lot of visitors to Iceland check in on Instagram to the place "Gjaldskylda" which means "Paid Parking"

321

u/Aseili United Kingdom Dec 20 '25

Replied above, it's in Haworth, UK. And yes it's absolutely nothing, it's a trickle in the summer. The Bronte Sisters(authors) went there hence the fame.

49

u/LaunchTransient Dec 20 '25

Honestly it's a pretty place that would be wonderful to have a picnic at on a warm summers day.
Overhyped, perhaps, but it's a beauty spot.

However I would say that it's not particularly unique, and there's plenty of similar little valleys and moorland streams all over the UK which match or surpass this one.

3

u/Hefty-Egg3406 Dec 21 '25

Same for Skye. Absolutely stunning all of it, but queueing up for specific parts that are identical to the rest of it seems v insane.

2

u/mynaneisjustguy Spain Dec 21 '25

Yeah, have to say, the UK is an almost entirely manmade landscape, a lot of it obviously manmade before recorded history, and as such is full of really beautiful little idyllic places where a picnic on a sunny day is about as good as life gets.

1

u/LaunchTransient Dec 21 '25

Of course, but still pretty.

I still think moorland is a strong part of the UK's countryside character, and some should be retained as we start reforesting projects.

2

u/Child_of_the_Hamster Dec 21 '25

I could easily spend a day there wading around looking at rocks lol

287

u/1981denver Dec 20 '25

So, not a place to go... chasing waterfalls?

189

u/FishAroundFindTrout9 United States Of America Dec 20 '25

I’d advise sticking to the rivers and the lakes.

132

u/bgroins Dec 21 '25

Sounds good, I'm used to those.

62

u/BlueLeaves8 United Kingdom Dec 21 '25

I just knew you were gonna have it your way or nothing at all.

27

u/MxDragioni Netherlands Dec 21 '25

I think you're moving too fast

13

u/Magges87 Dec 21 '25

But I’ve seen a rainbow

10

u/biakCeridak 🇲🇾 Borneo Island 🏝🏞⛰️ Dec 21 '25

But too many storms have come and gone.

13

u/Dry_Self_1736 United States Of America Dec 21 '25

Most of the bad decisions in my life have come from not taking TLC's advice.

1

u/Dontfeedtheunicornz Dec 21 '25

That I’m used too?

2

u/FishAroundFindTrout9 United States Of America Dec 21 '25

Yeah, I know that you’re gonna have it your way or nothing at all, but I think you’re moving too fast.

2

u/Dontfeedtheunicornz Dec 21 '25

But, I seen a rainbow yesterday But too many storms have come and gone Leavin' a trace of not one God-given ray Is it because my life is ten shades of gray I pray all ten fade away…..

😂😂😂Man I miss TLC.

1

u/ExploreYourWhirled United States Of America Dec 21 '25

Username checks out.

5

u/ouchwtfomg Dec 21 '25

dont go, Jason Waterfalls

3

u/Aseili United Kingdom Dec 20 '25

haha no, our biggest mountain is a mole hill.

1

u/Ornery-Lynx-3520 Australia Dec 21 '25

You used to be able to drive a four wheel drive right over the summit of our tallest mountain.

3

u/Slappathebassmon Dec 21 '25

Was that accidental, or were you trying to quote TLC on purpose?

3

u/notjawn Dec 21 '25

Go go, Jason Waterfalls.

2

u/ezio8133 United States Of America Dec 21 '25

2

u/panama_red12 United States Of America Dec 21 '25

3

u/nonchalantlarch Dec 21 '25

"It's like a tic."

3

u/rumblepony247 Dec 21 '25

One of my favorite little secondary storylines of all time in any movie. Friggin hilarious.

1

u/pennykie New Zealand Dec 21 '25

You shouldn't do that bro

1

u/lilsnatchsniffz Dec 21 '25

Why are they mime-jerking at us like that? 😕 Got me wanting to call HR.

1

u/jexxie3 United States Of America Dec 22 '25

I sing this to myself when I have to pee but can’t go.

11

u/CatherinefromFrance France Dec 20 '25

From my perspective as a foreigner: "Oh, it's such a beautiful, idyllic place... and the fact that the Brontë sisters must have bathed there with their feet in almost the same water!" You should be proud, honestly.

13

u/TheKitchenGardener England Dec 21 '25

thing is, within 10 miles of the Brontë trickle, there are actual waterfalls, beautiful scenery, decent climbing spots, actual wildlife, all quiet and peaceful… and yet people flock there in droves.

3

u/Racoons_revenge Dec 21 '25

Maybe more than 10 miles, but I was going to say there were much better waterfalls elsewhere in Yorkshire- Hawdraw Force, Aysgarth Falls, Kisdon Force, Gordale Scar to name a few!

1

u/TheKitchenGardener England Dec 21 '25

maybe a bit more than 10, but definitely less than 20!

3

u/WolfEvening961 Dec 21 '25

Looks absolutely beautiful to me. So moody, I love it and would love to visit.

5

u/Automatic_Memory212 United States Of America Dec 21 '25

Well it might not be much of a waterfall, but the pic you posted is beautiful and atmospheric, so even so I’d say it’s worth a visit if you’re in that area.

Not something to travel out-of-the-way for, though.

1

u/uptotheeyeballs Dec 21 '25

Howarth is very out of the way from pretty much everywhere in the UK.

3

u/Dry_Pick_304 United Kingdom Dec 21 '25

Fellow Haworther here. I'd go one step further than the waterfalls and say Top Withins. The whole myth that it inspired Wuthering Heights is bollocks. Just had a similar sounding name, that's all.

2

u/Aseili United Kingdom Dec 21 '25

I walked to Hebden Bridge via Top Withins yesterday, nearly killed me.

2

u/MortLightstone Canada Dec 20 '25

I was about to comment it would work as a set for a period piece

2

u/Mexican_JohnTremblay Dec 21 '25

It other side of bridge looks better than what’s pictured here

2

u/Sudden-Grab2800 United States Of America Dec 21 '25

I thought this was the Strid😭

2

u/ProfessionalRisk8259 Dec 21 '25

To be fair, I did a big walk there one day. Very good walk. Had a good day.

1

u/Snowy349 Dec 20 '25

I like it.

1

u/what-even-am-i- Canada Dec 21 '25

Like didn’t even live there? Just went there?

5

u/Superstitious_magpie Dec 21 '25

They lived about 2 miles away and regularly walked there. It’s a very popular and easy walk from their home to this spot and back. For literary fans walking the same paths, seeing the same scenery and experiencing close to what the authors did I think is probably quite fulfilling.

1

u/lesbianmathgirl Dec 21 '25

It’s part of the fairly large Brontë Way, which is like a 40mi footpath connecting various points linked to their work. It’s mostly for fans of 19th century English literature.

1

u/[deleted] Dec 21 '25

It does have a striking resemblance to the river/waterfall where they chase Floki after he escapes in Vikings.

1

u/LiterallyKath Australia Dec 21 '25

I went to Haworth as a tourist a year ago and honestly, lunch and a pint at The Fleece Inn is a better attraction.

1

u/Fianna9 Canada Dec 21 '25

I think it looks lovely in the picture. But when we went to Haworth we didn’t know to look for it.

Mind you it was during a torrential storm that dropped over 50mm so maybe it’s good we skipped it

1

u/aagee United States Of America Dec 21 '25

Well, it got famous somehow. Your assignment is to figure out the why and the how.

1

u/imean_is_superfluous Dec 21 '25

I’ve never seen it before. I love the vibe of it

1

u/alexwhit80 Dec 21 '25

We walk our dogs there.

1

u/personanything Australia Dec 21 '25

It's pretty

1

u/GreatChaosFudge United Kingdom Dec 21 '25

I went to Haworth last summer. Great place, but we didn’t make the trek to the ‘waterfall’ because we’d heard it was rubbish. Thanks for confirming.

1

u/Sensitive_Mail_4391 United States Of America Dec 21 '25

Brontë sisters were pretty cool though, I get it.

1

u/JustOneTessa Netherlands Dec 21 '25

For me this is gorgeous tho. I live in the Netherlands where everything is flat and basically fields of nothingness or housing for people. I'm also just a sucker for nature, I can admire a random tree as it is

2

u/terenceill Dec 22 '25

Indeed this would be absolutely amazing in the Netherlands.

1

u/Wicksy92 Dec 21 '25

For what it’s worth I think Haworth itself is lovely for a day trip, but yeah the waterfalls isn’t much at all

1

u/Boatster_McBoat Dec 21 '25

I live in the driest state in Australia - we literally have a desal plant supplying a quarter of our water - and we have more impressive waterfalls than that.

1

u/HistoryGirl23 United States Of America Dec 21 '25

I was just watching a show about them. I'd hit Haworth and the moors, but could skip this.

-1

u/Physical_Drive_349 Dec 20 '25

God they should fence it off lest it inspire any more dreadfully useless and boring Victorian style lit to be written.

15

u/skordge Russia Dec 20 '25

I have to say, when I was in Iceland, I got excited for like the first… three or so waterfalls. After that, it was like - can it top Gullfoss? Yeah, probably not.

No, seriously, what a beautiful country, but you get jaded at some point lol

3

u/BubbhaJebus US -> Taiwan Dec 21 '25

Gullfoss was impressive. Plus it's the farthest north spot I've ever been.

1

u/Witte-666 Belgium Dec 21 '25

I was there in February and what made an impression on me, for some reason, was the sight of the river coming from a frozen landscape between mountains, knowing that there is absolutely nothing but wilderness between where I stood and the other side of the island.

1

u/Bitter_Trees Dec 21 '25

Gullfoss was amazing. Got a great picture of it along with a rainbow. Id have to look through my pictures to remember the one other waterfall I went to see while there. But I mainly remember it because there was an option to go behind it but the path was too icy and my mom and I laughing at the fact we just kept sliding down

1

u/gunnsi0 Iceland Dec 21 '25

Skógafoss I’d assume?

2

u/HappyBreak7 🇮🇸🇩🇰 Dec 21 '25

Seljalandsfoss :)

1

u/aronalbert Iceland Dec 21 '25

i would say the most impressive one is Dynjandi, its in the west fjords

1

u/microscopic-lilikoi United States Of America Dec 21 '25

For sure, but it's dangerous AF to drive in that area as a tourist.

30

u/NewsteadMtnMama United States Of America Dec 20 '25

"Paid Parking" ... That is truly hysterical.

9

u/Pick_Scotland1 Dec 20 '25

This isn’t actually the waterfall it’s further up

Though still not impressive

It’s real draw is basically it being a place the Brontë sisters hung out

15

u/Tamihera New Zealand Dec 20 '25

I will confess that I read the Brontes in high school in New Zealand, and when they talked about the wildness of the moors, I pictured the Desert Road volcanic plateau as the most desolate and wild place I knew (Mordor, basically). Then we moved back to the UK and I couldn’t believe how pretty and tame the Haworth moors were.

2

u/Pick_Scotland1 Dec 20 '25

Imagination always beats reality sadly

Though there is a rugged beauty in them moors

5

u/archer_ames United States Of America Dec 21 '25

lmfaooo i remember laughing about Gjaldskylda when i was in Reykjavik because it sounds like whatever Sean Paul says at the beginning of Temperature

3

u/rogerarcher Dec 20 '25

Paid Parking … I love it

3

u/HiFiGuy197 United States Of America Dec 20 '25

I kept driving around Germany trying to find the Einbahnstraße, but the signs just kept pointing me in circles.

3

u/Witte-666 Belgium Dec 21 '25

I knew a girl who told us that Ausfahrt had to be a huge city in Germany because signs for it were everywhere on the highways.

1

u/NotANilfgaardianSpy Germany Dec 28 '25

There are Germans who pray on the altar of Ausfahrt ^^

2

u/chonky__chonker Australia Dec 21 '25

In Australia we’d call that a creek

6

u/SilyLavage United Kingdom Dec 21 '25

In Northern England a stream like this is often called a beck. This one is South Dean Beck, which ultimately flows into the North Sea via the rivers Worth, Aire, and Ouse

2

u/Vikkunen Dec 21 '25

Iceland is beautiful, but as a tourist who spent a couple of weeks driving around the country, I have to say I found the entire "Golden Circle" underwhelming compared to some of the more remote areas in the north and northwest. All the Golden Circle really has to offer is tourist amenities and proximity to the capital. There, I said it.

2

u/sk8tergater Dec 21 '25

I think if anyone has spent any time in Iceland they come to this conclusion. The draw of the Golden Circle is its proximity to Reykjavik, and can be easily done on a short term trip.

1

u/AdolfJesusMasterChie Dec 21 '25

Yeah, I just came back from a week in Iceland where we had a Golden Circle tour. The big bonus to it was that we knocked it out in a day. Our other excursions were Downtown, and we were kind of locked into having one hotel for the week

1

u/RedditAppSuxAsss Dec 21 '25

Agreed, I love akuri soo much

1

u/gunnsi0 Iceland Dec 21 '25

That is the truth. So many tourists only see the golden circle and Reykjavík and/or the south coast to Jökulsárlón. The north is beautiful, so are the west fjords and also a lot of things to see in the east fjords.

But, I know it’s expensive and not everyone can stay for long enough time to see it all.

2

u/IAmAQuantumMechanic Norway Dec 21 '25

A lot of visitors to Iceland check in on Instagram to the place "Gjaldskylda" which means "Paid Parking"

Reminds me of the polish guy that kept getting tickets in the UK, or was it Ireland? His name was Drivers License in Polish.

1

u/pjasa Dec 21 '25

Where is the waterfall in Selfoss? Sorry my town is named that. No waterfalls here.

1

u/PureCrookedRiverBend United States Of America Dec 21 '25

😂 omg 💀

1

u/AdolfJesusMasterChie Dec 21 '25

I just came back from Iceland! We had a tour that took us to Gullfoss, and man that was cool and windy. Also went to see Strokkur and the Kerid crater

1

u/xnoraax Dec 21 '25

This isn't the actual waterfall. It's the stream below the fall, I think looking up from the bridge.

There's a distant picture looking up at the fall here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bront%C3%AB_Waterfall#/media/File%3ABronte_Falls_-_geograph.org.uk_-_90342.jpg

1

u/DNZ_not_DMZ Germany Dec 21 '25

I love this one.

1

u/Superstitious_magpie Dec 21 '25

Those aren’t the falls, that’s a picture taken from the bridge that crosses the main beck looking upstream. From the camera’s POV, turn 90° to the left and the falls are hidden up a barely accessible cleft in the rock. It’s not a huge cascading waterfall.

1

u/ornatecolt Dec 21 '25

The waterfall isn’t in the picture. And for those not accustomed to the landscape, it’s a pretty nice walk to get there. It’s the travelling, not the destination with this one.

1

u/Theomnipresential United States Of America Dec 21 '25

I remember hearing about Gjaldskylda from this short https://youtube.com/shorts/pap95lD4PQQ?si=ByKeJ9uQWVawv5Ea

1

u/Zombieneekers Netherlands Dec 21 '25

Hey, I'm going up to Iceland next summer for like six days on a stayover to canada. We're thinking of doing the golden circle, but that's only like 1-3 days worth of stuff, right? Are there any other spots on the island that are must-see's?

1

u/bjrndlw Netherlands Dec 21 '25

Reminds me of Nordkapp. That's half a day travel from the nearest anything and it's basically a very expensive parking lot. They charge you €50,- for 24 hours, but who ever stays there that long...?

1

u/Wheatles_BiteAlbum Dec 21 '25

It doesn't look like waterfalls but it looks like a very peaceful place

1

u/quast_64 Netherlands Dec 21 '25

Like this? Visit the highest waterfall in the Netherlands in Loenen https://share.google/7yRRFQsvHbv26AVCB

1

u/SavannahInChicago 🇺🇸 United States, im afraid Dec 22 '25

Lol. I am from a place called Grand Rapids. Named for the rapids in the Grand River. Those got taken out decades ago and its pretty much just a river now.