When “Small-Brained American” YouTuber with 750k subs drops a travel tier list, you pay attention especially when he’s pulling 3x the audience of Lonely Planet, a brand started in Melbourne then sold off to Private Equity with over 1,000 staff on its books.
And honestly? Having been to many of these places, I kind of agree.
Why? Because these countries still hold on to something rare: a culture that values friendship, hospitality, and real adventure instead of treating life like a never-ending game to please the boss (nowadays usually female or sanitized by corporate).
Meanwhile, most mainstream travel lists today? Curated by committees, sanitized by marketing teams, and often nudging the same liberal narratives about “discovering yourself”
S-TIER
The absolute peak. These are the destinations that redefine what travel should feel like.
- 🇺🇸 United States – “America S-tier. […] I’m gonna die here […] the best place for me to recuperate.”
- 🇯🇵 Japan – “Cold beer, cold snacks […] BDSM bars, Kirby bars […] good for your mom or the intrepid traveler.”
- 🇨🇳 China – “Endless adventure […] you could get lost and no one would ever find you […] food is really good.”
- 🇵🇰 Pakistan – “Insane hospitality […] never ask for anything in return […] drank so much free chai.”
- 🇮🇶 Iraq – “Cleaner than Pakistan, more dangerous […] left feeling like a better person.”
- 🇻🇳 Vietnam – “Most adventurous country you can go to […] get off the beaten path—highly rewarding.”
- 🇲🇲 Myanmar – “Couldn’t film a bad video there […] everything’s different—dress, food, way of life.”
A-TIER
Almost perfect, just shy of legendary.
- 🇦🇷 Argentina – “Mix of colonial Europe and Latin culture […] got this tattoo.”
- 🇭🇺 Hungary – “Budapest—cheap, hip, great drinking city.”
- 🇮🇹 Italy – “Pizza, wine, nothing gets done in the afternoon—loved it.”
- 🇮🇩 Indonesia – “Bali’s nice if you can see past the [influencers] […] could live there a month or two.”
- 🇬🇧 United Kingdom – “Practically the same country [as the U.S.] […] first place that made me love travel.”
B-TIER
Good times, but not life-changing.
- 🇹🇷 Turkey – “Only Istanbul, met Nolan, had a great time […] big country—still a lot to uncover.”
- 🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan – “Trapped in a shipping container—classic misadventure.”
- 🏳️🌈 Transnistria – “Soviet police interrogated me […] slept on a taxi-driver’s couch—fun challenge.”
- 🇲🇩 Moldova – “Off-beat, no one goes; that’s the appeal.”
- 🇷🇴 Romania – “Bucharest hostel in a hip neighborhood—didn’t mind it.”
C-TIER
Fine for a stopover. Won’t change your life.
- 🇰🇷 South Korea – “Not actively bad, just ‘meh’ […] Japan’s little cousin.”
- 🇭🇰 Hong Kong – “Food sub-par, people not friendly […] maybe I went to the wrong spots.”
- 🇦🇺 Australia – “Saw kangaroos, it was fine—too similar to America.”
- 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan – “Layover only; can’t say much.”
- 🇲🇰 North Macedonia – “Passed through in a day—fine.”
- 🇸🇰 Slovakia – “One-day ride-through, gorgeous scenery but brief.”
D-TIER
Pretty disappointing for what they cost or promise.
- 🇧🇹 Bhutan – “Beautiful landscape, but government tour felt like North Korea for elderly Aussies.”
- 🇹🇭 Thailand – “Blown-out […] addicted to money, brain-dead tourist circuit.”
- 🇲🇽 Mexico – “Only Tulum/Cancun; branded, easy, touristy.”
- 🇰🇭 Cambodia – “Boring, people understandably cold after genocide.”
- 🇨🇭 Switzerland – “Too expensive for what it is.”
- 🇵🇭 Philippines – “Challenging transport, rustic […] trending toward Dominica-level frustration.”
E-TIER
Painfully overrated.
- 🇫🇷 France – “Overrated, too expensive […] they ‘know they’re the [expletive]’.”
- 🇧🇬 Bulgaria – “Wouldn’t let me leave with the bike; lost $1k, stuck for ages.”
- 🇵🇱 Poland – “Worst food-poisoning of my life on a Polish bus.”
- 🇳🇱 Netherlands – “Boring; brain-dead holiday spot.”
- 🇮🇪 Ireland – “Couldn’t escape paperwork […] felt like a loser working at a motorcycle hostel.”
F-TIER
Actively bad experiences. Avoid.
- 🇮🇳 India – “Worst country on the planet […] 1.6 billion people, half openly racist […] if it floated off to Antarctica the world would smell better.”
- 🇩🇲 Dominica – “Actively bad—expensive, boring, dangerous in a not-fun way […] month-long money pit.”
