Whether you’re looking for your next destination or just trying to find things to do on a weekend while at home, these sites will help you immensely!

Atlas Obscura:

I’ve shamefully stolen their About Us blurb because it describes the weird and quirky content so well:

In an age where everything seems to have been explored and there is nothing new to be found, atlas Obscura celebrates a different way of looking at the world. If you’re searching for MINIATURE CITIES, GLASS FLOWERS, BOOKS BOUND IN HUMAN SKIN, GIGANTIC FLAMING HOLES IN THE GROUND, BONE CHURCHES, BALANCING PAGODAS, or HOMES BUILT ENTIRELY OUT OF PAPER, the Atlas Obscura is where you’ll find them.

I can testify to the fact that all the articles on AO are beautifully written and definitely will pique your interest. The authors are all established journalists and have often written for National Geographic, or Lonely Planet and other major travel and natural history magazines.

Vamo:

Vamo is a great idea if you’re relatively well off and don’t have the time to plan your trips – essentially you input your destination… and that’s all. Vamo comes up with a pre-planned itinerary and you can then modify it or use it as is. You can also see other users’ itineraries.

What’s really cool is that you can book your trip right on the website, through travel partners like Expedia (although you could also just use Vamo for inspiration and do your travel planning elsewhere.) They’re only available for European destinations at the moment, so it might be great for your next vacation there but I hope they expand soon, so that I can start using it elsewhere as well!

Vayable:

Vayable allows you to list your own experience or browse other travelers’ experiences by searching for a destination. Think of it as a highly specialized classifieds site for travel guides and other experiences for tourists.

This is really great when you’re stuck for things to do and are looking for something not quite touristy, because most of the recommendations are off-the-beaten-path. Night photography tours in Paris, a pie-making workshop in Glasgow, street art tours in San Francisco. All a few clicks away!

Travelistly:

The reddit.com upvote / downvote mechanism as applied to great travel stories. Contributors submit links to their best blog posts and videos and users view and rate them.

If you’re a blogger, this is also a great site to drive traffic to your blog and to improve the quality and number of incoming links!