Often I find myself in a strange internal battle with social media.
Which is ironic, considering I started documenting my travels on Instagram and TikTok.
But this tension became especially obvious on my recent trip to Japan.
Like most people planning a trip these days, a lot of my research started on social media. TikTok and Instagram have essentially become our new search engines. Type in a city name and suddenly you’re handed a curated list of “must-see” cafes, viewpoints, restaurants, and "hidden gems."
The problem is… they’re rarely hidden anymore.
Very quickly I realised that many of the places we had saved weren’t actually places to discover, they were places to queue.
Long lines for a drink that looked better on camera than it tasted. Crowds gathering around a single photo spot. Entire groups of people waiting patiently for their turn to recreate the exact same shot they’d seen online.
And while I love that social media helps us discover new places, there’s something about that experience that started to feel a little… hollow.
After a few days, I abandoned most of the social media recommendations completely.
Instead, we went back to the old-school method: opening Google Maps and seeing what was nearby with good ratings.
No viral posts. No trending locations. Just restaurants, cafes, and temples that happened to be close to wherever we were standing.
And honestly? We found some gems!
We stumbled across incredible ramen spots we never would have found otherwise. Quiet temples with barely another tourist in sight. Small neighbourhood cafes that felt authentic rather than curated for the algorithm.
It reminded me that sometimes you’ll find your favourite spots when you stop chasing what everyone else is seeing. And more importantly, what looks aesthetic in a photo. It’s also the first trip where I’m very behind on sharing photos and videos, mostly because I was actually living the experience instead of documenting it. My camera roll, however, is completely full and will be making an appearance soon.
For me personally, there’s nothing more stressful than crowds and the chaotic energy that comes with them - especially when everyone is gathered around a single “Instagram spot.” If waking up early, walking a little further, or choosing somewhere slightly less ‘viral’ means avoiding that, I’ll take that option every time.
Social media is an incredible tool for travel inspiration. But the best experiences rarely come from following the exact same map as everyone else.
My hard lesson learnt is that sometimes you have to ditch the over-curated itinerary to rediscover the meaning of a hidden gem.
Until next Sunday,
Tahlia