Top 26+ Cool Things People Came Across While Traveling Abroad
- #1: A Cruelty-Free Circus
- #3: Tourist Lines
- #4: A Cheesy Machine
- #6: EscalatedTravel
- #7: Rest Your Feet
- #9: Beach Access for All
- #10: Northern Lights Alarm
- #12: The Writing Is on the Wall
- #13: Make It to Your Gate in Time (and in Style)
- #15: Tireless Tires
- #16: Sardine Paradise
- #18: Pedal Power
- #19: Personalized Pens
- #21: Gas Station Tunes
- #22: Bus Breaks
- #24: A Dessert Diet
- #25: Wine O’clock

Trips to different countries are always eye-opening; a chance to see new things and experience the world from different angles. While there’s no place like home, it’s always interesting to see how other people live their lives and what other places have to offer. People took to the Internet to share some of the coolest and most amazing things they’ve seen on trips abroad, and here’s a selection of the interesting things they came up with.
#1: A Cruelty-Free Circus

It’s the twenty-first Century, and most countries have done away with the live animals that used to attract big crowds to circuses. Yet, whereas in most countries, circuses have just carried on without animals entirely, people in Germany thought of a more creative solution. Their circus still has lions, elephants, and bears performing tricks – in hologram form.
#3: Tourist Lines

If you’re the kind of tourist who spends hours standing in the street poring over maps, then maybe you should take a trip to the city of Hull in Quebec. There the pavements are painted with helpful lines that you can follow to be easily guided to important sites and tourist destinations.
#4: A Cheesy Machine

I don’t know if you ever find yourself wishing that there was a vending machine filled with cheese nearby but maybe it’s the kind of thing that’s more likely to happen if you’re in a mountain village in the middle of the Swiss Alps. They have vending machines where you can slip in a few coins and get as much as half a wheel of your favorite Swiss cheese.
#6: EscalatedTravel

Ever planned a day walking around a foreign city from attraction to attraction, only to find that what seemed like short distances on the map are actually long uphill climbs? In Lisbon, Portugal, they thought about this; the city’s seven hills feature open-air escalators to make it easier for both tourists and residents to travel around the neighborhoods.
#7: Rest Your Feet

It’d be a pretty considerate move in any city to add footrests to park benches, inviting tired walkers to rest their feet. Yet in Icelandic cities where such footrests have been installed, there’s an added necessity, elevating one’s feet above the carpet of snow that often covers the cobblestones below.
#9: Beach Access for All

Many able-bodied people have never contemplated the specific difficulties that wheelchair users face on the beach, but negotiating sand in a wheelchair isn’t particularly easy. That’s why in Zadar, Croatia, they created a special ramp that allows anyone in a wheelchair barrier-free access to the sea, straight into the water.
#10: Northern Lights Alarm

I haven’t done it myself but I’m told seeing the Aurora Borealis in Iceland is one incredible experience. The only thing is that it usually happens in the middle of the night and you can’t know in advance. So many hotels in Iceland have buttons to press on the phone to indicate you want to be woken if the Northern Lights appear.
#12: The Writing Is on the Wall

Before we had GPS locators on our phones, you’d walk around new places with a paper map in your hand, and before that, we drew our maps on the walls of caves. So if you want to feel as if you’ve travelled back in time, you can stay in this hotel room that has a map of the city on the wall. Spend your nights memorizing it.
#13: Make It to Your Gate in Time (and in Style)

Singapore airport must be one of the more exciting ones, with a butterfly and a movie theater to keep you occupied during those long connections. Yet an even more unique feature may be these metal slides situated at a select few gates, allowing you to slide down to your flight in style.
#15: Tireless Tires

Advanced cities have rentable bikes. Truly advanced cities have rentable bikes with airless wheels. You heard me, in Singapore you can rent a bike to make your way around the city and you don’t need to worry about punctures or pumps at all, the airless wheels will keep you moving.
#16: Sardine Paradise

Anyone who’s been to the city of Porto in Portugal knows that for lovers of sardines, it’s basically like being a kid in a candy store. But this one specialty shop takes that idea a few steps further as it’s quite literally designed in the style of a candy store. A niche one.
#18: Pedal Power

Continuing on the path of being the world’s most innovative air traffic hub, Singapore Airport decided to kill two birds with one stone. With these special bikes, travelers can charge their phones using the energy they generate from pedaling. Not only do you get battery life, you also get some exercise.
#19: Personalized Pens

Have you ever looked at a pen and thought “Wow, I really wish I could build my own one of these”? Neither have I, but there must be a lot of people out there who have because this store in Korea has opened up a stall where you can build and customize your pen from A-Z.
#21: Gas Station Tunes

Renting a car to drive through a different country when you’re not so familiar with the roads can be a bit of a daunting experience, especially if you don’t understand the language on the signs. Yet, a selection of music to listen to while we refuel – such as the one featured at this gas station in Switzerland – can be just the thing to calm you down.
#22: Bus Breaks

You know when you see a bus that isn’t traveling and you don’t understand why, and you feel a mixture of confusion, boredom, and annoyance? Well, the bus service in Germany decided to help with the confusion part, allowing drivers to project a coffee icon on the side of their bus when they’re taking a much-needed break.
#24: A Dessert Diet

If vegan-only fast food isn’t your thing, then maybe desserts-only is? Even if their motivation isn’t saving the planet, there must be people who subscribe to this diet. They’ll feel right at home at these dessert-only McDonald’s stands that can be found all around South and Central America. Why they don’t have them here, I have no idea.
#25: Wine O’clock

Did you know there are wine vending machines in Austria? We think this concept should be adopted worldwide. That way, you’d never have to find yourself in an emergency requiring wine and nowhere to get it. Headed to a dinner party and there’s no liquor store around? No problem. This wine vending machine has got you covered. Feeling like you need a pick-me-up? This wine vending machine is there for you.