The founder of the renowned travel guide Lonely Planet, Tony Wheeler, has shared a list of destinations he would prefer not to revisit, and Bali is among them. In a personal blog post entitled “I’m Not Going There Anymore”, published on Thursday, 24 April 2025, the 78-year-old travel writer explained his reasons for avoiding certain places, despite their global popularity.
Wheeler clarified that while Bali remains a beautiful and culturally rich destination, the increasingly severe traffic congestion has made travel around the island too time-consuming and frustrating.
“Until they fix the senseless congestion, I don’t want to go back,” he wrote.
Although he acknowledged Bali’s positive aspects, he added:
“Bali has great places to stay, great art and dance, great food, great shopping, but I don’t want to spend another two hours of my life travelling between the coastal strip of Kuta and Ubud.”
Wheeler did, however, allow for the possibility of returning if a compelling reason presented itself.
“There are so many good things about that Indonesian island, and I just attended a great travel writer’s reunion there,” he added. “But until they fix the ridiculous traffic, I don’t want to go back, unless there’s a really good reason to drag me there.”
He also shared a nostalgic photo of himself from 1999, planting rice seeds with local farmers in Bali.
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Bali Governor Responds to Wheeler’s Criticism
Governor of Bali, I Wayan Koster, responded to Wheeler’s concerns by noting that traffic congestion is not an issue across the entire island.
“It could be like that, coming to a place of traffic jams, even though there are still many locations in Bali that are not jammed,” he told Tribun Bali.
Koster acknowledged the congestion in certain areas and promised that improvements would be made.
“One solution is to build a road,” he said. However, he also cautioned that such infrastructure projects require planning, land acquisition, and a considerable budget.
“There must be studies, land acquisition, and the budget is also not small,” he explained.
Other Places Wheeler Chooses to Avoid
In addition to Bali, Tony Wheeler listed Russia, Saudi Arabia, and the United States as countries he would not willingly return to.
Regarding Russia, he stated:
“I will not return to Russia, as long as they ally with North Korea and the United States to attack Ukraine, and as long as Putin continues to kill innocent people.” He added, “Of course there are a lot of Ukrainian deaths, but there were also 27 Australians among the 298 innocent passengers and crew on Malaysia Airlines MH17 that was shot down by Putin’s men in 2014.”
Wheeler cited human rights concerns in Saudi Arabia, referencing the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and reports of violence against East African domestic workers.
“Or on my own trip to Somaliland in 2022, I found cheetahs rescued from being shipped to Saudi Arabia to be kept as pets, and then killed when they grew too big. Who knew Somaliland had cheetahs? Who was so stupid to think they might make good pets? Saudi Arabia? No thanks.”
Tony Wheeler also expressed disillusionment with the United States, where he last visited in December 2024 after Donald Trump’s re-election.
“I ticked off states (in the US) until I had visited all 50,” he wrote, implying a sense of closure regarding travel there.
Cover: Rico Shen_Wikimedia Commons
