5 destinations that became popular unexpectedly

Not every famous place was carefully marketed or designed to become a global attraction. A few places gained notoriety due to accidents, missteps, inadvertent publicity or serendipitous history. From serendipitous towns renamed for no reason to competitions directly caused by news events and dictated by human error, these destinations didn’t so much rise to fame as find themselves universally known almost entirely inadvertently — and then keep it up.

A city in northwest Morocco, it is known for its buildings painted with different shades of blue that have led to the nickname “Blue City.” Situated in the Rif mountains, between Tétouan and Ouazzane, it was founded by Moulay Ali Ben Rachid al Zarkaze.as a large stronghold to resist the Portuguese occupation of the north. It was later home to Andalusi Muslims and Sephardi Jews who arrived after the Reconquista, influencing its culture and architecture. Chefchaouen's alleyways, doorways and squares still display the strong influence of Andalusia even to this day in both its urban layout and its music.
It was only in the last few decades that travelers and photographers helped turn Chefchaouen into a social-media sensation, transforming what had been a more modest, sleepy mountain town into one of Morocco’s busiest destinations — with none of the original intentions to be a hub for tourism.

Times Square was never intended to become an entertainment capital. Originally a horse carriage district known as Longacre Square, the area was renamed in 1904 after The Times moved its headquarters to the intersection. Its makeover started in 1904 when The New York Times relocated its headquarters there, leading the city to change the neighborhood’s name. Electric billboards, originally thought to be excessive and causing chaos crowd-wise, appeared over time to draw a crowd than send it fleeing. Gradually, organically, the raw commotion and sensual cacophony that planners had sought to master became. Today it is one of the most visited urban spaces on earth.

Petra, which was established by the Nabataeans over 2,000 years ago and then abandoned centuries ago only to be largely forgotten by the outside world. It was brought to the attention of the world again in 1812 when Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt, disguised as an Arab traveller, came upon the ruins while looking for an entirely different site. His serendipitous discovery brought Petra to the attention of the Western world. The city’s popularity rose by archaeology, not via promotional tourism campaigns, eventually gaining UNESCO World Heritage recognition and now serving as Jordan’s most visited site, all due to an accidental trip.

North Pole started out as something other than a seasonal winter wonderland. It was first built for industrial use near Fairbanks in the 1950s. A toy-maker named Santa Claus House set up shop nearby to draw business, and the name ‘North Pole’ was picked for its holiday ring rather than because it was thought of as a tourism -mecca-to-be. Letters to Santa, though, unexpectedly came in from across the globe, and so the town went with it. Nowadays North Pole is famous world wide for having Christmas all year round - something that was never intended by its founders.

Pompeii is one of those places that’s famous not for what it was, but for how it died. Mount Vesuvius erupted in AD 79, burying the Roman city under a thick layer of volcanic ash. For centuries, its whereabouts was unknown. Preserved streets and buildings were accidentally discovered during the excavation process in the 18th century while a majority of houses had been built over due to other purposes. The human remains were so well preserved they sent a shiver down our spines. Pompeii rose to become one of the most important archaeological sites in the world, providing a unique window into ancient Roman life, uncovered by accident, and preserved through disaster.