The people behind the picks
About TheCantMiss
Built by Emily.
TheCantMiss started as a personal obsession — a running list of the experiences that genuinely changed how I see the world. I'm Emily, and I've traveled to 75+ countries, lived across the U.S., Europe, and Asia, and spent years figuring out what's actually worth your time, money, and vacation days. No filler, no sponsored rankings. Every adventure on this site is something I'd book again without hesitation.
Some of those adventures stay with you forever. Camping overnight on a forbidden section of the Great Wall of China with my parents — no crowds, no tourists, just the wall stretching into the mountains as the sun went down. Swimming with penguins and curious sea lions in the Galápagos, where the wildlife has no fear of humans and will swim straight up to your mask. Completing one of the most dangerous hikes in the world on the cliffs above Machu Picchu, with a sheer drop on one side and the Inca citadel spread out below. Getting completely soaked in the world's largest water fight at Songkran in Thailand, surrounded by thousands of strangers who are all, inexplicably, your best friends for the day. These are the kinds of stories that last a lifetime — and they're the standard every guide on this site is held to.
I built TheCantMiss because the travel recommendations that exist online are overwhelmingly shaped by commission structures, sponsored content, and SEO chasing rather than genuine experience. The vast majority of destinations on this site are places I've personally visited — and a handful are ones I'm actively planning, researched to the same standard. No one has ever paid to appear here.
Every destination guide on this site is built around the same question: if a friend was visiting this place for the first time, what would I tell them not to miss? Not what's most Instagrammed. Not what pays the highest affiliate commission. What is genuinely exceptional — the experience that makes the trip.
That standard means some famous attractions make the list and some don't. It means obscure experiences that most travel sites ignore sometimes take centre stage. It means the hotel recommendations are places worth the money, not places with the best referral rate. And it means the itineraries are built around how real trips actually work — with travel time, energy levels, and genuine priorities — rather than how many nights a booking platform wants you to stay somewhere.
The goal is simple: help you have a better trip than you would have had without this site.
