Meanings
- idiomaticIn or to a place or places not commonly visited.
The Manifold Valley is on the borders of Staffordshire and Derbyshire, very much off the beaten track and somewhat difficult of access.
1945 September and October, H. C. Casserley, “The Leek & Manifold Valley Light Railway”, in Railway Magazine, page 2633 more examples
From Nikko northwards my route was altogether off the beaten track, and had never been traversed in its entirety by any European. I lived among the Japanese, and saw their mode of living in regions unaffected by European contact.
1881, Annual Register, page 4171970, Bohdan S. Wynar and Anna Grace Patterson, American Reference Books Annual, D. A Rothschild, Libraries Unlimited Inc., p. 235, It is not the author's purpose to dwell on famous attractions, but rather to go off the beaten track, and frequently the tourist is encouraged to leave the car and explore the surrounding country on foot.
The search for authenticity arguably motivates backpackers to travel off the beaten track in search of areas not yet contaminated by tourists or other backpackers.
2004, Greg Richards, Julie Wilson, The Global Nomad: Backpacker Travel in Theory and Practice, page 140Synonyms: off the beaten path
Synonyms & antonyms
prepositional phraseIn or to a place or places not commonly visited.
More synonyms by meaning
adjectiveremote from populous or much-traveled regions
adverbnot along the usual route
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Translations
Finnish syrjässä
- syrjässäTranslations
French hors des sentiers battus
- hors des sentiers battusTranslations
Polish na uboczu
- na uboczuTranslations
Spanish a campo través, a campo traviesa
- a campo travésTranslations
- a campo traviesaTranslations
- a campo traviesoTranslations
Cite this entry
off the beaten track. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/off%20the%20beaten%20track
“off the beaten track.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/off%20the%20beaten%20track. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “off the beaten track,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/off%20the%20beaten%20track.
Source: off the beaten track on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.