Ah, the joy of the grind. At least the World of Warcraft is a big place, so there's plenty of alternatives when you need a change of scene. That just doesn't mean different quests or new gear, it also means discovering new zones.

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The following zones were chosen based on location, travel options, and quest variety. Some places are more of a challenge to level in than others, but maybe that's your thing, so don't let this list keep you from exploring every corner of Azeroth.

10 Worst: Hillsbrad Foothills

Via: forum.nostalrius.org

Even if you're into PVP, Hillsbrad will eventually get on your last nerve. If you want to level quickly, without a lot of distractions, this might not be the zone for you. It's got a lot of great quests, lore, and locations, which are all advantages, but you can only enjoy that if you can get out of Southshore or Tarren Mill without running into a raid. The flight masters spend more time dead than alive. The two opposing factions have cities very close to each other here, perhaps closer than any other zone, and that makes raiding a fact of life. Since this is also a lower level area, high-level players come to the zone just to gank lowbies, which can put a dent in your questing.

9 Best: Darkshore

Darkshore often gets overlooked due to location, but it's a perfect place to level, at least if you're an Alliance character. It's not just the relatively safe location north of Ashenvale or the convenient transportation options in Auberdine that allow players to avoid the Barrens entirely, it's also the rich lore and gloomy atmosphere. Yes, that is actually an Old God with a sword sticking out of its head, and players travel to see this like it's a tourist attraction. There's a lot more PVP action in contested Ashenvale nearby, but that's the only zone directly connected by land to Darkshore.

8 Worst: The Barrens

This one really is a matter of opinion, as plenty of players enjoy the sprawling landscape and wacky conversations. True, it might be fun for a while, but a few levels in and you never want to see The Crossroads again. Players at this level don't have mounts, so you spend a lot of time just running. Classes with speed buffs and special travel forms, like Hunters or Druids, will probably enjoy the Barrens more than most but it's slow going for others. High-level characters visit the zone for Deviate Fish and the occasional raid.

7 Best: The Wetlands

Another zone that gets overlooked because of the awkward location, most players just run through the Wetlands on their way to Dun Murogh. They also tend to avoid the northern border of the zone, which leads to the higher-level zone of the Arathi Highlands. That means the zone is fairly empty, so you can level in peace and enjoy the landscape, resources, and lore. The Wetlands has dwarf ruins, dragons, even a tribe of wayward orcs that are hostile to both factions. It's easy to get here via Menethil Harbour even if you're on the other continent, another big plus.

6 Worst: Stranglethorn Vale

Oh, you thought Hillsbrad was a pain in the neck? Welcome to Stranglethorn Vale, also known as Gankerville, PVP Funland, or the Jungle of Pain. Even the boat from Ratchet to Booty Bay is a death trap. Whatever you call it, don't expect the leveling process to go smoothly here. There are some things that make STV more bearable than Hillsbrad, like the huge variety of exciting quests, filled with drama and lore, and the high-level trainers for a variety of professions. The tropical landscape makes it a bit easier to hide and is full of rare and valuable resources. Too bad you're so busy getting corpse-camped that you can barely enjoy it.

5 Best: Duskwood

The Alliance answer to Tirisfal Glades, Duskwood is filled with interesting stories and mysterious places, plus it's small and sheltered by neighboring Alliance zones. Horde players visit to go exploring or visit the secret vendor in the Raven Hill cemetery, but raids or corpse-camping hardly ever happens, so you can level without looking over your shoulder.

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The famous quest chain "The Hermit" starts in this zone, and it's one of the few quest chains available to low-level players. You get to travel around the zone, learn about the lore and people, and finally unleash a hideous abomination on the unsuspecting townsfolk at the end.

4 Worst: Thousand Needles

Thousand Needles was always dull and isolated. Filling it with water in the Cataclysm expansion didn't do much to improve it, either. Travel in the zone was always difficult for a number of reasons. The geography is boring, with the same features throughout, which makes it easy to get lost so you have to check your map constantly. There's barely any vegetation or water and everything is the same dull brown or sickly red color. You know a zone is awful when the hazy dry lake filled with scorpions on the southern end is a welcome feature. Most players run through fairly quickly on the way to the much more interesting zone of Tanaris.

3 Best: Westfall

Not everyone likes this zone, and it has its drawbacks. The wide-open fields make travel easy but they don't have a lot of variety and its location is fairly obscure, on the far western corner of the Alliance zones in the Eastern Kingdoms. It's a good place to level, however, partly because it's a peaceful zone in a sheltered area, it's easy to find your way around the open landscape, and there's a lot of interesting lore to enjoy. Deadmines, one of the best lowbie dungeons of the game, is located in this zone.

2 Worst: Desolace

This is one of the few zones that actually was improved by the ravages of Cataclysm. The zone was essentially restored to the time before Princess Theradras drained it of life and settled in Maraudon, but in Classic it's still, well, a desolate area. It's the same grey color throughout most of the interior with little more than buzzards and bones as defining features. It's also really big, with few settlements or flight paths, making it a slog to run through and not very accessible. It's especially depressing to run into the place from the neighboring zones of Feralas and the Stonetalon Mountains, which are actually quite beautiful.

1 Best: Silverpine Forest

A zone sandwiched between Tirisfal Glades and Hillsbrad Foothills, Silverpine Forest is everything zones like Desolace and The Barrens are not. It's much more common for Horde players to level here, but with Shadowfang Keep and the Greymane Wall nearby, there are also a few things for Alliance players to do as well. It's on the small side, with a centrally located settlement and flight path, and it's not just for lowbies. The western half of the zone is for teens, but the dungeon is for players in their 20s. The eastern shore of Lorderon Lake (technically in Hillsbrad but much easier to get to from Silverpine) is for players in their 30s or 40s.

NEXT: Classic WoW: 10 Great Things About Level 40