Yes, I’m one of those people that got a tattoo which now has no real meaning for me. I want to cover it up with a larger tattoo, but it may not integrate well with what I have in mind. So I’m thinking about going through what I understand is a painful, expensive, and not necessarily satisfactory process to get the tattoo removed altogether.
What can you guys tell me from your own experiences?
There are sites that show tattoo removal pictures. I suggest you look a few up and see what they say. What I’ve seen is very nasty.
Cheese grater? 
If it is someone’s name or something just get it removed completely. If if can be built into a larger design that would have some meaning you may want to go that route instead.
Well… there might be some merit in having a tattoo you intend to cover with something else removed as much as possible first. I’d suggest contacting both a dermatologist with some experience in tattoo removal to get an idea of what can or can’t be done with your current tattoo, and consulting a tattoo artist to figure out what is practical to do in the way of covering the result.
It depends on a lot of factors. The color of your tattoo, certain colors are much harder to remove than others. I have read yellow is hard to remove. The type of skin you have comes into play as well. The darker skinned you are the harder it is to remove.
Fortunately now they have tattoo ink that is specially made to dissolve quicker when it gets hit by a laser. Of course “real” tattoo artists decry that ink but it looks the same, is permanent, and allows one to change their mind later on.
Have you considered what you will do when the larger tattoo used to cover the smaller tattoo also comes to have no meaning for you?
Talk to a good tattoo artist, they can cover up anything. I had something that was just was a thick black line covered up with solid orange, you can’t even see the old one.
NONONONO. Go to a good tattoo artist. A really good one can work wonders with an old tattoo. The laser removal is very painful and takes forever [only reason I know is I overheard the conversation at my dermatologist’s office awhile back].
Bite the bullet and get the laser removal. It’s the only way to be sure.
Just a few points of reference in order to address some of the issues raised.
The symbols on my left upper shoulder are the kanji for sun and moon. They were done in black ink. I am black myself, though I am not incredibly dark-skinned. Yes, I suppose it is possible that my idea for a new tattoo could become meaningless down the line. My plan is to have something that commemorates conquering my fear of flying. It’s certainly possible that I could re-develop that fear somewhere down the line, but I’m willing to take that chance.
Perusing a local tattoo shop’s book of cover-ups, I saw one where a girl’s name was covered up by a dolphin or something, and the guy had another girl’s name tattooed beneath it.
Better than this option, I suspect. 
If you go the cover-up route, make sure you look at some of the artist’s work. Anyone can cover an old tattoo with a big eight ball. Artistic cover ups require. . .artistry.
I’ve seen some pretty good coverups and some not so great ones. Depending upon your geographic area, your aesthetic interests and your budget, you may be able to find a great artist in your area from suggestions. If you were in the Orlando area, I’d have an artist recommendation for you, but I’m not familiar with artists in other areas.
I saw what you did there.
My sister had a tattoo of her husband’s name – Ron. After they divorced, she was trying to figure out what to do about the tattoo. I suggested several ways it could be altered – “moron” or “ironic,” for example, but, for some reason, she didn’t go for those.
She instead designed a Joan Miró-esque tattoo to cover the other one. It did the trick.
