I think it's really good to hold alternate coins that are already tested through times. If you know what i am saying, then just look at the market and see the top alternate coins listed in there. You can start looking at number 2 down to number 20. 
Yes, you're right, because until so far they have been able to survive for quite a long time even though the price has deviated further and further, this means that their popularity has proven to be reliable and worthy of being our investment asset. However, I am personally more interested in the abilities of Ethereum, EOS, Litecoin, Monero and XRP, because the people behind them have high credibility and a good reputation, so their popularity's undoubted.