15 Tourist Traps And Scams (And How To Avoid Them)
When you're traveling, tourist traps are a fact of life. They're not all bad, but let's be honest, they're mostly terrible. Luckily, well-traveled souls have been very generous in sharing their tips on how to avoid tourist traps.
- 1486 VOTES
Paying To See The Sphinx
From Redditor u/they_were_taken:
At the pyramids in Egypt, people with fake badges will tell you that you are required to pay them extra to see the Sphinx. It's included with your park ticket.
- 2490 VOTES
Selling Staten Island Ferry Tickets
From Redditor u/Aceofkings9:
PSA: The Staten Island Ferry is FREE. If people are trying to charge you for tickets, they're [swindlers]. If you're traveling to New York, it's worth visiting for the views, especially considering the cost or lack thereof.
- 3363 VOTES
Don't Touch The Merchandise
From Redditor u/SalemScout:
Never let a street seller hand you anything. They won't take it back. Once it is in your hands, they consider it sold and will bully or threaten you until you give them money.
- 4701 VOTES
Paying For Food You Didn't Want
From Redditor u/kattspraak:
Had this in Portugal at a restaurant... They had tiger prawns on the appetizer menu and noticed they were expensive. The restaurant first brought out olives as we were browsing, then we ordered and 5 minutes later they came out with bread, something else, and these prawns - all of which we did not order. I asked if it was just for the table since we didn't order them and got them to admit that no, they were not free. They just put food on our table hoping we'd touch it and be charged a huge amount. Luckily we didn't touch them and after some discussion, they got taken away. I was so mad.
- 5319 VOTES
Unlicensed Cabs
From Redditor u/philliamm96:
Unlicensed cabs: Always always use a registered company, especially for safety, nevermind financially.
A lot of countries have [an] Uber equivalent... The Philippines has... [G]rab, Bali has Blue Bird...
- 6417 VOTES
Going To The Club With Strangers
From Redditor u/LOC98:
I went to London with my friends for the weekend while I was still at uni. We wanted to go to a certain nightclub in London so we pulled up google maps and were discussing the club. A local man (early 20s) overheard us and offered to bring us there. We were cautious and stayed a bit behind him while he walked us through the streets. He brought us to the nightclub and we thanked him profusely. We joined the queue and on entry had to pay £15. While paying we noticed this man had taken a few more girls to the club and winked at the doorman.
Later in the club, we were chatting with locals that were bewildered we paid £15 on entry. Apparently, the club had no entry fee.