30 People Are Sharing The Worst Tourist Attractions In Europe That Are 100% Not Worth The Hype
Nothing can ruin your holiday mood as much as becoming a victim of scammers. And they seem to be everywhere, in the history-old streets of Florence, the love city of Paris, the city of double-decker buses, and the city that never sleeps, the list is endless. And although there’s not much that we can do about it, we can arm ourselves with knowledge which, trust me, goes a long way.
So when someone asked Europeans “What are some major tourist traps in your country/region and what precautions can you take to avoid them?” on the AskEurope subreddit, it immediately turned into a read worth bookmarking.
From running away from Heathrow Express in London that costs an arm and a leg, to torture museums in Tuscany that will only torment you financially, these are some of the useful tips about avoiding the notorious red flags and plain tourist traps in order to keep your dignity, bank balance and high spirits with you.
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The Mona Lisa in Louvre in Paris. It's just a small painting hanging quite far away in a really crowded room full of tourists. Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful, iconic painting, but it's not worth visiting the Louvre only for the Mona Lisa. The majority of the other artworks in that museum are more impressive than the Mona Lisa.
I imagine that of you chose to go to a museum like "de Louvre" you're NOT ONLY going for the Monalisa the whole Museum has pieces of several French and other worldwide known painters as well as sculptures and many fixed and itinerant galleries
Greece is filled to the brim with islands, you don't have to spend a fortune on Santorini and Mykonos, there are literally thousands of islands just as good as those and you'll pay 1/5th of the price with just a fraction of the tourists.
I visited Santorini 20 years ago (and many other islands) and I don't agree that they are all the same and can just be interchanged... The view of the volcano/bay is something else. But I do get how there is probably nothing to enjoy these days if it got any busier than back then. That's the whole paradox, these are interesting and beautiful places, but they're not built for so many visitors. But all the islands in Greece cannot accomadate for everyone wanting to visit it anyway.
Tourist scams are not the prettiest side of traveling in Europe, but the more we know about them, the more prepared we can be. One such local from Brussels, Belgium, redditor Gregyoupie, shared a very useful tip in response to the thread saying: “In Brussels, avoid at all cost a neighborhood around a street named 'Rue Des Bouchers/ Beenhouwersstraat'. All tourists think it's a maze of cute pedestrian streets, but actually you will find the worst restaurants of the town there, with all typical red flags (photos on menus in 12 languages and waiters hailing you in a sort of Esperanto).”
According to Gregyoupie, money is the driving force of tourist scams. “Restaurants and tourist places in general are difficult businesses to manage, with high staff costs, a lot of unpredictability and a lot of competition. So making easy money with the least effort is tempting,” the local from Belgium shared his views with Bored Panda in an interview.
Romeo and Juliet's balcony in Verona. Like, 10,000 people all crammed into this tiny alleyway just to see a balcony that I found out was built after the play was written.
In Brussels , avoid at all cost a neighborhood around a street named "rue des bouchers/beenhouwersstraat". All tourists think it's a maze of cute pedestrian streets, but actually you will find the WORST restaurants of the town there, with all typical red flags (photos on menus in 12 languages and waiters hailing you in a sort of Esperanto).
Typical scam: they advertise on boards "Belgian menu - Belgian beefsteak with a Belgian beer for 15 euro". Then when you order it, it will always be "aaaah, we're sorry, we are out of Belgian beefsteak. But you can have maybe the Belgian mussels on the menu, that's our special too" - and guess what, they are much more expensive, and horrendous.
A couple of years ago, I was invited in last minute by foreign colleagues in a restaurant there, and it was worse than what I had imagined. They did not realize that I was actually a local (we were a fairly large group, and we spoke English), and I called them out when they tried to bullsh*t a colleague on how an (expensive) Belgian beer should be served. The Pikachu face by the waiter was priceless.
This ! But there are a few very good restaurants in (or very near) the historic centre of Bruxelles. Try the "Nüetnigenough", "Le marmiton" or "Fin de siècle". And for the fries, you can go to the very obvious "Fritland" just next to "La Bourse", or walk 100 meter to the even more delicious and less touristy "Friterie Tabora".
In Spain, if a restaurant is serving lunch at noon, chances are it's a tourist trap. Here we eat lunch between 2:30 and 4 pm. As a rule of thumb, look for locals. If no locals are eating there, avoid it.
The advice "avoid restaurants that don't have locals" is a very good advice for anywhere in the world! But i find the first part stupid!! In Greece we also eat lunch around 14.00 however if someone wants to eat earlier they can certainly do it!! What does it mean if they serve lunch? The other restaurants are closed at noon?
Gregyoupie also believes that “the reason why Europe is full of tourist traps has to do with the fact that the continent is very diverse, with different languages, habits, cultures, etc. So when Europeans travel across Europe, they will be a bit out of their comfort zone, even if it's not that far on a map, and this is where I think people are most vulnerable: you are away from your home, in another culture, surrounded sometimes by a language you barely understand.”
He added that at that point, it is then a very human and normal thing to seek easy solutions: “and this is where scammers are very good at picking that up and scamming you: they try to speak your language, gain your trust and pretend they will help you. These people are very good at selecting their targets.”
In Spain, walk away from any restaurants that serve paella for dinner. We only eat paella at lunch, folks, and that is a sign of a tourist trap. And if there are photos of the food out front, that's a bad sign.
I think that "do not eat in restaurants that are really close to monuments" and "do not eat in restaurants that have a menu in more than 2 languages" is globally sound advice.
Italy specific: (as I was saying a few days ago in another thread) if your trip plan has more than 2 days in Venice and/or more than half a day in Pisa, use that extra time in other cities instead.
Venice in particular: overpriced as F**K. Don't plan on doing your shopping there, don't plan on eating out in fancy restaurants. DO NOT order fish or seafood a la carte - there have been a lot of cases of restaurants trying to scam tourists for hundreds of euros because in fine print the menu says the price is per 100g, not per plate.
Venice is so expensive that just walking on the pavement shakes the cash out of your pockets.
The Oktoberfest. Or generally thinking that traveling to Bavaria means having been to Germany. It's like going to Texas.
Anything Bavarian outside of Bavaria. Seriously the Hofbräuhaus in Berlin is a tourist trap. Sure the beer is good, but it's hard to get sh*tty beer in Germany anyway. Skip the Hofbräuhaus in Munich as well and travel to one of the smaller cities in Bavaria. From experience I'd suggest going to the Allgäu. There's a brewery in every village on average. I'm sure Bavarians will chime in.
Avoid Munich is what I'm trying to say (though it does have great museums).
If you must go to Bavaria, be aware that Schloß Neuschwanstein is not an old castle but from the 19th century. It is stupid beautiful though and I wouldn't fault anyone from going there.
Something closer to home: large flea markets in Berlin, especially the one at the Mauerpark. It's a hipster, expat, and tourist trap. Oh and most restaurants close to famous sights are also overpriced.
Everytime I pass that ridiculous Hofbräuhaus in Berlin, I shake my head. It's like walking past a rodeo full of cowboys in the middle of New York.
The Redditor who has also traveled out of Europe said that the amount of scams is not unique to Europe. “I guess there are two things to do; first, be prepared, read up on your destination, tourist guides will warn readers on the most common scams and second, always keep a critical eye,” Gregyoupie said and added that “if something is too good to be true, it probably isn’t true.”
Temple Bar in Dublin is massively overpriced. Thankfully there's countless other pubs in the city, many of them even within walking distance.
Of course it's overpriced-it's a very well known tourist area. It is 100% worth at least one visit though. The staff is very friendly (gave my husband and I a few free drinks and were talkative even though they were busy) and the talent playing there is a joy to hear. I do prefer less busy pubs but the ambiance of this place is worth it (in my opinion).
The red light district of central amsterdam. The novelty of gyrating women in windows soon wears off, there's no comfortable place to chill out, lary groups of men everywhere, it all just feels a bit seedy. Especially at night. Plenty of lovely places to see in the rest of Amsterdam.
Do not go to a restaurant near touristic attractions in Paris. You will likely eat frozen food at an absurd high price.
Gregyoupie also shared an incident from a tourist trap cafe in his home town of Brussels that happened to him. “I was sitting in front of a foreign colleague, he wanted to try a strong Belgian beer and had chosen one sold in a large bottle, too large for one person. I said we could share it (no problem with that, that is common practice for such big bottles),” he recounted.
The Brussels local continued: “But in Belgian beer culture, just like for wine, you have different types of glasses for different kinds of beer (and yes, it does matter, the shape really gives a different flavor because of how the oxygen touches the surface, etc.). For major beer brands (like that one we were having), decent bars should serve it in a glass made for that brand, with the logo on it. It sounds silly, I know... but serving beer A in a glass with a logo of beer B is akin to a mortal sin…”
“Now, my colleague ordered that bottle, and the waiter brought it without the glasses. My colleague was closer to the waiter, so he asked him for two glasses... and the waiter answered we should drink it out of the small wine glasses that were set on the table. This is totally unacceptable... In Belgium, the country of beer?”
Poland. Girls with umbrellas. Avoid pretty, young girls with pink umbrellas in many popular tourist destinations in many cities. They will invite you to a strip club, where they will offer you the first drink for free, which will get you intoxicated and then rob you of your cash (credit card money too).
It's very kind of them to all use a pink umbrella so we can recognize them !
In England and Scotland (York, Edinburgh, London are the ones that spring to mind) there are these shops selling Harry Potter memorabilia, the shops are made out to look very oldy worldy but I can completely guarantee you that it is a total facade, unauthentic tourist trap selling overpriced tat
In Paris, don't pay to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower. You'll be shelling out 25€ and waiting when you can get the same view for free from the roof of Printemps Haussmann department store.
I kind of disagree... The view from the rooftop of Printemps Haussmann may be nice, it's still like 250 meters below the top of the Eiffel Tower. I agree on the fact that it's expensive, and you'll surely have to wait a more or less long time to get there. But come on, it's still pretty unique. Anyway, I don't regret doing it one bit.
agree. Got to the the montparnasse tower observatory, cheaper, less tourists, 209 m tall, not bad :)
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Still worth doing at least once if you are a tourist. That photo is great too.
Terrible advices over and over... Want to know the secret: go directly to the top floor, stay there for a while and contemplate the view.... Then go down, and you will see how the top is way better than the middle ones... Most people goes to the middle, see from there and then they go to the top... Your brain is already used to the view and height, it won't feel so much difference that way
That's actually some fantastic advice, Mike: If I was swiftly transported to the top of a Himalayan mountain, I would have my mind blown better than if I struggled up to the top eventually. Also, being tired of climbing is a buzzkill.
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Tip: when you go up the Eiffel Tower, take the stairs for the first part. You will save money, save waiting time, have a workout and then you only have a short line for the lift to the top.
I thought they totally closed the stairs, didn't they ? I went to the second floor by stairs when I was 9, trying to count the steps 😆
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I'm not going all the way to Paris NOT to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower. What stupid advice
Well I've driven under the Eifel Tower (back when there was a through road beneath), but never went up it. Shame, as it is one of those things that I wish I could say I have done. It's a bit like going to Cairo and not visiting the pyramids.
yes, exactly so, let's say, you can go on the absolute top of the great pyramid, in exchange for 25 dollars.... and this advice here that we're comenting, is saying don;t pay to get on top of the pyramid, go to a store, and see the view from there
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I went to the top of the Eiffel Tower at night on a date with an amazing guy for my 21st birthday in 1985. It was absolutely *magic* then and it always will be to me! Pay the money and buy your tickets in advance online to go once. It’s worth it!
I would say something different: go to the top of the Sacre Coeur to get an amazing view of Paris that *includes* the Eiffel Tower. It only costs 5 euros (or at least that is what it cost the last time I went).
If you don't mind 237 steps, you go on top of the Sacré-Cœur in Montmartre for the best view of Paris, cheaper than the Eiffel Tower and few people know about it
Do go to the top, stunning, and there are some rooms with amazing wax figures with amazing stories.
The only reason to go to the top is to take an Instagram photo and boost how you went there...pro tip from my friend - an tour guide that went to Paris 400+ times, if you are trully interested in panorama, go to the top of Montparnasse tower, it's not so far away from Eiffel, much cheaper, less crowded and it's the tallest building in Europe, so yeap, much better view...
You have to be prepared to pay for an experience. Where else but Paris can you climb the Eiffel Tower? The view may be the same from the shop but but what do you tell people when you get home? I say Paris from a shop? Really!
Rubbish advice. Climbing the tower is a rite of passage for every tourist in the city. So I recommend it at least once. Are you really climbing for the view or for the entire experience itself? I did it when I visited back in 2009. I visited 4 times again after that and since I already crossed that experience off my list, I picked something else. I agree that the Montparnasee tower has a killer view too, and you get to see the Eiffel Tower as well from it. I recommend either their observational tower or their restaurant for the view. Restaurant is pricey but if you're on a budget (like I was) sit at the bar for a couple of drinks perhaps? It's great at evenings when the tower sparkles.
Imagine spending so much money to visit a city that has been the dream of many people to visit - maybe a once in a lifetime visit - and then not doing something that you’ve dreamt of doing since you were a little kid. 🤷
You cannot possibly get the same view from that building. It's less than half the height. The biggest issue with the Eiffel Tower is that it is heaving with people to the point where you will stand in line forever, squashed on the staircases and in the lifts, for hours and hours. Not for the faint-hearted.
It's sad. There are so many people in the world that there is a line going up the Eiffel Tower, all the time.
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I loved the top of la tour. The first time we went you could walk up the final flight to just under the light. The last time the stairway was blocked by champagne vendors. It was so disappointing.
I agree with this. I have been to Paris way more times than I can remember, and I would recomend, for the views, the terrace at Lafayette Department Store near Opera, the top area of Montmartre, and Montparnasse Tower.
Im french and never been on top of Eiffel Tower, crowded and overpriced.
To be honest i haven't visited the towers in my city but i always visit the towers abroad!! I think locals tend to not care about their monuments or visit them only with school!
Load More Replies...At that point, Gregyoupie had really had enough. “This is where I stood up and talked to the guy in French. I exaggerated my local accent so he understood I am a true local. He made this pikachu face. I told him something like 'hey, sorry, but I won't buy that. I am sure you have glasses for this brand. Or at least something more suitable than those cheap wine glasses.'” The waiter made a loud sigh and turned around.
“Then I saw the glasses I was expecting were behind him! He just did not want to do the effort of making a 180 turn and extending an arm,” the Redditor said about his experience in a scam cafe in Brussels where locals normally don’t go.
If you come to Portugal, my advice would be for you to avoid Albufeira at all costs!
Albufeira is nothing more than a british colony. You have british bars, british people, british food, etc.. I don't hold anything against them. But if you want to visit Portugal, you will get a completely wrong idea of what the country is about. A big big part of Algarve is like that. If you're coming to visit Algarve, try to avoid the bigger cities. I would recommend you to try Tavira, Aljezur or Sagres.
Visited Portugal once. We landed at Faro airport. A woman asked us, 'Where are you headed then?' and we replied, 'Just Faro.' She looked at us like we were mad. But we stayed in Faro for a week and enjoyed getting to know the town and the culture of the people. Nearby were tourist beaches full of drunk Brits. We avoided those and had a lovely time.
Throughout Italy, try to avoid restaurants on big, popular squares or near major tourist attractions. If the menu features multiple languages and/or photos of the food, that's another red flag. If there are waiters outside telling you to come eat, it's a universal sign that the restaurant in question is a tourist trap.
Surely this advice could be applied to virtually any tourist location across Europe? Or the world for that matter. Italy is not, I think, more culpable than anywhere else.
For Barcelona, avoid Las Ramblas. It's just a street filled with stereotyped shops that have nothing to do with us (Frozen paella places, Flamenco shops, overpriced stuff, etc.), us locals avoid them like the plague, and would never eat around a 1km radius around them, other streets are much nicer, such as Passeig de Lluís Companys or Carrer d'Enric Granados.
Also as an fyi: la Sagrada Família is barely a Gaudí building. He only completed one of the facades, so while nice, it's not really "his" building, and most of his other works are better and more representative of his style.
If buying fish and chips in a busy seaside town, go to a shop or cafe away from the seafront. In the quieter towns it doesn't matter as much, and the seafront ones can even be better, but you will get ripped off on the seafront in the busy towns.
If you want to ride the London Eye, go after sunset if possible.
If you want to see Stonehenge, combine it with a trip to Bath. It isn't worth seeing on its own.
York is less crowded and more atmospheric in the spring and autumn than in the summer.
If you're going hiking in the Lake District or any national park, dress in layers, take adequate supplies of water and snacks and wear decent boots. Many popular routes are harder than you think and dozens of people die every year in the Lake District in particular. It is also quite easy to get lost in the mist on moorland, so take the right equipment.
If visiting a major city at the weekend, check if there's a football match on, especially if it's a derby between local rivals. If you have to go near the football ground that day, check the time for 'kick off' and the match's end. You will be fine in terms of safety, but it will slow you down a lot and can sometimes be unpleasant depending on the match.
Madame Tussauds. I have never seen the appeal of the place yet tourists are (or at leased used to before the Bad Times) falling over themselves to get in.
Last time i visited london (2006), i wanted to visit the wax works, but then i saw the long queue, and noped back outside. Went to baker street, instead to the sherlock holmes statue. Much better, as its outside and free 😁
Pisa. It's basically just a photo opportunity, which is severely over-crowded by tourists and street vendors. Once you've taken the famous Leaning Tower of Pisa picture there's not much else to do. Sienna, San Gimignano, Monteriggioni and Lucca are all way better places to spend your time in the region.
Hmmmm . . . . . surely the Cathedral and the baptistery (should one be prepared to give them the time) are worth the visit in themselves. If you only go to see the tower then what can you expect? It's a tower and it is leaning - but it is certainly not the only thing of note that Pisa has to offer.
I lived in Berlin for a decade and while it's not as bad as some other cities, it has its tourists traps.
The biggest one I can come up with is Checkpoint Charlie: the museum is mediocre, the "actors" you can take photos with are incredible expensive and the fake Soviet merch you can find cheaper anywhere else.
Speaking of which: Berlin has a lot of flea markets not all of which are good or cheap. Especially the one at Mauerpark is mostly an expensive tourist trap.
I also really really dislike the area around Friedrichsstraße. I worked around there for a while and while they have good restaurants/bars/cafes around there, most of it is generic and overpriced. I'm especially mad that they replaced one of my favourite Currywurst stalls with some "Bio Currywurst" place that is not only way more expensive, but also the tastes much worse.
Similar and not too far away: Potsdamer Platz and the Sony Centre. Almost all bars and restaurants around there are tourist traps. You go there for the view, but that's about it.
Berlin, like many other capitals, has loooots of museums. Unfortunately, there are some that are not as great. I found both the Espionage Museum as well as the DDR museum to be well made, but pretty small - and as said before, I wouldn't recommend the Mauermuseum at Checkpoint Charlie (there are better museums about the same topic). I'd suggest getting the "Museum Pass Berlin" which is a shared ticket for most big museums in the city center. I can recommend all of the included ones.
Not Berlin, but right next to it in Potsdam: Castle Sanssouci. While te castle is neat, it is also really small and doesn't have that much to show, but it's expensive nontheless. You can walk around in its famous gardens without paying anything. If you want to visit a castle around there, take the Neues Palais (new palace) which has amazing interior design and a lot of famous art in it. If you want to visit a castle, but stay in Berlin, go to Castle Charlottenburg.
Totally agree. Also, Konnopke's Imbiss at the u-bahn Eberswalder Strasse station, allegedly invented currywurst. Unfortunately, these days their currywurst is terrible. Curry 36 is a chain and theirs is absolutely delicious. (The one on Mehringdamm is close to Bergmanstrasse, a great walking street with a food hall on the other end.)
In Greece, any street with lots of "UK Pubs" and things like that, I never understood why anyone would come to Greece just to go to a traditional style UK Pub, but many do that.
Besides that, Greece is an open place to explore, tons of hidden gems
Believe it or not the Brits search for those pubs! When locals open a bar and have no customers because the tourists are running to the pub across the street then you close the bar and open a pub to survive!! I can't even count the times tourists have asked me where is the nearest Mc Donald's ( we don't have that many)
The Champs Elysées avenue in Paris. It's an impressively big street, but all there is there are overpriced shops, crowded sidewalks and pickpockets.
The only reason to stroll down that street is for the 14th of July military parade if you're into that sort of thing, and the only reason to go near it is to see the Arc de Triomphe.
In Copenhagen I would say Nyhavn. Not so much going to the area, that I always recommend, but eating there. It's expensive and you can easily find better not that far away. That being said, you of course pay for the privilege of eating at Nyhavn mostly, so if you are willing to do that, fair enough.
Also, the Little Mermaid is basically a joke among Danes by now. Every tourist has to see it, and every tourist will be disappointed.
In my hometown Randers, we only really have two tourist places. An indoor rainforest, which is totally worth the money. And an Elvis museum which is build to look like his home in Memphis, which is expensive and not worth the money.
I've seen the little mermaid, and she's tiny. Occasionally someone will put a bra on her or stick a traffic cone on her head. The traffic cone thing is an incredibly British drunken pastime antic, and if the mermaid is sporting a traffic cone hat, you can guarantee it was placed there by Brits on a stag weekend.
In Amsterdam, stay away from the 'smartshops.' They sell products that they claim contain THC, but the truth is smartshops do not sell weed. If you're not buying that THC from a coffeeshop, it's probably a scam.
For Iceland it’s the blue lagoon, it way too expensive 40-60€ (sure you can spend the whole day there) but everything is expensive there like food and massage! You can have avocado toast for 20€ (I’m not kidding).
Also to avoid are the Puffin Shops in downtown Reykjavik and other tourist locations, e.g. Geysir. Everything is waaaaaay overpriced. You could get everything they are selling in these stores a lot cheaper at the Fleamarket (Kolaportið) in Reykjavík.
Oh come on! Really? okay then Acropolis is also expensive guys! We have the nerve to ask for a ticket to go in and the restaurants have the nerve to charge you more because you have the view of Parthenon while you eat! Avoid it! There are plenty of restaurants with a view of j mall or a bank that are pretty much the same! (I hope my sarcasm is obvious)
Probably taxi drivers in Bucharest, it's like they are born to scam you. Instead of 7 euros, they will ask you for 20 euros from the airport if you're foreign.
Other than that, the Bran (Dracula) Castle is kinda overrated, it's just a normal castle somewhere near the mountains. At least that's how I remember it 5 years ago.
In istanbul, at touristy areas some “friendly” people will talk to you like a normal person. Than they will offer you to go a pub to drink.. do not ever go to that pub. They will be expensive af. Like 100 euros for a beer. Your new friend is working with them.
Do not look or answer to guy on the streets who are welcoming to you somewhere. Like it could be tshirt place or a pub.
Spend 1 hour in taksim and never comeback. Taksim sucks. Literally tourist trap. 60% of the people you see will be syrians that fleed from the war, 10% scammers, 25% tourists, 5% locals.
Hallstatt. If you‘ve seen photos of it online (from the same two angles) then you‘ve seen the town. It is pretty, but it is over run by tourists and cheap tourist shops. There are so many more „authentic“ villages by lakes in that region, you don’t need to go to Hallstatt to get the vibe.
Exept if you're interested in archaeology. Hallstatt gave its name to the 1st iron age wich is called "Hallstatt culture". The salt mines were exploited since the neolithic and you can visit them. Historicaly speaking Hallstatt is an amazing place! I keep great memory of that when I went there as an archaeology student. At the time I didn't even knew that Hallstatt was a touristic destination.
Literally ALL of Monastiraki Market, it's filled with tacky tourist shops with overpriced poor quality tourist cr*p about the Acropolis and the ancient greek world and poorly pressed T-Shirts with cringy Greek stereotypical one liners which are probably gonna fade after a few times in the washing machine, not to mention the huge amount of pick pockets in the square and the narrow roads.
When visiting Athens, do yourselves a favour and after visiting the Acropolis dont bother with the tourist shops of Monastiraki, if really you want to buy some souvenirs, just enter one they are all exactly the same anyways, then go eat in one of the tavernas in Monastiraki or something, (except Bairaktaris, somehow this is an unpopular opinion with some Greeks, but their food is cr*p, and their restaurant is filthy, dont @ me), and then leave.
Monastiraki is one of the most beautiful areas in Athens and don't avoid it! Besides the monuments there are not many nice areas in Athens and Monastiraki is one of them! Worth to visit even if you don't buy anything because yes it is overpriced! You can look for cheaper souvenirs in other areas indeed! Taverns around are also touristic yes and as for the quality of the T-shirts i would really like to know which T-shirt costing 5-10 Euros from a souvenir shop is good quality! Don't you know that already?
Note: this post originally had 61 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.
Another post with useless advices from people that don't know how to travel! The general rule is avoid all places because they ask for your money! Stay at home and see those places on your smartphone!
you people who wrote this are pathetic... do you realize how fortunate you are to get to go to any of these places? And then you gripe and whine with great distress about how terrible it all is??? You should count yourself blessed, highly favored, glad, and then feel good about yourself that you have had any of these experiences at all. Most of us regular people don't get to see or do any of these things. The best quote I ever heard about something like this was about the touristy Brighton Beach seaside port in the UK.... One lady wrote after spending her holiday there, "Enormously tacky... but loads of fun. Had a great time, will be back"... Enjoying the tackiness & silliness of tourist traps is part of the fun! You people really missed the program and missed out on a lot of the fun you could have had. Poor you! Poor little rich boys & girls who are never never satisfied.
I completely agree with you. I consider myself very fortunate to have traveled quite a bit, with more travel to come in the future (post-Covid!). There is nothing worse than being in a beautiful and/or interesting place and hearing some idiot whine about the fact that it's "not like home". Or, even worse, that it's "boring". If you find any situation in life boring, that's on you - only you can take the necessary steps to make something NOT boring! Sure, not everything is going to be to your personal taste, but that's no reason to completely trash a place (verbally). Every town or city in the world has its good and bad points - it's up to you whether you choose to focus on the positives or the negatives!
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When traveling, enjoy the journey, not some "destination". If you are enjoying the journey, you see lots of small things that people focused on guidebooks miss, IMO.
Very true. When I was able to do a study abroad program with my college—they had a sister college in Austria, we were given 3 day weekends for travel, a few sponsored trips, and a 10 day break on our own. One sponsored trip was Rome and Assisi (loved the village best), and we had some free time and stumbled onto the prettiest cemetery I had ever seen. Flower lined walkways, a random pyramid monument for some wealthy family in Rome. Lots of fascinating ruins everywhere. Assisi was in the hills with stairs leading to each level of town. It was quiet and beautiful
Load More Replies... Versailles has to go on this list for me. It’s virtually empty, having been cleared after the fall of the monarchy. Save your money and admire the palace from the outside whilst enjoying the formal gardens.
I haven't been to Versailles in 5 years but I'm pretty sure the main rooms, ie Chambre du Roi and Chambre de la Reine, are still fully furnished. Probably the emptiness feeling is due to the space left for the court to attend the royals' every move. The gardens are indeed beautiful, but admission is only free on off-season Sundays.
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I live in Stratford Upon Avon and people all go and see Shakespeare's Birthplace. This WASN'T the house he was born in. If you check the town plans, his house would actually be where Lakeland (shop on same street) is now. My friend used to be a tour guide at the house. It's still a cool place to visit.
The important thing to do is research before you travel. Numerous people have been before you and have figured out what you need to know. Trip Advisor will tell you what's popular with people who have travelled there. Find out about where to find authentic experiences. Find out about local customs or laws. Find out about general safety/pickpockets, etc. If you are a sensible and have realistic expectations, you will have a blast seeing well-known tourist areas.
Avoid "Land's End" in the UK - the most southern tip of the mainland and would be better names "Life's End". A tacky, overpriced, commercialised load of nonsense. Totally ruins the natural beauty of the area and its desperately soulless. If you go, you may just feel an overwhelming compulsion to through yourself and your wasted money into the sea...
Thanks for the information! Now I'd like to know where TO visit as I do plan to travel.
in Rome I'd recommend Villa Borghese. The ticket was only for 2 hours, but totaly worth it (statues and paintings) And Villa d'Este on a hot summer day (hundreds of waterfalls).
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I see noone mentions Slovakia. Who knows why 😂. But anywhere in eastern Europe, if you ever take taxi make sure you know prices up front, they do tend to switch when having foreign customer and easily charge you 10x normal price. Also it's easier if you go with someone from there or ask locals (if you're lucky due to language barrier).
I think there is no advice because Slovakia is perfect :-) But I do have one remark: If you want to visit the bath house of teplice, do not just do that 40 degrees bath that is advertised everywhere. It’s nice, but aiming at tourists. The other bath house next to it, where nobody speaks English, is where the locals go and is much more authentic. Just do what the other visitors do and you won’t need translations.
Load More Replies... The only good advice in this article are 1) don't eat close to tourist attractions, the food is s**t; 2) if a stranger invites you for a beer/tea/whatever, it's probably a scam. Other than that? Ye tickets cost money, what a surprise. Yes cool places are crowded, because many people want to see them, what a surprise! Just check the prices before and plan accordingly.
This post and many of the comments really annoy me I am a tour guide so trust me on this: If you travel to another country, you are a tourist. It doesn't matter how and where you travel or if you buy a souvenir or do something 'touristy' or not. You.are.a.tourist. And doing your best to avoid popular and/or expensive places and feeling smug about it does not make you any less of a tourist, it just makes you a smug fathead. Stop searching for 'authentic experiences' or try to 'blend in with the locals'. Don't run around screaming, don't litter, don't throw up in the streets, just look at the sights, have some food and spend some money!! Just by being there, you are making life more expensive and difficult for locals so you can at least pay your dues.
If you're visiting Ohio and you plan on going to the rock and roll hall of fame do not go on a Monday as it's free for locals here it's ridiculous busy this day. Also it looks like a beautiful neighborhood but do not let your guard down pay close attention to your belongings lots of pick pockets and be sure to lock your car if you park anywhere even if there's a guard at the lot. If you like to camp or fish you'll find we have LOTS of places for that, beautiful cabins for rent at reasonable rates. If you shop anywhere go to the outlet malls in the smaller cities like Lodi. You can find great deals there!
Not gonna lie, I would like to visit France and Spain, but... for "otaku" reasons. ♡ I'd love to visit the Mazinga statue in Spain (Terragona, Garcia). As for France, well, I've read The Rose of Versailles last year (grew up on its animated series, as well as Señu no hoshi), so, obviously, it would be Versailles. Yeah, I'm aware the lattermentioned one is super mainstream *sigh*. Anyway, gotta stick to the Gundams of Japan, for now (in a hopefully not toooooo far away future without the complications of travelling for the pandemic). The one in Odaiba was such an experience ♡o♡
Versailles is an absolute must. There's so much about it to love, but particularly if you enjoy history. History is perhaps the number one reason why I travel, to be honest. But I found Versailles absolute magical and I could literally feel the past envelop me, if that makes sense. Both the palace and the gardens were incredible. I hope you enjoy the experience as much as I did!
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I'll never have to worry about any of this. I never had much interest in globe-trotting to begin with, and the older I get, the less interested I become.
Another post with useless advices from people that don't know how to travel! The general rule is avoid all places because they ask for your money! Stay at home and see those places on your smartphone!
you people who wrote this are pathetic... do you realize how fortunate you are to get to go to any of these places? And then you gripe and whine with great distress about how terrible it all is??? You should count yourself blessed, highly favored, glad, and then feel good about yourself that you have had any of these experiences at all. Most of us regular people don't get to see or do any of these things. The best quote I ever heard about something like this was about the touristy Brighton Beach seaside port in the UK.... One lady wrote after spending her holiday there, "Enormously tacky... but loads of fun. Had a great time, will be back"... Enjoying the tackiness & silliness of tourist traps is part of the fun! You people really missed the program and missed out on a lot of the fun you could have had. Poor you! Poor little rich boys & girls who are never never satisfied.
I completely agree with you. I consider myself very fortunate to have traveled quite a bit, with more travel to come in the future (post-Covid!). There is nothing worse than being in a beautiful and/or interesting place and hearing some idiot whine about the fact that it's "not like home". Or, even worse, that it's "boring". If you find any situation in life boring, that's on you - only you can take the necessary steps to make something NOT boring! Sure, not everything is going to be to your personal taste, but that's no reason to completely trash a place (verbally). Every town or city in the world has its good and bad points - it's up to you whether you choose to focus on the positives or the negatives!
Load More Replies... When traveling, enjoy the journey, not some "destination". If you are enjoying the journey, you see lots of small things that people focused on guidebooks miss, IMO.
Very true. When I was able to do a study abroad program with my college—they had a sister college in Austria, we were given 3 day weekends for travel, a few sponsored trips, and a 10 day break on our own. One sponsored trip was Rome and Assisi (loved the village best), and we had some free time and stumbled onto the prettiest cemetery I had ever seen. Flower lined walkways, a random pyramid monument for some wealthy family in Rome. Lots of fascinating ruins everywhere. Assisi was in the hills with stairs leading to each level of town. It was quiet and beautiful
Load More Replies... Versailles has to go on this list for me. It’s virtually empty, having been cleared after the fall of the monarchy. Save your money and admire the palace from the outside whilst enjoying the formal gardens.
I haven't been to Versailles in 5 years but I'm pretty sure the main rooms, ie Chambre du Roi and Chambre de la Reine, are still fully furnished. Probably the emptiness feeling is due to the space left for the court to attend the royals' every move. The gardens are indeed beautiful, but admission is only free on off-season Sundays.
Load More Replies... I live in Stratford Upon Avon and people all go and see Shakespeare's Birthplace. This WASN'T the house he was born in. If you check the town plans, his house would actually be where Lakeland (shop on same street) is now. My friend used to be a tour guide at the house. It's still a cool place to visit.
The important thing to do is research before you travel. Numerous people have been before you and have figured out what you need to know. Trip Advisor will tell you what's popular with people who have travelled there. Find out about where to find authentic experiences. Find out about local customs or laws. Find out about general safety/pickpockets, etc. If you are a sensible and have realistic expectations, you will have a blast seeing well-known tourist areas.
Avoid "Land's End" in the UK - the most southern tip of the mainland and would be better names "Life's End". A tacky, overpriced, commercialised load of nonsense. Totally ruins the natural beauty of the area and its desperately soulless. If you go, you may just feel an overwhelming compulsion to through yourself and your wasted money into the sea...
Thanks for the information! Now I'd like to know where TO visit as I do plan to travel.
in Rome I'd recommend Villa Borghese. The ticket was only for 2 hours, but totaly worth it (statues and paintings) And Villa d'Este on a hot summer day (hundreds of waterfalls).
Load More Replies... I see noone mentions Slovakia. Who knows why 😂. But anywhere in eastern Europe, if you ever take taxi make sure you know prices up front, they do tend to switch when having foreign customer and easily charge you 10x normal price. Also it's easier if you go with someone from there or ask locals (if you're lucky due to language barrier).
I think there is no advice because Slovakia is perfect :-) But I do have one remark: If you want to visit the bath house of teplice, do not just do that 40 degrees bath that is advertised everywhere. It’s nice, but aiming at tourists. The other bath house next to it, where nobody speaks English, is where the locals go and is much more authentic. Just do what the other visitors do and you won’t need translations.
Load More Replies... The only good advice in this article are 1) don't eat close to tourist attractions, the food is s**t; 2) if a stranger invites you for a beer/tea/whatever, it's probably a scam. Other than that? Ye tickets cost money, what a surprise. Yes cool places are crowded, because many people want to see them, what a surprise! Just check the prices before and plan accordingly.
This post and many of the comments really annoy me I am a tour guide so trust me on this: If you travel to another country, you are a tourist. It doesn't matter how and where you travel or if you buy a souvenir or do something 'touristy' or not. You.are.a.tourist. And doing your best to avoid popular and/or expensive places and feeling smug about it does not make you any less of a tourist, it just makes you a smug fathead. Stop searching for 'authentic experiences' or try to 'blend in with the locals'. Don't run around screaming, don't litter, don't throw up in the streets, just look at the sights, have some food and spend some money!! Just by being there, you are making life more expensive and difficult for locals so you can at least pay your dues.
If you're visiting Ohio and you plan on going to the rock and roll hall of fame do not go on a Monday as it's free for locals here it's ridiculous busy this day. Also it looks like a beautiful neighborhood but do not let your guard down pay close attention to your belongings lots of pick pockets and be sure to lock your car if you park anywhere even if there's a guard at the lot. If you like to camp or fish you'll find we have LOTS of places for that, beautiful cabins for rent at reasonable rates. If you shop anywhere go to the outlet malls in the smaller cities like Lodi. You can find great deals there!
Not gonna lie, I would like to visit France and Spain, but... for "otaku" reasons. ♡ I'd love to visit the Mazinga statue in Spain (Terragona, Garcia). As for France, well, I've read The Rose of Versailles last year (grew up on its animated series, as well as Señu no hoshi), so, obviously, it would be Versailles. Yeah, I'm aware the lattermentioned one is super mainstream *sigh*. Anyway, gotta stick to the Gundams of Japan, for now (in a hopefully not toooooo far away future without the complications of travelling for the pandemic). The one in Odaiba was such an experience ♡o♡
Versailles is an absolute must. There's so much about it to love, but particularly if you enjoy history. History is perhaps the number one reason why I travel, to be honest. But I found Versailles absolute magical and I could literally feel the past envelop me, if that makes sense. Both the palace and the gardens were incredible. I hope you enjoy the experience as much as I did!
Load More Replies... I'll never have to worry about any of this. I never had much interest in globe-trotting to begin with, and the older I get, the less interested I become.
