Waking up early, bags packed, and excited to catch a flight to your next big adventure. Arriving in a new city, soaking in the vibrant atmosphere. Finally stepping into a spacious hotel room with a breathtaking beach view. All the ingredients for a dream vacation, right?
But just because you’ve planned every detail doesn’t mean the universe is on your side. Suddenly, your plane is delayed by seven hours, the charming cityscape doesn’t look quite like the photos, and that “beach view” turns out to be a noisy construction site.
These unlucky travelers know this feeling all too well, and they’ve captured their unexpected vacation fails to share with the world. Some are funny, others are heartbreaking, and a few are downright shocking. Scroll down and see for yourself!
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A Llama Photobombed My Machupicchu Pic
Well Crafted Beach Photobomb
Took This Photo Of The Beautiful Sunrise At Our Bed And Breakfast, Years Ago, During Our Honeymoon. I Didn't Look At It Closely And Sent To All Of Our Family. Nothing Says "Welcome To The Family" Like A Photo Such As This
While I wouldn’t wish a disastrous vacation on anyone, it doesn’t take much to end up with disappointing travel photos. Even after the best trip of your life, you might come back with pictures that don’t quite do it justice. Sometimes, bad lighting, confusing angles, or awkward composition are the real culprits.
First Vacation I’ve Had All Year And Work Won’t Stop Texting Me… Should I Send It?
Living/Working In Hawaii, Took A Break To Travel. I Don't Travel A Lot, But When I Do, Everything Is Under Construction
Taking A Picture With My GF In Berlin, When Out Of Nowhere
Joe Switzer, a filmmaker based in St. Louis, Missouri, and Jordan Carnegis, a photographer and artist in Orlando, Florida, shared some helpful tips with Hilton on how to make your travel photos memorable, so you can look back on them fondly for years to come.
And don’t worry if you’re not armed with an expensive camera—Switzer notes that today’s smartphones are powerful enough to make anyone feel like a professional photographer.
Our Trip To The Petting Zoo Did Not Go As Planned
2 Weeks Ago My Youngest Daughter Broke Her Leg 1 Week Before Our Holiday. Yesterday I Broke My Own Leg (On Holiday). Poor Sis And Mom
Good thing then that you are in Europe and this at least will not cost a dime.
My Uncle's Suitcase After His Flight
When you’re on vacation, you’ll likely be surrounded by incredible sights. But Switzer and Carnegis recommend capturing not just the scenery, but also the people with you.
“Take pictures of the view in front of you, but take the cheesy selfies, too,” says Carnegis. “You can Google a picture of Yellowstone, but you can’t Google your kids’ [reactions to it]. Take the time to focus on the people you’re with and the memories you’re making. I think that’s what people miss the mark on most.”
A Beach Day That Turned Into Me Tripping On A Rock And Falling Down The Sand Dune
This Is The One Thing I Am Most Worried About Before Getting On A Plane
Yeah, anyone that does this to me is getting stabbed in the foot with a pencil.
Hiked Two Hours To Set Up A Picnic, Returned To This
Another common pitfall is taking photos with social media in mind, only looking for what seems “Instagrammable.” Switzer and Carnegis encourage letting go of that mindset. “Photograph the moment as it happens,” says Carnegis. “Keep it organic. Keep it loose. Keep it candid.”
Includes A "Private Balcony." Is Just A View Of The Wall Of The Next Building
Airbnb Wasn’t What We Were Expecting
The Hotel I Booked Weeks Ahead Didn’t Have A Room For Us When We Checked In. Gave Us A Sofa Bed In A Conference Room
One of the biggest mistakes amateurs tend to make is positioning their subject directly against the light.
“It’s all about the light,” says Switzer. “Always turn your subject to let that light hit it. Always look at the light.”
This might feel counterintuitive, especially when you want that perfect shot of your friend against a gorgeous sunset. But shooting directly into the light often leaves you with an overexposed background and faces lost in shadows.
Drove Quite Awhile To Be Able To See This Waterfall
I Drove 4 Hours (One Way) To See Radium Springs, One Of The State Of Georgia’s Natural Wonders . . . After A Heavy Rainfall
This Is The Result When I Ask My Boyfriend To Take A Picture. Can’t Stop Laughing
To take your photography to the next level, learning a bit of basic composition can go a long way. Instead of always centering your subject in the frame, both Carnegis and Switzer suggest trying the “rule of thirds.”
Position your subject in the right, left, top, or bottom third of the image, moving slightly off-center. “It makes it so much more interesting than just a stagnant, ‘Here I am in front of the Golden Gate Bridge,’” says Carnegis.
My Trip In Mexico Is Great So Far
Google Maps Didnt Tell Me About This After A 2 Hour Drive
Tire Went Through My Windshield On The Interstate
But if you survived to take the photo, you're lucky to be having a GOOD day!
Many cameras and phones have a grid setting that divides the frame into nine equal sections, helping you visually apply the rule of thirds. Place your subject along the lines around the center square. “This is hard because your brain tells you to keep people in the center,” says Switzer. “But if you watch a lot of movies, you’ll notice everyone’s usually off to the left or right.”
I Was On My Way Down The Tallest Mountain In The UK And This Happened
Half Way To The Road Trip In Sicily, The Tire Just Exploded Out Of Nowhere. Happened Exactly 12 Hours After I Had Food Poisoning The Night Before
Someone's given you the evil eye. Take this for protection 🧿 (also talk to a nonna if she can remove it for you)
Paris CDG Airport. Someone Will Have A Bad Day
That said, remember to put down your phone or camera now and then and simply enjoy the moment. “There are extremes from ‘We don’t have a single picture of this trip!’ to ‘We have photos of every single thing we ate,’” says Carnegis. “Just pick the best things to shoot. You don’t need a video of the whole birthday song. Just take a couple of snips.”
I Have To Travel To Another City Asap And This F***er Decided To Park Its Car Right In Front Of My Garage. It Has Been 45 Minutes And This Is Not The First Time This Is Happening. Still Waiting For The Tow Truck
Loved My First Trip To Japan. I'm Too Tall For Japan
I know the feeling, Im Japanese but I'm 7'4, I have a condition where your body doesn't stop growing, and for other medical reasons, this being paired with me being albino..... yeah I kinda stand out back home {Osaka, Shaa-nai~!} and everywhere else
Lesson Learned- Don't Trust Just Any Tourist To Take Your Photo
If I ever visit Pisa (unlikely) I'm definitely not posing for this tired, overdone tourist photo.
Went On Vacation And
Went two states away for a weekend trip, were checking out of the hotel to find this. All 4 wheels stolen in the hotel parking lot. Of COURSE the hotel doesn't have cameras in the parking lot. Can't get it towed because it doesn't have wheels to get on the damn truck.
These Tourists In Hawaii Took A Wrong Turn
4 Hours Into A 13 Hour Road Trip To My Family's 3 Week Vacation Of The Year And I Just Realized That In The Rush To Leave I Forgot To Bring Any Other Shoes With Me
Just Wanted To Enjoy My Vacation
Went on a trip for almost 2 weeks. Started to feel sick 5 days ago and just thought I was dehydrated. Came to the hospital to be told I have a severe uti, kidney infection, and sepsis. My flight home was supposed to be tomorrow. I have no idea when I’ll be able to go home.
I do like the info board. Never seen that in a hospital before
Road Trip To See The Lighthouse
I'm On My Honeymoon
Had sushi for dinner last night at the all-inclusive resort my new husband and I are staying at. 1am rolls around and I'm throwing up like crazy, then it's dry heaving for another hour. We call the resort doctor, he takes my temperature and listens to my belly with a big "oh no" face, so guess who gets to go to a clinic in a foreign land (we're in the Dominican Republic)? Me!!
I have a bacterial infection in my guts! My white blood cell count is bananas! We get to spend $4000 upfront cuz I need to be hospitalized! Weeeeeeee!
Get Travelers insurance, be better than me. Don't know what the resort will do but it sounds like they're willing to work with us.
Where My GPS Indicates The Train Station Is Supposed To Be
First Day Of Vacation
Unfortunately there was someone right behind us and I couldn’t stop it time. Lucky for us the deer jumped and hit mostly glass so no airbags! But it did take out the cargo rack and sunroof and ended up being over 14k in repairs!
On My Honeymoon In Hawaii And Turns Out I Got Ringworm From The Armrest On The Plane
This Happened Last Year, Flying Back From Vacation. They Told Us Our Suitcase Must Have Fallen Off The Transport Truck. Everything Inside Was Gone, Yet They Managed To Retrieve The Bag
My Trip To Bali (Nusa Penida Island). Expectations vs. Reality
I Traveled About 1500 Miles To See Fenway Park For The First Time. Here Was My View
The Day Started Off Amazing
We Visited Mount Rushmore During A Controlled Burn
Cigars were big during their administration's. Historically accurate monuments.
I Broke Two Bottles Of Sangster’s Rum Cream While Boarding The Plane
First A Romantic Gondola Ride. Just A Bit Of Traffic
First Day Of Vacation
Naaaw. Hope the rest of it was OK and you weren't on a summer, swimming vacay
This Is How The Luggage Containing My Playstation Arrived
I Drove 1000+ Miles To See The Eclipse
Like millions of others in American today, I took time off work and drove over 1000 miles to see the eclipse, only to have it spoiled by mother nature. Oh well. 🤷🏼That's life.
Went On Vacation On Our Family's Boat... This Is My Attempt At Taking A Shower
A Stray Golf Ball Hit Our Windshield On The Way To The Beach And We Are On Vacation
First Night After A 12 Hour Drive To Belgium
My Vacation In Rio And Seeing The Cristo
Tire Exploded On The Highway 20 Minutes After Leaving The House For Our Week Long Family Vacation
Surprised to see all these blowouts. They’re very rare on cars, if tires maintained
It happened to me on a well maintained car. It was because I ran over a nail that punctured the tire. But because I had been driving all day, the tire was hot enough that it blew. The tire place we went to said it's pretty common when traveling with all the junk on the road.
Load More Replies...C'mon, tell the truth. You were playing chicken with a truck that had huge spiky rims.
Obviously, the tire was past it's " best used by" date. Dry rot is real. If your tire is six years old, even with good tread , your sidewall will do exactly what this photo shows.
Umm, that doesn't look like a tyre that's been maintained, or even checked for a while. Not much tread and was probably bulging for quite a time before.
The Aftermath Of A Shredded Radiator Hose
Things Don't Always Go As Planned When Traveling
First, we got surprised by snow on our long-planned tour in the Rainbow mountains around Cusco and therefore, had to cancel our hike and return to Sicuani spontaneously. Later on the way to the border between Peru and Bolivia, the van's motor that was supposed to take a few locals and us to Puno, broke down in the middle of nowhere. In such situations, you only have two options: get upset or take the mishaps of the day with humor. Have you ever had such a travel day where everything just went wrong?
Went To Visit The Beautiful Blauer See In Germany
Wanted A Special Mountain Lake Nye With The Wife, Even Upgraded To The Room With A View
Day 1 Of Our Once In A Lifetime Trip To A Resort In Maui. Nearly Sliced His Finger Off In A Door And Can’t Go Swimming For The Rest Of The Trip
Went To A Mountain Peak With A Magnificent View... But Choose The Wrong Day
The Day Has Finally Come, My “Window” Seat After 20+ Years Of Travelling
Up At 3 30am And Hiked About 4hrs To See This Beautiful View
What You Think Visiting Antelope Canyon Will Be Like vs. What It Is Actually Like
"99 Taxi" Driver Texted During The Whole Trip (Almost Two Hours)
I Recently Went To Hawaii And Got A Gnarly Sunburn As Seen Here. Ended Up Getting A Case Of “Hell’s Itch”, Which Was Genuinely The Worst Pain I’ve Ever Experienced, And That’s Saying A Lot
A Green Tea Bath Was The Only Option After Being Brutally Sunburned In Australia, Then Having To Sit For 19 Hours On An Airplane Coming Back To The States
Go Swimming In Halong Bay (Vietnam) The Tour Guide Said (Without A Jellyfish Disclaimer)
Well This Is A Great Fathers Day. Great Way To End One Of The Busiest Holidays. Full Evacuation
Just be grateful your not one of the people who lives there - they're having a way worse day than you.
When You Ask A Stranger To Take A Photo
post an in focus image of the two females and I will add them in. girls-6735...75-png.jpg
Cot Mismanagement
My wife with our mismanaged evening time cot construction during a 2-week trip thru the Grand Canyon. We’re in our 70’s & we were f**king exhausted at this point. Can’t sleep in the sand cuz red ants.
In your 70s hiking through Grand canyon for two weeks?? You guys are metal!!!
My Son Found Sea Shells On His First Trip To The Beach. I Didn't Have The Heart To Tell Him
Why not? Just tell him those are nut shells and help him some real ones
Just Got To LA For A Vacation And This Is The View From Our Room. (Oh And The AC Is Out In The Entire Building)
What A Lovely Start To Our Vacation
Fiancee Forgot She Was Wearing Slippers To The Airport Before A Week Long Vacation
Got Food Poisoning On Holiday, Now I Can't Leave The Room
On The Way Home From Vacation. Still 4h Away From Home
I think there was something Small in. After a short break I discussed with my wife if in exactly this tire I a bit less pressure than in the other. She said I was exaggerating again. So we decided, I‘ll drive to the next fuel station and check the pressure of all tires. Luckily I drive carefully. Also the other people reacted really good, and let me drove to the breakdown lane. Changing a tire by yourself is prohibited on a French Autoroute. So I‘ve been ripped if from roadside assistance. I had to pay almost 300€ for driving the car myself 1.3km (less than 1 mile) to the next exit.
I've Travelled The World In This Hat & We've Finally Parted Ways Due To A Gust Of Wind On The London Underground
Bikini Derp Photobomb
The Result Of Placing Your Hand On The Handrail Of The Moving Walkway In Terminal 5 Of Jfk Airport
I Was Supposed To Go On A 9 And A Half-Hour Long Road Trip Today
A Person Took A Photo For Us And Cropped Our Faces
Came To Greece For A Relaxing Holiday In The Sun. It’s Rained For 5 Days Straight And I Leave Tomorrow
This Family Taking Up An Entire Sightseeing Platform So Nobody Else Can Take Photos. A Lot Of People Missed Out On Great Photos And Views Because These People Wanted It For Themselves
I would have moved in to the platform as well and made their time there difficult.
Cruising The Mountains In Hawaii On A Scooter... Until They Broke Down And We Couldn't Make It All The Way Up
No helmets or prtective clothing, so it's lucky it was *only* a breakdown.
My Wife And I Got Covid On Our Honeymoon
They Made Me Check My Duffle Bag. Found It Like This At Baggage Claim
Broke My Foot With A Week Left On My Vacation
Came To The Beach On Vacation For A Week
Well you still can play "catch a lightning strike" on the beach. It's a very electric game.
When The “Coffee Tour” Decides To Skip The Coffee Tour And We Blow A Tire (Spare Tire Was More Bald Than The Tires On The Rest Of The Car)
Staying At A Hotel After I Got A New Tattoo And This Happened
Make sure all the bedding is off the bed when you leave, and leave a good tip for housekeeping.
Air China Destroyed My Wife’s Suitcase (Beijing To New Zealand)
When You Find A Screw In Youre Tire 8 Hours Before You Were Supposed To Go On A 14 Hour Trip
Dropped One Of My Wireless Earbuds On The Train Tracks All Of 10 Minutes Into The 3 Hour Trip
My Phone Fell Out Of My Pocket On My Flight To Tokyo Last Week (Going For Vacation). The Moving Of The Seat Crushed It
My Wife’s Wedding Ring Is Impossible To Get And I Know Exactly Where It Is
Vacuum cleaner house with panty hose on the end? I feel like it would fit in there
You Break Your Arm In A Foreign Country, Suffer Through A Journey Home Where Airport Security In Two Different Countries Both Bash Around Your Cast In Case It’s Concealing Weapons
And finally get home to English speaking doctors who finally give you a pain pill.
That's a bit insulting to doctors in other countries. If they don't speak English (most speak some English), it's on you to communicate your needs. Google Translate works great.
09:42am. 40 Minutes Into The Flight. Beginning Of The Well Deserved Holiday. Passanger Next To Me Knocks Over Her Beer Going All Over Me
Two Hours Into My Road Trip In The Middle Of Nowhere I Opened My Case To This
Hakone Shrine In Japan, On Instagram vs. Reality
Air Canada Messed Up My Bag (But At Least I Got Photos 🤨📸)
When You Finally Make It To Your Destination And Your Room Is Still Being Cleaned
We Spent 2 1/2 Hours On Our First Anniversary Climbing Pen Y Fan, All For This View
You climbed a mountain in Wales, did you expect perfect sightseeing weather!
Throwback To When I Booked A Room With A Mountain View At A Hotel In Denver
Went To Vacation. This Happened On The First Day
American Airlines Flight From Portugal To Pennsylvania. I Was Supposed To Be On That Flight
The Lighting Is Really Cool Babe You’ll Love This
Was About To Go On A Road Trip With My Friend During My Few Days Off… The Airbag Warning Signal Came On Right As We Were Ready To Go
TSA Cut A Perfectly Circular Hole In My Sweater
that looks like a burn, you can see the edges are black and "crisp" that's why it's so perfect, someone placed something on it that burned through it, if it's made from polyester, then the threading wont come undone too but melts together at the edge {like you can see}
My GF Put Her Makeup Set In Her Luggage
Toiletries always get double bagged in a zippy and put in the carry on.
Missed Our Flight
Saw This On My Vacation In Amsterdam
Scratched my ankle in a pool while on holiday. After returning home 2 days later got cellulitis and high fever from it. Couldn't walk for a month while being alone in the house. Had to sleep on the couch and wash in the kitchen all that time because I could not make it up the stairs.
Went to the Grand Canyon (US) with some friends a few months ago. It was great right up until everyone got COVID. We've decided we've passed the friend era and are now family.
Last Summer, first time in Italy, managed to cut my foot quite deep on faulty, sharp ladder that go into sea. Got infected, purple and swollen foot, luckily it was the day before I went home and I managed to deal with infection in time. But I had to travel back and go to the airport and plane in fip-flops because I couldn't put anything else on that foor.
Very funny, until the blunt reality of bored panda becoming like every other app. “Get premium to see more,” I’m good. The lack of this feature in the past is what made this a fun website for me, but now it’s like every other website.
visited Hawaii for the 1st time. Been living in Alaska for about 2 yrs then. It turns out the medication I was put on has a 1% chance of causing a sun allergy. Guess who got to find that out upon waking up to barely being able to see due to my head sweeling up like a watermelon. good times =) could only go out after sun set
First ever flight I got the flu off a really sick lady that should never have been allowed to fly. Ended up with double ear infections and constant asthma attacks. My parents accused me of ruining the holiday because I wouldn't smile. My lips swelled up like I'd had botox and cracked apart, bleeding every time I tried to open my mouth. I came home after almost 3 weeks and basically recovered. Everything that could go wrong pretty much did.
We are avid road trippers and have experienced illness, including an urgent care visit in OH, breakdowns and other car issues, and the crushing disappointment of Atlantic City, New Orleans and Las Vegas.
Drove 7 hours to sleeping Bear National Park in Michigan and there wasn't any bears. Only big piles of sand.
Had a lovely holiday in Mexico, whereupon my white a*s proceeds to get "sun poisoning", in addition to a nasty intestinal parasite, which had me heaving into a trashcan whilst turning into an upside down volcano on the toilet. Had a fever, and thought the cute little lizards climbing on the walls were a hallucination. They were not. Lost ten pounds that week.
My sister went to Mauritius & twisted her ankle on the first day there. She had stopped there on the way to South Africa to meet family for the first time & when she got there she was pushed to the arrivals area in a wheelchair 🤭
Well, at least she had a legit preboarding request for the next flight.
Load More Replies...Scratched my ankle in a pool while on holiday. After returning home 2 days later got cellulitis and high fever from it. Couldn't walk for a month while being alone in the house. Had to sleep on the couch and wash in the kitchen all that time because I could not make it up the stairs.
Went to the Grand Canyon (US) with some friends a few months ago. It was great right up until everyone got COVID. We've decided we've passed the friend era and are now family.
Last Summer, first time in Italy, managed to cut my foot quite deep on faulty, sharp ladder that go into sea. Got infected, purple and swollen foot, luckily it was the day before I went home and I managed to deal with infection in time. But I had to travel back and go to the airport and plane in fip-flops because I couldn't put anything else on that foor.
Very funny, until the blunt reality of bored panda becoming like every other app. “Get premium to see more,” I’m good. The lack of this feature in the past is what made this a fun website for me, but now it’s like every other website.
visited Hawaii for the 1st time. Been living in Alaska for about 2 yrs then. It turns out the medication I was put on has a 1% chance of causing a sun allergy. Guess who got to find that out upon waking up to barely being able to see due to my head sweeling up like a watermelon. good times =) could only go out after sun set
First ever flight I got the flu off a really sick lady that should never have been allowed to fly. Ended up with double ear infections and constant asthma attacks. My parents accused me of ruining the holiday because I wouldn't smile. My lips swelled up like I'd had botox and cracked apart, bleeding every time I tried to open my mouth. I came home after almost 3 weeks and basically recovered. Everything that could go wrong pretty much did.
We are avid road trippers and have experienced illness, including an urgent care visit in OH, breakdowns and other car issues, and the crushing disappointment of Atlantic City, New Orleans and Las Vegas.
Drove 7 hours to sleeping Bear National Park in Michigan and there wasn't any bears. Only big piles of sand.
Had a lovely holiday in Mexico, whereupon my white a*s proceeds to get "sun poisoning", in addition to a nasty intestinal parasite, which had me heaving into a trashcan whilst turning into an upside down volcano on the toilet. Had a fever, and thought the cute little lizards climbing on the walls were a hallucination. They were not. Lost ten pounds that week.
My sister went to Mauritius & twisted her ankle on the first day there. She had stopped there on the way to South Africa to meet family for the first time & when she got there she was pushed to the arrivals area in a wheelchair 🤭
Well, at least she had a legit preboarding request for the next flight.
Load More Replies...
