40+ Travelers Are Sharing the Most Disappointing Tourist Traps They’ve Ever Visited

A Sydney boat trip is the ultimate tourist trap. Unfortunately, this visitor had a soggy and unpleasant experience. What a way to remember that trip to Australia that they had probably been planning for a while.

This is the true travel aftermath of the pandemic, it seems. At least she’s smiling, and making the most of her trip despite the weather — and the fact that every sight she wanted to visit was closed.

Times Square is the classic tourist trap, most actual New York inhabitants avoid the area like the plague. Tourists though, always seem to love it. It’s crowded, loud, and crazy — but can you really say you’ve been to NYC if you don’t go to Times Square?

It does get complicated, however, when you’re being chased by life-size cartoon characters demanding money from you! These poor tourists could definitely not handle being harassed by Super Mario.

The Leaning Tower of Pisa is one of the biggest tourist traps ever. Naturally, everyone wants a photo for their Instagram of them ‘touching’ the tower, as demonstrated by the hundreds of tourists in the background.

It does help the experience if you have a competent photographer who understands the assignment and can actually guide you to the perfect pose — ya know, to make the trip to this over-photographed monument worth it.

We agree with the poster here — Ipanema Beach is absolutely packed and the pool seems like an infinitely better option (but maybe that’s because sand is the worst). However, if you love a bit of umbrella spotting, this place is for you!

Though, with that, we also think this poster could have searched around a bit more… or checked out a few other beaches in Rio that would have satisfied his birthday vacay! There are plenty of beautiful places to enjoy!

We all know this feeling far too well when you want to get a new profile picture at a tourist attraction, but the line is intimidating. It feels like there’s absolutely no time to get a good pose on and do an outfit check, we can feel that stress from here.

We, do, however, think that she is exaggerating a little, she does not even look awkward. If we were to take the exact same picture, we would 100% look like a potato.

This tourist trap looks pretty cool on the outside, however, shady ‘peeps’ doesn’t sound so good. Even if the place is cool, why go somewhere in which you have to be on high alert the whole time while you should be enjoying and relaxing?

Surely there are other cool places in Buenas Aires to see tango dancers and other elements of the culture! Still, it does look beautiful and colorful, so we can understand the attraction.

Even the coolest place can be totally ruined by the weather. Add a procession into the mix and this tourist trap becomes a bit of a disappointment. We can already imagine how great it would look on a sunny day with a bright blue sky!

On the bright side, even if the picture isn’t the best it’s pretty neat to see the temple being used for its actual purpose and not just existing for tourist snaps. You can’t always get the perfect photo of a place, right?

Exactly what u/generalb0ss said — Santorini Problems. You pay a lot of money to get to this breathtaking island, expecting to capture the perfect shots in your vacation outfits, ready to make everyone at home jealous with your idyllic snaps.

The problem with this amazing location? It’s almost constantly packed with tourists. The solution? Probably visit in the off-season when it’s cold and everything is closed. At least, though, you’ll have the place to yourself!

Tourists traps and unoriginal snaps. One does ask, why does everyone want the exact same photo of the exact same thing? There are hundreds of different posing opportunities, so we agree with u/thebeautyneuron on this one!

They’ll, however, probably be waiting until the end of time — as there are actually hundreds of people who are just waiting to pinch the Louvre. If this poster is truly into originality, there are tons of other places in Paris to get a more unique picture of something else.

Waiting is always a part of getting a good photo in a popular tourist spot, but waiting for someone to finish a phone call in front of a tourist spot is pretty crazy. The lack of self-awareness.

At least they eventually got their photo and made some new friends in the meantime! These moments are all part of traveling and experiencing the world. The caller probably had no idea that they were in the way of the photo!

This poster definitely took a risk to get a good shot. We’re not sure a photo in front of the Arc de Triomphe is worth almost dying, but who are we to judge?

You just don’t imagine tourist traps to be directly in front of a busy street. We wonder how many people actually have been hurt getting selfies for their socials. Take care out there, guys!

When you go to a popular tourist site, you don’t automatically assume that your experience will be marred by a monkey. This visitor experienced a bit of primate aggression while trying to enjoy the marvelous statue in front.

It must have been a rather large monkey if it was capable of running somebody over and we appreciate that the monkey actually sat at the table to enjoy his stolen chips. If anything, this just made the experience much more interesting and funny.

Machu Picchu is beautiful and incredible, but is it worth getting on the most expensive train in the world? Probably not, which is why most people who don’t want to pay just walk on the train tracks.

We’re not sure what they were expecting when they boarded the train to one of the biggest tourist traps in the world. It was always going to be pricey. We hope they at least felt that Machu Picchu was worth it, regardless of the expensive train fare.

It can be super difficult to get a good photo when you’re on a solo trip. However, what’s with the lack of trust? Most people don’t run away with people’s cameras. The little, old lady was just doing the poster a nice favor!

Maybe next time they could invest in a tripod to enjoy this tourist location a little more, or just learn to go with the flow. There are fewer bad people in this world than good!

This is one of the worst things about traveling — when you’ve planned your whole itinerary around the things that you want to see only to discover it’s closed.

Maybe they should have checked the opening hours ahead of time, however, at least they can say that they’ve ‘been’ to the Berlin Palace.

Obviously, when you have dinner with a view, you do expect to pay a premium — well, probably not for things that you never asked for. Though, this is actually kind of normal in some countries, so arguably they should have checked into the dining norms of the country.

These restaurants are, of course, a part of the tourist trap and if you want better value meals, it would be wiser to find another place that isn’t so close to the main attractions.

Well, if you want a convenient camel picture to make people think you’ve been riding camels around the desert, this probably does the trick. However, if you were actually looking to explore the desert, this is a bit of a scam. We can see the frustration, as it seems kind of pointless to ride a camel in what appears to be a large sandpit.

Then again, it does make sense that there’s a lack of camels — the pandemic has understandably affected tourism markets across the globe.

Playa Del Carmen is the ultimate tourist trap and basically anti-Mexico. As the poster has elaborated, if you want to see Mexican culture, don’t bother visiting this attraction. It really is a random mix of a lot of different cultures, catering mostly to the sunburned Americans in Panama hats.

As you can see, there’s the “traditional” Mexican cuisine, Subway! This tourist trap gives a good or bad impression depending on who you are. If you came for some sunshine and cheap cocktails, this is your place. If you wanted to actually see Mexico, best to avoid Playa Del Carmen.

As well as being a tourist trap, Brooklyn Bridge is genuinely is a bridge, so there are naturally going to be a whole lot of people. But, in saying that, we also realize that this is one of the most iconic photo-stops in the whole of NYC — so, we can see the frustration.

There are literally so many people that you can’t even see the bridge. At least her Instagram followers know that she was there, even if the picture is not as iconic and Instagram-worthy as she wanted.

Imagine paying to go up in a cable car to see the great panoramic views of Rio and you see this. Well, of course, you’re going to be disappointed. It’s not the sunny and envy-inducing photo that you expect to take here.

It sounds like they had a fair few other travel woes happening on their trip, we hope it wasn’t too bad and that they were in fact able to enjoy all of the beauty that Brazil has to offer.

It’s sad when you make a huge journey, spend loads of money, and get excited to see one of the most iconic monuments in the world — and then it’s completely covered in scaffolding and you can’t even see it.

This is worse than a tourist trap, it’s just full-on disappointment at this point. You would think, though, that tourists visiting London would do their research and find out these important details before traveling.

It’s always a shame when something doesn’t meet your expectations — and even worse when you invest so much time and money into a trip that disappoints you… especially when the toilets are gross and not included in the price!

Sometimes, though, this is the beauty of travel as you have to take the bad with the good. What u/theyoungjess considers an unsuccessful journey will be a funny story to tell in the future. If you want a perfect and easy experience, this kind of adventure travel should be avoided.

This bucket list item is one of the absolute must-dos in Cambodia. Obviously, it’s a tourist trap. It’s incredibly beautiful but since the sunrise ticket is one of the most popular options and is said to be the best time to see Angkor Wat, this means that it’s a total tourist trap.

What makes this particular situation even worse is the fact that the sun didn’t show up on time when Karla here specifically woke up for it. At least they still sort of enjoyed it.

Sometimes, a recommendation from a friend can be the best thing ever, especially when traveling, as it means that you get to visit the absolute best tried and tested locations. Sometimes, however, the recommendation does more harm than good.

Unfortunately, the most hyped-up places are oftentimes the most disappointing ones because of the built-up expectations. If this wasn’t so hyped up, it would be the low-key secret gem that travelers rave about. But, it sounds like an idyllic hut in the middle of the ocean wasn’t good enough for this guy!

While we love the adventurous spirit, this whole travel dilemma could have been so easily avoided by just checking the most basic of things like entrance tickets to a national park. Although, arguably, it turned out even better as they had the opportunity to discover some less-known beaches and enjoy a less crowded environment.

Especially in the high season, it’s so important to check ahead and make sure that everything is organized. This beach looks pristine and great, though — plus, they have it to themselves!

Sometimes, things just go wrong. Although, it seems that these trolleys have a reputation for breaking down. No one wants to spend their vacation pushing a baby stroller over rolling hills. The whole experience must have been stressful, especially considering the fact that this poster was traveling with their kids.

At least they can see the positive in this experience, what would have been an ordinary visit to a tourist attraction is now a funny family memory that they will laugh about for years!

These perfect, pristine photos are all over Instagram — but there are many times when these types of pictures don’t show the whole truth. They don’t reveal the reality of waiting in the sweltering heat, just to get a good snap for Instagram. They look amazing in any feed and are great for making people envious back at home.

But, is it really worth it? The poster definitely had the right idea of sitting back, eating ice cream, and actually enjoying the place. That’s what vacation is for, after all.

Well, this is definitely a unique disappointment from visiting a tourist destination. Sometimes, the expectations of tourists are extreme. There’s no logical reason why the water from the bath would taste any better than other water sources. Whether water even has a taste is up for debate.

It’s pretty crazy that tasting the water was the most exciting aspect of this trip for the poster — and not the architectural complexities of the baths or the history surrounding them.

The Dracula Castle does have a pretty cool image associated with it, but this guy has definitely been reading too much fiction if he thought that he was about to enter a meet and greet experience with the actual vampire.

It looks pretty cool anyway and it probably has a lot of interesting history. With that, it’s not as disappointing as this person believes — just probably another case of having high expectations.

Generally, icy places are freezing. It does sound like exploring this place is a challenge, albeit a cool and unique challenge! While face-planting does sound slightly painful, it just seems like that comes with the price when you visit an icy place like this.

We’re just imagining a bunch of people with selfie sticks flying around and falling over left, right and center. To be honest, it’s quite an amusing image. This is a place to take some very good non-slip shoes.

This is a shame, as the whole experience is based on the hot air balloon actually getting off the ground. It seems this poster really does have bad luck with this tourist activity — three times is just a sign from the universe that she shouldn’t get into a hot air balloon.

Still, it’s nice to see that she had a relaxed approach to the whole experience. She understands that not everything goes as planned and so, you have to make the best of what you’ve been dealt!

What’s the point in photographing a painting? There are a gazillion images online if you want to view them. Is it impossible just to enjoy art without feeling the need to document the moment using your smartphone? This is a classic example of tourist traps that just attract photo-takers to say that they’ve been to a place.

All of this photo-taking seems pointless in the end since all you achieve is a photo of 200 other people also snapping pictures. It must be extremely time-consuming to get a good glimpse of the actual Mona Lisa. This is a shame for people who actually appreciate art.

We think this poster has a warped perception of visiting a popular tourist location. Since it’s a tourist destination, of course, there will be other tourists. That’s just a fact of life.

In all honesty, this dude should be thankful for this experience rather than focusing on the fact that he had to share the space with other people.

Imagine traveling far and wide just to see a wall — a brick wall — especially when you’re expecting it to be the iconic Seattle Gum Wall… only for you to discover that there’s actually no gum at all. That’s definitely a disappointment. At least this poster was able to get a photo in the process.

It’s yet another unfortunate incident in which you can’t really plan ahead to see if everything’s in order. After all, it’s not like you can reserve a place to see the gum wall. Who would have known the wall would be scraped clean?!

Busy rooftop terraces are a disappointing experience, especially when the view is so great. On the bright side, they got a great photo without paying premium prices for a meal or drinks.

Rooftop terraces will always be popular, but it was a great idea to go and investigate another area to see more than just a pleasant view. There’s always a way to get the best of both worlds!

Although she never elaborates exactly why Venice is such a disappointing destination, we guess sometimes a city can just give off a vibe. It’s probably another case of looking better on social media and imagining a place to be different than it really is. Or the falling apart buildings?

Ironically, she’s probably part of the Instagram enablers, making Venice look incredible — as this photo is beautiful and shows no sign of falling apart buildings or any other bad part of Venice. It looks like a dreamy destination from here!

It’s a shame when you really search for a place that’s off the beaten path and you want to see some real, authentic culture — but, what you actually get is extremely disappointing. We feel bad for this person, who clearly really wanted to try a local dish of mango sticky rice and couldn’t find it.

Even worse, they were taken to a strip mall, which was just not at all part of the poster’s imagined authentic, cultural trip. Expectations versus reality at its worst…

The Bahamas Pig Beach looks so cool — it’s no wonder why so many influencers, celebrities, and even ordinary people love to visit. Who can resist cute pigs swimming in a turquoise ocean?

Fitness influencer Michelle Lewin was surprised by this pig, which decided to lunge at her and leave her with an unfortunate bite as a souvenir. Animals always make tourist traps that little bit more unpredictable and therefore, as the poster warns, watch out for the pigs!

What was supposed to be a huge arc of curtain-like purple wisteria wasn’t quite what these tourists were met with. After all, they forgot about the changing seasons and thus, the blooming seasons. It wasn’t quite the display that they expected but at least they made light of the situation.

It’s nice that they didn’t take it too seriously and that they found interest in the 600-year-old trees. Surely they’ll check this information online the next time they feel like visiting this tourist trap.

Oh, Bali… so cheap, well, until it became super touristy. It’s a little ridiculous to pay so much money just to sit on a giant swing. We can definitely see that the price-to-experience ratio could lead to some real disappointment.

At least this guy didn’t have to pay and got some really cool snaps. Social media seems to be the blame again for hyping up these locations, driving up prices — and then subsequently being a platform to vent about the underwhelming experiences. At least this dude got a standard Bali swing picture to prove that he was there.

It’s always difficult when people are painted as being authentic when that’s not always the case. It sometimes can feel like something has been taken away from the experience — and even blur some of the cultural facts.

In saying this, it’s a very popular tourist trap and, therefore, it’s slightly obvious that there won’t be real inhabitants living there. If you’re looking for authentic cultural experiences that are based around true locals, it would be advised to avoid well-known tourist trap destinations and do some research beforehand.

This person was extremely disappointed by Niagra Falls due to its natural beauty being overshadowed by the ugly, concrete tourist facilities. It’s a shame that there’s always this need to over-develop around the most incredible features of nature.

At least she could still appreciate the beauty of the place and even got a lovely photo of it. Maybe the Canadian side is better? At least there are several locations to appreciate views of this natural wonder.

This Mekong experience sounds terrible. It’s sad that there’s so much plastic and debris in the river — so much so that it ruined u/champari’s experience. On the other hand, it’s good that they’re raising awareness about this issue on social media so that others don’t fall prey to the same tourist trap.

These tourist traps take on a more serious note — these are not funny or silly mistakes but, instead, a sad destination that’s being funded by tourism and destroying nature along the way. It’s terrible and hopefully, these types of tourist traps will cease to exist at some point in the near future.

Yes! Altitude sickness is definitely a real thing and it’s painful. Vinicunca, or Rainbow Mountain, is beautiful but a lot of people struggle with the hike. This couple should have considered acclimatizing beforehand — after all, not everyone knows just how badly altitude sickness can affect them.

The mountains are so worth visiting, although they’re quite deceptive in that they don’t look as challenging as they are! These guys found out the hard way, but we’re pretty sure they still have no regrets.