Even in our crazy and constantly changing world, there is one constant thing - people's passion for travel. Since the end of the pandemic, tourism, both domestic and international, has been growing for the third year in a row. No wonder - people want new experiences.
Today, almost the entire globe is available to travelers - the only question is money and the right choice of destination. Moreover, you may realize that some incredibly popular places of interest are actually greatly overrated. The corresponding online threads come to help tourists. Such, for example, as this thread in the AskReddit community.
More info: Reddit
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It will soon be two hundred years since Thomas Cook from England organized the first event that could be called a full-fledged tourist trip, and since then there have been many people who make money not only from organizing tourism, but also from rating various attractions and hotels, restaurants and other places that surround them.
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“People have always loved travel stories, which were often incredibly detailed in the smallest detail,” says Valery Bolgan, a historian and journalist, editor-in-chief of Intent press agency in Ukraine, with whom Bored Panda got in touch for a comment here. “After all, the famous travel notes of the great travelers, starting from Marco Polo or Ibn Battuta, contained not only descriptions of unknown lands and customs of other peoples, but also detailed stories and assessments of lodgings and cuisine at inns.”
“Today, almost any popular place on Earth can, to one degree or another, be considered 'a tourist trap'. Firstly, because people tend to try to take advantage of the slightest opportunity - so any beautiful or memorable place will soon be surrounded by numerous cafes and souvenir stalls, like the bottom of the ship is overgrown with shells and algae."
“Secondly, people’s tastes and opinions differ greatly, so if one of your friends or some popular blogger didn’t like this or that place, it’s far from a fact that you won’t like it either. In the end, many Parisians literally hated the Eiffel Tower for several decades and sought its immediate demolition - and today it is the true pride of all of France. So the best thing is to form your own opinion about everything, to see with your own eyes. If, of course, the budget of your trip allows it," Valery summarizes.
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Yes, many popular places on our planet today are totally overcrowded, but that, in the end, is the price to pay for popularity. Unfortunately, the level of service around such attractions sometimes decreases - because some owners and staff are often guided by the principle “you will still come here and visit us!” However, market competition also does its job, and over time, negligent business owners will be forced out of the best places.
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Be that as it may, the list of places and locations in this collection is truly worldwide - from small towns to huge metropolises (although some do not agree that an entire city can be dubbed 'a tourist trap'). However, this is also a reason for additional discussion, so please feel free to join the comments section, but not before you scroll this list to the very end. Perhaps some of the opinions expressed here will be useful to you, saving you time and money, and maybe your own opinion will help someone too.
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Amazed I haven't seen this mentioned yet but isn't Las Vegas' whole shtick being a tourist trapHollywood Blvd is pretty junky. I always feel bad for people who make the trip to Los Angeles and end up there. They must be like wtf?If you come to San Francisco, Pier 39 is a tourist trap. It’s just a long outdoor mall filled with useless tchotchkes. Instead, opt for the golden gate bridge, golden gate park, ocean beach, or one of our various arts and science museums.The pyramids is a very uncomfortable experience you get f*****g harassed beyond beliefDon't go to England just to see Stonehenge. You will be bitterly disappointed. That being said, if you are in England, and you do want to see Stonehenge, spend time in Salisbury as well., enjoy the scenery on the way there and back. Spend time exploring the area around Waterloo station in London.
Be a traveler, not a tourist.I've traveled to over 30 countries and all 50 states. It's less about a city and more about specific areas within one. You can find local chill areas anywhere just as you can tourist trap areas.
Example New Orleans: tourist trap - Bourbon Street. Local spots - magazine, garden district, Frenchman (though tourists are starting to find it).
Example Orlando: tourist trap- I drive, the parks, basically anywhere south of downtown. Local - milk district, Mills, winter Park, etc.
Example Dublin Ireland: tourist trap- Temple bar. Local- Stoneybatter, kilmainham, etc.
You get the pointThat big a*s fake Noah’s Arc thing in Kentucky. It’s b******t stacked on b******t, that is stealing money from old folks and idiots. I’m good with them ripping off the idiots, but there’s lines of busses from retirement homes lined up there daily.
Edit: thanks folks, I was off a state. It’s still horribleMyrtle Beach. It’s the most expensive trailer park by the beach. Everything is so expensive. But you’re surrounded by trailer park people. People harassing you to buy c**p.I don't think people understand what a "Tourist Trap" is. You can argue that Times Square is a tourist trap, but it's ridiculous to say that the entire city is a trap. The London Eye could be a trap, but not London.Magnolia Market in Waco, TX. It's basically a giant gift shop for Chip and Joanna Gaines from Fixer Upper. Wife dragged me there and it was so busy you couldn't even do anything. It sucked.From what I’ve heard, Dubai is atrocious if you’re not a multi-millionaire+Mount Everest, garbage and dead people everywhere, extremely expensive tooDisneylandIn Canada, the Capilano Bridge was rated as the country's worst tourist trap. Private park in North Vancouver with a swaying drooping pedestrian bridge across a small canyon. $80 admission. There is a similar bridge for free on a public park nearby. For that price I'd rather visit the Peak-to-Peak gondola ride between mountain tops in Whistler.If there is a rain forest cafe and a madame tousards, it’s a tourist trap.Plymouth Rock. It’s likely not actually from 1620 and it’s a pretty small rock.Times square for sureRipley’s Believe it or Not’sBranson.
Take everything fun out of Vegas and put it in the middle of nowhere midwest. It’s a magnet for old people and f***y pack dads.Mount Rushmore is small.Gatlinburg, TN.
That place is a tourist hell-hole. Good luck actually finding historical buildings and monuments.Wall Drug (but I think that's the point)Certain parts of the city center of Amsterdam is the worst tourist trap s**thole I've been to.Half of the "attractions" in the Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, and Sevierville area in Tennessee. Outside Dollywood, there's not much worth a damn.Istanbul! As a woman alone is a complete nightmare, you will get harassed and stalked. If you’re a male alone you have 90% chances of being scammed.
Istanbul is amazing but not a place for solo travel! Beware and mind your surroundings. Trust no one.Nashville. Come on down and see the one street just to get s**tfaced and listen to washed out, s****y country in a shoulder-to-shoulder honkytonk. Sure, there is plenty more to see and do down here but that seems to be the main attraction to a lot of folksWisconsin Dells. But it’s actually a fun one.Niagara Falls, Ontario.Fisherman’s Wharf in San Fran.
Thousands of better things to do in San Francisco than see this unremarkable stupid wharf of pointless shopping.
Edit: Fisherman’s Wharf not Pacific Wharf.
And yes the seals/sea lions are def it’s only saving graceSF Giants game in SF.
You can tell who isn’t from the city because they are all heading to the store to buy hoodies and jackets half way through the game when the cold/fog/rain rolls in after it’s been warm and sunny all day.F*****g Paris. The Eiffel Tower is ao crowded. People pushing and shoving.
Go to nicer quieter areas outside of Paris where you can chill and breathe.
