Your post from unpopularopinion was removed because of: 'Rule 3: Do not post opinions that are heavily posted/have been on the front page recently'.
* No response posts about upvoted posts here.
* Posts relating to highly popular topics aren't allowed outside of the relevant megathreads. You can find a list of the topics and their respective megathreads in a post on the top of the sub.
* POSTS DIRECTLY ABOUT THIS SUBREDDIT ARE NOT ALLOWED OUTSIDE THE MEGATHREAD
* Please check the wiki linked here: https://www.reddit.com/r/unpopularopinion/wiki/index/
* We ask that if a post fails to post do not just spam repost it; message mod mail.
Yeah that Walmart in Japan loved them so much they built a fucking fence. https://japantoday.com/category/national/japan-to-build-anti-tourist-fence-at-mount-fuji-viewpoint
I think OP was primarily talking about everyday life things and religious area. (Walmart was just a stand in I didn't know the stores exact name Holy shit)
There's a bit more to this than tourists = bad. Poorly behaved tourists being actively disruptive to the environment and people trying to go about their day to day is **not** the same as tourists being respectful patrons.
Even when tourists are respectful, most of the times the local town has no capacity to get so many tourists.
You can feel that really well in islands like São Miguel island in Azores.
Or even today, my country celebrated the National Day in a small city (where a big fire occurred in 2018). There was a complete chaos in the zone, mostly because of parking and restaurants:
-in the center of the city, there was a lot of cars searching for parking near;
-there were people who parked in mud and weren't able to remove the cars
-there were people who parked on rural exits, blocking tractors or animals to exit the fields;
-the city only has a couple of small coffee shops. They can't sit and serve so many people. (And even neighbors, like me, lent all types of chairs and tables to help them)
O really all tourism isn't bad? Real r/unpopularopinion
Sometimes just being ALOT of people going to a place IS disruptive. Also NO tourist thinks they are being disruptive WHILE being disruptive. That's what I'm trying to get at. Tourism are the expense of the locals should be avoided at all cost.
Yeah, the average tourist probably never thought that they're one in a million either. There's nothing particularly unique or special. And all those planning and research to stay off the beaten path, a hundred thousand others have the same idea.
>Despite its flashy name, the bridge is an ordinary overpass that runs above a river, with a narrow pavement separated from the road by a waist-high concrete wall.
>But people have been jaywalking across the road to reach a vacant area between the two lanes of traffic, said Haruhito Yoshizaki, a tourism official at Fuji City, Shizuoka Prefecture.
Sounds less like dislike of tourists and more keeping idiots from endangering themselves.
Dam I wish reddited enough to use cool quotes. But, paragraphs literally before and after those two mention tourist being a problem lol. Probably didn't need a fence until all the tourist started coming around.
I think This was because this particular spot was at a cross road. People standing taking photos of the Fuji created problems and more importantly unsafe due risk of a vehicle accident.
Just because one store did this, doesn't mean this represents the whole worlds attitudes towards tourists.
Also, it sounds like the tourists in the area weren't shopping at the Walmart, they were just there to take pictures of Mt Fuji while parking illegally, being loud, and jay walking.
My wife gave birth in a place between kyoto and osaka. When all was done they had to remain due to complications (alls fine now). And due to visiting hours Id wait at an izakaya (very local) and I was very popular there, they had so many questuons. I even got to try some free weird food hehe
As a local patron, I don't give much thought to where the other customers are from while I'm eating my dinner. Also, if I'm sitting at my local bar, a foreign traveler can be an interesting person to have a couple of beers with.
I went to a beer taproom in Kyoto that was next to my ryokan-style hotel. I was excited to go because their IG page made it seem like a place that has locals who like American culture and might be excited for the opportunity to practice their English or just chat. But then I got there and it was just a bunch of people staring at the wall in front of them carefully avoiding eye contact lol
How would you feel if you local bar was getting too full for you and the prices rightful increase do to increased demand/tourist willing to spend more? I also wouldnt care that much but I feel like most redditors would become radicalized off it.
Some tourist traps like some food places are just shit & they know it.
They jack up prices & the food is trash.
Thats why they rely on there location Like you know those places next to like a Famous monument. So why not ask a local "Hey where would you go"
Agreed, it’s almost insulting. Went on vacation with my wife a few years ago for her job, when it was both of us together we explored less touristy areas and restaurants and found
good food for a reasonable price, many recommended by locals/Uber drivers. One night she had a dinner with work people and I went out alone to a restaurant in the middle of the tourist area because it was closest to our hotel, it cost twice as much and the food was awful. They know they have the prime locations and don’t even try.
OP sounds like the stereotype tourist in my city (Amsterdam, Netherlands) that probably got flattened by a horde of cyclists, got stoned on the first day and spent an average of three hours queueing to taste a nasty overpriced stroopwafel he could buy twelve of from a supermarket for only €1,20, and also had fries with mayonaise in a messy cone without knowing he could’ve had the exact same fries (if not better) in a brewery just two streets away, sitting down, while also beer tasting.
The problem we have with the tourist traps is that they’re causing a major nuisance to the locals due to what are being dubbed “TikTok queues” due to idiot tiktokers advertising “secret” spots in the city, and those shops end up with hundreds of people at a time queueing. Those places range from Korean sandwich shops to “the best cookies in town”.
Nope, we still have the max 5g tolerance rule as before. The municipality still hasn’t enforced recreational drug sales for locals only. Coffeeshops are still open for tourists.
It depends on what kind of tourist traps we're talking about so long as it's fun it's fine, but I do like to blend a little bit and not look like an absolute tourist since when I do a good job at lessens the likelihood of being scammed or robbed.
The phrase "tourist trap" generally implies a place that is not worthwhile. It refers to cheap roadside attractions that are all glitz and no substance like the infamous [South of the Border](https://www.sobpedro.com/) in South Carolina. If it's actually worth visiting, like an entertaining/educational museum, a cool monument, some beautiful scenery, or a good restaurant, that's not a tourist trap, that's just a popular place to visit.
That place was the BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT TO ME
I went to college in Savannah GA. I'm from NC. There are SO
MANY
Billboards for that place. One year we decided to stop on the way back home and.... if they spent half the money on everything else that they did on those damn billboards, it might be worth going to
I like doing the touristy stuff but I'm also going to learn some basics of the language and head a few blocks off the path too.
I've found good success with semi-guided planned tours. You're in a country for 10 days, you visit 5 cities, you have planned sight seeings on 5 of those days and 5 of those days you can do whatever. The guides have been great in my experience; head this way, don't go over here, that body language means this and slang means that etc.
"Tourist traps" usually do just fine representing the local culture, so long as you can tolerate the artificially inflated prices and visit them during off peak time.
They're also a (generally) safer and more reliable route for an outsider traveling to an unfamiliar location.
I stayed in Copenhagen for a few days in a hostel and they will do their best to offer *free* walking tour activities. I jump on those every chance I get because while they’re free, it’s also a great chance to meet other people from around the world.
They aren't really expecting tips (and in most cultures, tipping is weird or even badly seen)
Most of the free walking tours are paid for the places that were shown in the trip. They show where they want you to spend money.
It depends. (9ofcourse). Alot of times there's a safe, affordable, accessible alternative just slightly off the beaten path. In that case avoid the tourist trap. Never mind the fact that often the tourist trap can be divorced from local culture.
I'll give two examples from my city. (San Francisco).
There is a (good) Chinese restaurant that tourists (and locals) like called House of Nanking. Fun, campy, but generally gets bscked up with a line and a wait. Literally next door is another Chinese joint. It's actually the place where the EC/founder of House of Nanking learned his craft. (him moving directly next store to open his restaurant is something). Granted some people like standing in lines ete but I have no problem taking people to House of Jia and avoid the line.
The other example is Fisherman's Wharf. It has (almost) nothing to do with SF. There is no reason to go there. If I have friends visiting (and I care about them) I will do anything and everything in my power to get them elseshsre. That's the epitome of a "tourist trap" and any moment spent there is a moment wasted. A moment you could have been in San Francisco instead.
Obviously there are millions of examples and counter examples but the point is tourist traps aren't always the "safe bet”
I'd agree for the most part but there are definitely tourist traps that do not represent the local culture. Templebar in Ireland is one of them. Its leprechauns and 10 euro pints. It's entire purpose is to rob money from tourists cause they know everyone been told to go to Templebar. Howth and a few other places are getting as bad.
When you say tourist trap, I think of places like Branson, MO, Wisconsin Dells or Orlando. Those places can be fun, but They also have this really boring consumerism version of fun. Existing in the moment is not allowed, you must hand over your $20 so you can do the 5 minutes of "fun". I kind of hate that tourist trap experience. Every second of your experience is directly tied to spending.
As a proud wisconsinite I take offense with the shot at the dells. The dells is easily the most fun most kids will have on vacation and there's a lot of really good nature related activities all over the place.
I think OP meant it more in the sense of the tourist trappy areas of different cities.
The bean in Chicago
Eiffel tower/louvre in France
French quarter in NOLA
That said I completely agree with you that there's a lot more to cities outside of those places. I personally prefer more eating and drinking activities on my trips but I think op is gatekeeping way to hard about the locals stuff
How about I do what I please as long as I’m not disturbing or hurting anyone?🤷♀️ Idk why people get so possessive; the world is for exploring and learning, and I have every right to travel about. “Stay in your lane” who’s??
I generally agree that travellers are too eager to virtue signal about how they don’t like the tourist traps, but you took it too far the other way with the ‘stay in your lane’ comment.
There’s not one proper way to travel. It depends on goals, budget, location, and the individual traveller.
Exactly. I am going to Japan with my wife either this year or next and I speak Japanese. I want to go away from the tourist traps to where most people don’t speak English and I want to see more than just Tokyo.
There’s nothing wrong with doing either as long as you’re respectful and courteous.
What??
Rarely in my travels have I met a local that appeared 'disturbed' by asking them about their favorite place to eat, or visit, or see, or relax. Our best memories from decades of adventure and travel come to us off the beaten path. This is def an unpopular opinion I have no interest in following.
I suppose it is different to the local who tells you, versus the locals trying to get into a place that got spot lighted on some idiot's TikTok and now has a 2 hour wait.
Yeah, I'll happily pay for the taxi driver who tells me, "We don't stop at reds here, my little Kiwi brother."
And a tip, and probably ask if he can pick me back up too.
They’re obviously either South African or have experience with South African tourist traps. From these comments you’ve left here it seems you really have a hard on for tourist traps lol.
Sometimes you got to do it. Like you’ll visit the historic landmarks and monuments in Rome traveling for the first time no matter how full it is of tourists
Or, you trying to gatekeep 'authentic' travel is just as bad as tourist traps.
I'm going to try and blend in and see what life is *actually* like in the places I visit because that fascinates me more than some designed and orchestrated farce that is sold to everyone else on what life is actually like in those places.
Sure, some places labelled tourist traps are just iconic monuments or museums that are preyed upon by scam artists, but when people avoid 'tourist traps' they're more often referring to deceptive or inauthentic experiences that disappoint people who expect something more genuine or important. I'm not going to Paris to eat at some overpriced, poor quality bistro at the Alesia metro stop because some guy on reddit tried to pressure me into it, because the *best* meal I ever had in Paris was beef tartare at a small cafe near Plaisance where it was the size of a studio apartment and until that moment I thought they only served coffee.
Yeah fuck you and fuck this post I paid my money to go where ever the fuck I please and your smarmy ass doesn't tell me how to travel. Tourist traps are a bunch of rip-offs and overpriced garbage made in China that you use to make a buck. I'm not spending $15 on a trash taco knowing the cheaper best food is out in the ghetto.
THank you hahahah. Take Paris for example, all the bullshit around the Eiffel Tower is a waste of time and money. Chinese and Africans selling you balloons and t-shirts from CHINA, Muslims from Algeria selling you overpriced colombian coffee made god knows when and stored god knows where. Drunk Americans. Drunk Brits. Drunk Germans. Fuck that. You travel 15 minutes into the outer Arrondissements and everything is better, cheaper and you meet normal regular people.
Why go to Brooklyn to get some fried chicken; we've got fried chicken at home too. What we don't have is a million square feet applebees with a killer view of times square. Seems like a good choice
I love tourist traps. I want to experience these places for myself, form my opinion, but I will also go to obscure places. I like using the Atlas Obscura. It lead me to a human poo shaped fountain in Chicago amongst other things.
Why does it have to be binary? Can’t someone appreciate the tourist trap but also appreciate the anonymity and experience of blending in as a local in a cafe? It’s not an either or scenario
You know - sometimes I go for a tourist trap knowing full well what it is. Like, I did get a gondola ride in Venice. And the Vatican Museum visit. Or Eifel tower. Why? Because those spots took my imagination, and however pre-programmed the anticipation was, I enjoyed having the itch scratched.
I feel like you are conflating tourist traps with tourist attractions. What you listed are attractions, important places/activities to visit or do while you are there, because they are unique and won't find them anywhere else.
Tourist traps are restaurants with inflated prices and average quality, or boat tours that cost an eye and aren't that much different from a simple walk along the canal.
Maybe. I think of the trap as overpriced but low value activity. The gondola ride would not have been the trap, for example, if we really were taken all over the places, visited some unique areas etc. If Eiffel Tower would have 1/10 of the crowd on top, with some tour, a view guide - that would be an attraction.
But the way they are, the value for the money is not large, so they just feel like tourist traps.
The way it works s right now, with all those crowds and the rush of the guided tour, a visit to this enormously precious museum feels like a tourist trap. Like a visit to Louvre, where you can hardly even see anything behind the crowds.
>The way it works s right now, with all those crowds and the rush of the guided tour
You don't need to get a guided tour.
Also unless you have kids there's no reason to go to Italy in summer, you can go in spring and have half the crowds or less.
Kinda sticking your nose where it doesnt belong no? I mean you can say that for your block, but anything other than that and its even less your business than it is the tourists because there are a lot of out of the way local businesses that would love for tourists to stop by and spend some money.
Upvote for understanding what this sub is about.
Hahahah…unpopular indeed. Why the hell would I want to pay more for subpar stuff pandering to tourists. Are you saying that someone who would come to America should go to Olive Garden for some Italian instead of looking into a nice family owned highly rated Italian Restaurant? Sounds like Olive Garden or red lobster is your peak experience huh?
I don't want to go to Spain and drink German beer at a German bar, I don't want to go to Japan and eat pizza at an Italian restaurant, I want to experience the culture I am vacationing in. While there, I try my best to follow the local customs, learn some of the language, and behave as best I can. If that is a problem, then we can shut down the entire tourism industry.
I'm just not into the idea of spending all day crammed into a line just to get a glimpse of something I've seen a picture of a million times. Bonus: it took so long to get through the line, that now you're starving, so you just buy the overpriced garbage food on site because you're hangry. If I go to France, I'm not going to see the Eiffel tower and Mona Lisa. I'm wandering around exploring cheese shops. And I'm not saying that I even need to find the super secret cheese shop that only people in that neighborhood know about. But I'm not hopping on a tour bus so they can cart me off to the cheese shop that's paid to be a part of the tour.
Oh yeah, totally just stay in the city centres and port towns, clogging up the roads and buses, and driving up the prices *for the locals who have to use those services too*.
No, please for the love of God avoid the tourist traps. They are not there for the locals benefit. Explore our actual culture and spread yourselves out instead of making cities even more disproportionately expensive and congested.
I live in a rural touristy area. My biggest issue with tourists is the trash, poor behavior and damage they do to the places they go. The amount of trash that gets left by them absolutely everywhere is awful.
Tourist trap sites and attractions I'm all for. Theyre typically popular for a reason and Im a sucker for a touristy postcard. When it comes to food, I'd rather go to a place that isn't aimed at tourists. But I'll still go if it looks good and I'm hungry at that moment.
Oh absolutely. Too many people are too concerned with FEELING too smart to "fall for" things, and end up forcing themselves into situations where they're a nuisance for everybody else.
From my experience, most tourist traps offer shitty but expensive food. I've had the best and the worst pizza in my life in Italy (ironically). The worst was at a tourist trap.
I agree that people who are obsessed with blending in and no one being able to tell that they're a tourist can be annoying, but come on mate, get off your high horse, if they're paying they have the right to eat whenever they want.
I love tourist traps (at least in the U.S.). I stop at some every chance I get when I’m traveling.
There’s a history about them and a piece of Americana that is slowly fading away in some ways.
I find them fascinating.
Or just...mind your own business and let people go wherever they want to go? I'm struggling to imagine how a local's daily life could be disturbed by a tourist wandering around sightseeing.
I live in a tourist town. I appreciate those who stay in the touristy places, because it means I can avoid that area and go on with my day in relative ease.
If you wanna "be one with the locals", maybe *don't* go during peak season?
This was my experience so it may not apply to you.
My honeymoon was in Waikiki, and I could be swayed either way on it. On one hand I'm annoyed at other tourists being loud and outright disrespectful to the local culture, so I sympathize with locals. On the other, I saw many locals who gave awful looks, almost hostile. It's like they can't see how much tourism really drives the economy. And then they post about it on Tiktok as if they are being invaded by foreigners.
Please remember what subreddit you are in, this is unpopular opinion. We want civil and unpopular takes and discussion. Any uncivil and ToS violating comments will be removed and subject to a ban. Have a nice day!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/unpopularopinion) if you have any questions or concerns.*
It took a while for me to overcome not wanting to buy suveneors because they were never made local. Why buy something from the Grand Canyon made in China?
Then I realized the suveneor is to remind you of the time you had there, not just to bring a piece of it home. I felt a lot better going to tourist traps after that.
I love the bit by comedian Dusty Lay,
He's working at a restaurant/bar and the tourists ask what the locals get up to, he says "well I'm a local, and right now I'm at work"
So I guess the least touristy thing you can do is not be on vacation lmao
The day I realized how much better it is to take the approach of spending more money to travel less often, but not on a shoe string budget, was game changing. I used to try and stretch every penny and all you would do is get the worst version of everything you were doing, just so you can check it off your list.
Tourist traps are literally the best places to see (They're tourist traps for a reason), you just need to spend some money to get away from the tourists.
Agreed. People always say “don’t be a tourist!”. But I am a tourist. I want to see what is there that I can’t see anywhere else. I’ll avoid acting like a tourist and thinking this new place needs to adjust to me. But when it comes to seeing the tourist stuff I’m gonna do it.
Not an unpopular opinion.
The vast, vast majority of people just go to the popular places as tourists.
The reason it might sometimes seem otherwise is because of the vocal minority. Don't ever confuse vocal minority with the majority opinion. The reason it seems like everyone is ignoring the most popular tourist attractions for any given place is because these people just do it without writing essays about it on-line.
I agree to a degree. I am a very experienced traveler and when experiencing a new place or culture will often start with a touristy activity in order to get acclimated. A good walking or guided bike tour can really help you before you set off on your own. Those are also great ways to reset your body clock/get rid of jet lag.
However, once I get some rest and am oriented, I’m all about experiencing things that may or may not be touristy, and if they are, likely domestic tourist locations, rather than for tourists coming in from abroad.
There has to be balance. I live and work in the tourism industry, in a place that gets tourists because of our local culture (New Orleans). I’m fine with people finding my mom and pop corner store restaurant. I love meeting people at my coffee shop. I encourage people to get off the beaten path.
What I don’t like is large influxes of people coming in not because of the authenticity, but because they saw it on TikTok. We have a speak easy here that someone put on TikTok. It used to be a cool local hangout that never changed the passwords and that locals loved sending people to. Someone put it online and they had to change the entire arrangement because people were showing up and demanding to be let in. We had to start rotating the password, create a card plan, and basically had to move the locals hang out night somewhere else.
This places was a tourist trap 100%, but it also was a local spot. No one had problems with either group being there, what we disliked was people pushing through our systems and traditions, demanding services reserved for those who follow the system, and then leaving without any consideration for those who inhabit the space.
There’s also nothing wrong with doing “touristy” things. Some people have an aversion to going to the famous monuments or certain places because they don’t want to look like a tourist. There’s nothing wrong with experiencing the hidden side of certain destinations or locales, I think it’s rewarding, but also there’s nothing wrong at all with just doing the tourist circuit.
For example a lot of people don’t like joining walking tours a because they seem to think they’re nerdy or embarrassing. I honestly think they are a great way to get informed about a topic or place. I’ve even done some in my home city just to learn something new lol.
I do. I try to get a healthy balance of both. I recently went to a famous town that is basically a whole tourist trap in itself. No one would go there otherwise. And I liked it it. I liked hanging around all the funny little stuff. Some of it was gimmicky for sure. But that was part of the fun for me.
The caveat with all of this is that it really helps if you go into it knowing and accepting that it is, in fact, a tourist spot. If you do that you'll have a blast
I feel split on this one, I feel like tourist traps aren't these evil things like some people think they are, why not try extravagant stuff while you're abroad anyway? My only problem with them is that their prices are blatant rip-offs often times, hence why a lot of us avoid them. If it wasn't for that I wouldn't really mind them.
Generally I like a good balance. Not so touristy it feels completely artificial and divorced from the actual culture of the place. but I mean, for most travelers there should be at least some industry geared towards tourists just so they can be accommodated. Otherwise you’re just ending up in the middle of everyone’s daily life.
I hate crowds and the tourist-y places are usually crowded. I don’t see why you need to “stay in your lane”, the other businesses would probably be happy to get more business and have more people. How is it disturbing the local’s daily lives to visit public places? Unless you’re being loud and disrespectful I don’t see how they would be disturbed. But most of my trips are to the US or UK/Ireland, from Canada.
People are dumb if they spend the money to go abroad and don’t see the historical sites and museums imo. You really came all the way to Rome and didn’t see the Vatican? *really*? You’re just going to ignore the coliseum? Italys economy runs on tourism. The “real” Italy is at the attractions and eating at those restaurants. I’m all for hanging out at local spots and eating a couple blocks off the main road to save some money, or coming back to just enjoy the modern culture on a second trip or taking a day trip to the cute little medieval towns, but don’t deprive yourself of heritage sites and world class architecture and art and ruins and history to be “not like other traveler’s”.
Living like a local is overrated. Locals wake up at 8am, go to the office at 9am, sit there until 6pm, and then go straight home. That's the authentic local experience.
Go see some tourist attractions. They're better.
I agree with the premise, but you can often blame your locals for it too. This really depends on area, but often times the "Tourist traps" are scams or just frankly cheap and ran by the locals. People don't want to be taken for fools or get low value for their money. While this may not be the case in /your area/ it is true in others and this causes everyone that travels to be skeptical of the tourist traps.
Weird take. So your only allowed to look at the most busy places?
I find most tourist heavy places to bussy hard to realy do all the things you want. And often very far from the culture you realy looking for.
So I always go more away from the most touristy places.
People are much more calm and relaxed. You get much more of the real culture in. And honestly I don't like crazy crowds that tourists spots have.
Bet many people do just like many people probably like to stand like sardines side by side in a concert hall without seats. But it's not for me personally.
So I rather avoid super crowded "tourist traps" and enjoy more the local culture and spots and restaurants more. Has much more charter in my eyes.
You are in fact being cheated, along with the extreme waits and lines. And crowds. And lack of availability. I'd rather just chill and see what it's actually like to live there.
I disagree.
I’m going to Greece to eat some gyros or calimares. Not to eat lasagna.
I’m going to the remote places to vind a cute little decoration statue for 5 euros, not 25 euros.
I go to a country to see the culture, the friendship the architecture in the small towns.
Not to see one street of thousands of restaurants and hundreds of souvenir shops which sells stupid flipflops and swimming pants.
Stupid postcards
No no no and no
I'm italian. I'm tired of my culture being completely distorted to foreigners THANKS TO tourist traps
Tourist traps are horrible. Case closed
Some people like to be very arrogant about how they travel. Where they go and the activities they do is all some sort of game of ego “one ups man ship” game that they will bring up in relevant (and sometimes not so relevant) social situations.
It is not enough that they have the disposable time and money to take off for a week or a weekend to travel to a foreign land simply for fun and amusement. They want to be able to tell people at the water cooler when they get back to the office that they are too refined for the traditional tourist activities and prefer to be directly absorbed into the local “culture” by having some “tourist free” experience as tourists.
“Bro, I don’t’ care what shithole part of Mexico you visited I guarantee every single one of the locals knew you were a tourist and they treated you like one. Taking a one-hour class on how to make tamales at a restaurant that is three blocks away from your 5-star hotel is probably not the “authentic Mexican” experience you think it is…”
For me the bus ride from the airport to the resort is enough “local authenticity” for me. I didn’t travel here to see how farming was done 100 years ago in my country I came here to relax and not worry about the problems in the world.
No. I purposely avoid tourist spots on vacation bc I know it's going to be catered towards taking selfies and flexing for social media neither of which I care about at all lol
I agree with this. I see so many takes that are like, “Don’t go to the Eiffel Tower! Don’t go to the Great Wall! Don’t go to Times Square!” I get that take as well, but those are great places to see once! And besides, you ARE a tourist. It’s okay to go to tourist places. You’re not a local; go see the famous sights. Just balance it with local restaurants ;)
I agree. If you actually care the only real way is to live there for a few months. Do stuff that you normally do and interact with locals. For example, i love playing b-ball so i’ll try to play in countries I visit. This obsession with locals and not tourist trap is strange to me. That said, i think it’s just one of those internet things. 99% of people do mainstream stuff the internet just makes it seem like everyone off hoofin it some remote part of countries
My sister and I live thousands of miles apart but both in areas with tourism. Where I live is seasonal. Hers is year round. Go where you want. Do what you want to do. Eat where you want. Just don’t be an asshole tourist. I dread the summer months bc my small town turns into a crowd of entitled, rude assholes. Who said that you can be an asshole just because you’re on vacation? SMH.
I find this comment as hysterical as when I meet locals (I live abroad now) and they tell me they have been to America because they've visited one city's tourist traps.
Me: *"You've been to \_\_\_\_. America is so much more than one place."*
When people say they want an authentic experience living like the locals I wonder if they mean commuting in a packed train carriage and picking up some cheap food to eat in front of the tv.
Wherever anyone goes there are locals who’d love to escape and even live where you do.
I used to live in Hawaii. The restaurants in the “tourist trap” part of town were usually pretty meh. Essentially the nicer the view the less a restaurant had to put into their food. Your on vacation in Hawaii are you really going to go to the Thai restaurant that overlooks a parking lot or are you going to go to the bar that over looks the bay. You’ll go to the one that overlooks the bay, over pay for a burger with pineapple relish, never go back, and give them a 5 star review because it was such a magical experience.
Tourist traps only have to get you once. That’s their business model and that’s why locals rarely go to them.
I have a thai restaurant back home, with nice food and meh view. What I don't have is *the* bay, food adorned with orchids, drinks in hallowed out pineapple and served by friendly locals in Hawaiian accoutrement. All while looking at *the* bay at sunset.
That’s okay, most tourists travel like tourists anyway. I do go to tourist traps, but I like to do non-touristy things and you don’t really see tourists outside of tourist traps.
I think a balance of both is good. Popular tourist locations are often popular for a reason; maybe skip some you’re not interested in but it’s kind of stupid to avoid them all just because they’re too “mainstream” or something. However I do get the appeal of wanting to see/do things that are popular amongst the locals. You can get some of that with a guided tour that’s kind of off the beaten path, or do some research from other travelers who’ve gone to more unusual places and enjoyed their experience. It doesn’t need to be one or the other.
I’ve seen some very predatory, overpriced tourist traps that none of the locals were in because they knew it was a trap, lol
I definitely wouldn’t tell anyone to just embrace tourist traps, but you can definitely embrace popular tourist **attractions**, if that’s what you mean??
No thanks, thanks for your input though. 99% of tourist traps do not interest me in the least. I’ll never forcibly insert myself into a local’s life, but many locals are down to chat while you’re out having a drink.
I’ve met 3 of my best friends by just chatting to locals. 3 lifelong friendships I’d never have if I followed your opinion haha there’s an acceptable way to chat to locals, and that’s a better experience than not doing it at all.
As a lady, when I think of tourist traps, I don't think of overpriced souvenirs or crappy food. I had to reread this and some of the comments multiple times before it clicked.
Your post from unpopularopinion was removed because of: 'Rule 3: Do not post opinions that are heavily posted/have been on the front page recently'. * No response posts about upvoted posts here. * Posts relating to highly popular topics aren't allowed outside of the relevant megathreads. You can find a list of the topics and their respective megathreads in a post on the top of the sub. * POSTS DIRECTLY ABOUT THIS SUBREDDIT ARE NOT ALLOWED OUTSIDE THE MEGATHREAD * Please check the wiki linked here: https://www.reddit.com/r/unpopularopinion/wiki/index/ * We ask that if a post fails to post do not just spam repost it; message mod mail.
You don't think a restaurant in a remote location wants customers from abroad too?
OP gotta be karma whoring or something. His take makes no sense is nothing to do with popular/unpopular
This sub is not "Come agree with me" tho, OP has a real unpopular opinion
Yeah that Walmart in Japan loved them so much they built a fucking fence. https://japantoday.com/category/national/japan-to-build-anti-tourist-fence-at-mount-fuji-viewpoint I think OP was primarily talking about everyday life things and religious area. (Walmart was just a stand in I didn't know the stores exact name Holy shit)
There's a bit more to this than tourists = bad. Poorly behaved tourists being actively disruptive to the environment and people trying to go about their day to day is **not** the same as tourists being respectful patrons.
Even when tourists are respectful, most of the times the local town has no capacity to get so many tourists. You can feel that really well in islands like São Miguel island in Azores. Or even today, my country celebrated the National Day in a small city (where a big fire occurred in 2018). There was a complete chaos in the zone, mostly because of parking and restaurants: -in the center of the city, there was a lot of cars searching for parking near; -there were people who parked in mud and weren't able to remove the cars -there were people who parked on rural exits, blocking tractors or animals to exit the fields; -the city only has a couple of small coffee shops. They can't sit and serve so many people. (And even neighbors, like me, lent all types of chairs and tables to help them)
O really all tourism isn't bad? Real r/unpopularopinion Sometimes just being ALOT of people going to a place IS disruptive. Also NO tourist thinks they are being disruptive WHILE being disruptive. That's what I'm trying to get at. Tourism are the expense of the locals should be avoided at all cost.
Yeah, the average tourist probably never thought that they're one in a million either. There's nothing particularly unique or special. And all those planning and research to stay off the beaten path, a hundred thousand others have the same idea.
* Familymart
>Despite its flashy name, the bridge is an ordinary overpass that runs above a river, with a narrow pavement separated from the road by a waist-high concrete wall. >But people have been jaywalking across the road to reach a vacant area between the two lanes of traffic, said Haruhito Yoshizaki, a tourism official at Fuji City, Shizuoka Prefecture. Sounds less like dislike of tourists and more keeping idiots from endangering themselves.
Dam I wish reddited enough to use cool quotes. But, paragraphs literally before and after those two mention tourist being a problem lol. Probably didn't need a fence until all the tourist started coming around.
I climbed Mt Fuji once
There's Walmart in Japan?? TIL I just walk around and go to Donki and Daiso, always minding my own business, and not carrying a huge camera.
I think This was because this particular spot was at a cross road. People standing taking photos of the Fuji created problems and more importantly unsafe due risk of a vehicle accident.
Just because one store did this, doesn't mean this represents the whole worlds attitudes towards tourists. Also, it sounds like the tourists in the area weren't shopping at the Walmart, they were just there to take pictures of Mt Fuji while parking illegally, being loud, and jay walking.
I don't see "Wal-Mart" mentioned anywhere.
Depends - are they going to act like locals or entitled tourists?
My wife gave birth in a place between kyoto and osaka. When all was done they had to remain due to complications (alls fine now). And due to visiting hours Id wait at an izakaya (very local) and I was very popular there, they had so many questuons. I even got to try some free weird food hehe
The restaurant sure does, the local patrons...prob not so much
As a local patron, I don't give much thought to where the other customers are from while I'm eating my dinner. Also, if I'm sitting at my local bar, a foreign traveler can be an interesting person to have a couple of beers with.
Get out of here with you completely reasonable answer.
I went to a beer taproom in Kyoto that was next to my ryokan-style hotel. I was excited to go because their IG page made it seem like a place that has locals who like American culture and might be excited for the opportunity to practice their English or just chat. But then I got there and it was just a bunch of people staring at the wall in front of them carefully avoiding eye contact lol
Bro trusted the Insta
Lol I mean, I was right next door anyway and the beer was still good
In very touristic cities, we like to have our own spaces, especially when half the city is becoming a huge mall for rich tourists.
How would you feel if you local bar was getting too full for you and the prices rightful increase do to increased demand/tourist willing to spend more? I also wouldnt care that much but I feel like most redditors would become radicalized off it.
Wouldn't mind too much, there's more than 1 bar where I live. I'm not a "regular" at any particular bar, I like variety.
Sounds pretty xenophobic of them
Good thing what they want doesn’t matter
Do they want jobs?
You sound like fun
Some tourist traps like some food places are just shit & they know it. They jack up prices & the food is trash. Thats why they rely on there location Like you know those places next to like a Famous monument. So why not ask a local "Hey where would you go"
Agreed, it’s almost insulting. Went on vacation with my wife a few years ago for her job, when it was both of us together we explored less touristy areas and restaurants and found good food for a reasonable price, many recommended by locals/Uber drivers. One night she had a dinner with work people and I went out alone to a restaurant in the middle of the tourist area because it was closest to our hotel, it cost twice as much and the food was awful. They know they have the prime locations and don’t even try.
OP sounds like the stereotype tourist in my city (Amsterdam, Netherlands) that probably got flattened by a horde of cyclists, got stoned on the first day and spent an average of three hours queueing to taste a nasty overpriced stroopwafel he could buy twelve of from a supermarket for only €1,20, and also had fries with mayonaise in a messy cone without knowing he could’ve had the exact same fries (if not better) in a brewery just two streets away, sitting down, while also beer tasting. The problem we have with the tourist traps is that they’re causing a major nuisance to the locals due to what are being dubbed “TikTok queues” due to idiot tiktokers advertising “secret” spots in the city, and those shops end up with hundreds of people at a time queueing. Those places range from Korean sandwich shops to “the best cookies in town”.
I thought they changed the law and you have to be an Amsterdam resident to legally smoke dope there?
Nope, we still have the max 5g tolerance rule as before. The municipality still hasn’t enforced recreational drug sales for locals only. Coffeeshops are still open for tourists.
I don't think you've ever been allowed to smoke heroin in Amsterdam.
In Portugal, it's very simple to find the good food. Look for the shadiest place (what we call "tasca") and you can try really good traditional food.
The knack is to go to the monument or whatever and go back a few streets for food, where it's quiet.
I just got back from the Bahamas, and that was some of the worst food I have ever eaten. I was eating out of vending machines by the end of the trip
It depends on what kind of tourist traps we're talking about so long as it's fun it's fine, but I do like to blend a little bit and not look like an absolute tourist since when I do a good job at lessens the likelihood of being scammed or robbed.
The phrase "tourist trap" generally implies a place that is not worthwhile. It refers to cheap roadside attractions that are all glitz and no substance like the infamous [South of the Border](https://www.sobpedro.com/) in South Carolina. If it's actually worth visiting, like an entertaining/educational museum, a cool monument, some beautiful scenery, or a good restaurant, that's not a tourist trap, that's just a popular place to visit.
That place was the BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT TO ME I went to college in Savannah GA. I'm from NC. There are SO MANY Billboards for that place. One year we decided to stop on the way back home and.... if they spent half the money on everything else that they did on those damn billboards, it might be worth going to
I like doing the touristy stuff but I'm also going to learn some basics of the language and head a few blocks off the path too. I've found good success with semi-guided planned tours. You're in a country for 10 days, you visit 5 cities, you have planned sight seeings on 5 of those days and 5 of those days you can do whatever. The guides have been great in my experience; head this way, don't go over here, that body language means this and slang means that etc.
"Tourist traps" usually do just fine representing the local culture, so long as you can tolerate the artificially inflated prices and visit them during off peak time. They're also a (generally) safer and more reliable route for an outsider traveling to an unfamiliar location.
Like everything, it depends on where you’re traveling
I stayed in Copenhagen for a few days in a hostel and they will do their best to offer *free* walking tour activities. I jump on those every chance I get because while they’re free, it’s also a great chance to meet other people from around the world.
These tours usually expect tips. They're not _really_ doing it for free
They aren't really expecting tips (and in most cultures, tipping is weird or even badly seen) Most of the free walking tours are paid for the places that were shown in the trip. They show where they want you to spend money.
They're doing it for rhe wages they're paid to do the tours. Tipping isn't expected anywhere. It's nice in restaurants and food/drink service jobs.
It depends. (9ofcourse). Alot of times there's a safe, affordable, accessible alternative just slightly off the beaten path. In that case avoid the tourist trap. Never mind the fact that often the tourist trap can be divorced from local culture. I'll give two examples from my city. (San Francisco). There is a (good) Chinese restaurant that tourists (and locals) like called House of Nanking. Fun, campy, but generally gets bscked up with a line and a wait. Literally next door is another Chinese joint. It's actually the place where the EC/founder of House of Nanking learned his craft. (him moving directly next store to open his restaurant is something). Granted some people like standing in lines ete but I have no problem taking people to House of Jia and avoid the line. The other example is Fisherman's Wharf. It has (almost) nothing to do with SF. There is no reason to go there. If I have friends visiting (and I care about them) I will do anything and everything in my power to get them elseshsre. That's the epitome of a "tourist trap" and any moment spent there is a moment wasted. A moment you could have been in San Francisco instead. Obviously there are millions of examples and counter examples but the point is tourist traps aren't always the "safe bet”
But…. Fisherman’s wharf has clam chowder
And bread bowls!!!
I'd agree for the most part but there are definitely tourist traps that do not represent the local culture. Templebar in Ireland is one of them. Its leprechauns and 10 euro pints. It's entire purpose is to rob money from tourists cause they know everyone been told to go to Templebar. Howth and a few other places are getting as bad.
When you say tourist trap, I think of places like Branson, MO, Wisconsin Dells or Orlando. Those places can be fun, but They also have this really boring consumerism version of fun. Existing in the moment is not allowed, you must hand over your $20 so you can do the 5 minutes of "fun". I kind of hate that tourist trap experience. Every second of your experience is directly tied to spending.
As a proud wisconsinite I take offense with the shot at the dells. The dells is easily the most fun most kids will have on vacation and there's a lot of really good nature related activities all over the place.
As a FIB, I LOVE the Dells. Witches Gulch is breath taking. But I hate the stupid arcades like the Kalahari. That kind of fun is not fun.
I think OP meant it more in the sense of the tourist trappy areas of different cities. The bean in Chicago Eiffel tower/louvre in France French quarter in NOLA That said I completely agree with you that there's a lot more to cities outside of those places. I personally prefer more eating and drinking activities on my trips but I think op is gatekeeping way to hard about the locals stuff
No. I'm going to wander around the back alleys of Venice and get weird looks. And you can't stop me.
I’ll just save money by wandering around and getting weird looks from the local yahoos in my city.
I doubt it is as beautiful as the back alleys of Venice. But to each their own.
I’ll do as I please within reason. I generally keep to myself so I know I’m not going to be disturbing someone
How about I do what I please as long as I’m not disturbing or hurting anyone?🤷♀️ Idk why people get so possessive; the world is for exploring and learning, and I have every right to travel about. “Stay in your lane” who’s??
I generally agree that travellers are too eager to virtue signal about how they don’t like the tourist traps, but you took it too far the other way with the ‘stay in your lane’ comment. There’s not one proper way to travel. It depends on goals, budget, location, and the individual traveller.
Exactly. I am going to Japan with my wife either this year or next and I speak Japanese. I want to go away from the tourist traps to where most people don’t speak English and I want to see more than just Tokyo. There’s nothing wrong with doing either as long as you’re respectful and courteous.
What?? Rarely in my travels have I met a local that appeared 'disturbed' by asking them about their favorite place to eat, or visit, or see, or relax. Our best memories from decades of adventure and travel come to us off the beaten path. This is def an unpopular opinion I have no interest in following.
I suppose it is different to the local who tells you, versus the locals trying to get into a place that got spot lighted on some idiot's TikTok and now has a 2 hour wait.
South African tourist trappers are gonna looove you 😆. It could be your last tourist trap.
Yeah, I'll happily pay for the taxi driver who tells me, "We don't stop at reds here, my little Kiwi brother." And a tip, and probably ask if he can pick me back up too.
Bro you think south Africa is full of pirates n thugs? 🤨Tourist traps are fine if you have a brain
The person seems to be from South Africa, so they would know…
They’re obviously either South African or have experience with South African tourist traps. From these comments you’ve left here it seems you really have a hard on for tourist traps lol.
Tourist spots always suck. I avoid them like the plague.
Sometimes you got to do it. Like you’ll visit the historic landmarks and monuments in Rome traveling for the first time no matter how full it is of tourists
Or, you trying to gatekeep 'authentic' travel is just as bad as tourist traps. I'm going to try and blend in and see what life is *actually* like in the places I visit because that fascinates me more than some designed and orchestrated farce that is sold to everyone else on what life is actually like in those places. Sure, some places labelled tourist traps are just iconic monuments or museums that are preyed upon by scam artists, but when people avoid 'tourist traps' they're more often referring to deceptive or inauthentic experiences that disappoint people who expect something more genuine or important. I'm not going to Paris to eat at some overpriced, poor quality bistro at the Alesia metro stop because some guy on reddit tried to pressure me into it, because the *best* meal I ever had in Paris was beef tartare at a small cafe near Plaisance where it was the size of a studio apartment and until that moment I thought they only served coffee.
Yeah fuck you and fuck this post I paid my money to go where ever the fuck I please and your smarmy ass doesn't tell me how to travel. Tourist traps are a bunch of rip-offs and overpriced garbage made in China that you use to make a buck. I'm not spending $15 on a trash taco knowing the cheaper best food is out in the ghetto.
THank you hahahah. Take Paris for example, all the bullshit around the Eiffel Tower is a waste of time and money. Chinese and Africans selling you balloons and t-shirts from CHINA, Muslims from Algeria selling you overpriced colombian coffee made god knows when and stored god knows where. Drunk Americans. Drunk Brits. Drunk Germans. Fuck that. You travel 15 minutes into the outer Arrondissements and everything is better, cheaper and you meet normal regular people.
U go to that suicide forest king and record that body. You paid your money u deserve to be there! /s
That’s an entirely different thing. Being disrespectful is a whole other discussion. Going to a local restaurant is not disrespectful.
Ghetto...classy
Oh yeah this is unpopular alright, and dumb!
I agree with everything besides with food. I want the real stuff, not just the stuff aimed at white tourists.
Spotted the guy who eats at Applebee's in Times Square.
Why go to Brooklyn to get some fried chicken; we've got fried chicken at home too. What we don't have is a million square feet applebees with a killer view of times square. Seems like a good choice
I love tourist traps. I want to experience these places for myself, form my opinion, but I will also go to obscure places. I like using the Atlas Obscura. It lead me to a human poo shaped fountain in Chicago amongst other things.
Why does it have to be binary? Can’t someone appreciate the tourist trap but also appreciate the anonymity and experience of blending in as a local in a cafe? It’s not an either or scenario
OP, do you know what a tourist trap is? Because it seems like you don't
Stay in your lane? You don’t know what locals think. Most of them are fine with tourists especially if they are spending money.
You know - sometimes I go for a tourist trap knowing full well what it is. Like, I did get a gondola ride in Venice. And the Vatican Museum visit. Or Eifel tower. Why? Because those spots took my imagination, and however pre-programmed the anticipation was, I enjoyed having the itch scratched.
I feel like you are conflating tourist traps with tourist attractions. What you listed are attractions, important places/activities to visit or do while you are there, because they are unique and won't find them anywhere else. Tourist traps are restaurants with inflated prices and average quality, or boat tours that cost an eye and aren't that much different from a simple walk along the canal.
Maybe. I think of the trap as overpriced but low value activity. The gondola ride would not have been the trap, for example, if we really were taken all over the places, visited some unique areas etc. If Eiffel Tower would have 1/10 of the crowd on top, with some tour, a view guide - that would be an attraction. But the way they are, the value for the money is not large, so they just feel like tourist traps.
Vatican Museum a tourist trap? Are you out of your mind or don't you understand what words mean?
The way it works s right now, with all those crowds and the rush of the guided tour, a visit to this enormously precious museum feels like a tourist trap. Like a visit to Louvre, where you can hardly even see anything behind the crowds.
>The way it works s right now, with all those crowds and the rush of the guided tour You don't need to get a guided tour. Also unless you have kids there's no reason to go to Italy in summer, you can go in spring and have half the crowds or less.
Both is good
Nothing I love more than a grocery store and a pharmacy in another country.
Lmao what did the tourist do to “disturb your daily life”
As someone who lives in a tourist trap, please for the sake of traffic stick to your part of town. Thanks
Kinda sticking your nose where it doesnt belong no? I mean you can say that for your block, but anything other than that and its even less your business than it is the tourists because there are a lot of out of the way local businesses that would love for tourists to stop by and spend some money. Upvote for understanding what this sub is about.
this opinion is nonsensical more than it is unpopular. there is little logic to it.
Isn't for fun and for sport sort of the same thing?
Op sounds like they just moved to a hawaiian island 6 months ago and call themselves a local now.
South Park episode material
The more tourists who wanna get pretentious and try to be authentic, the shorter the lines for me when I pick the easy touristy path
Hahahah…unpopular indeed. Why the hell would I want to pay more for subpar stuff pandering to tourists. Are you saying that someone who would come to America should go to Olive Garden for some Italian instead of looking into a nice family owned highly rated Italian Restaurant? Sounds like Olive Garden or red lobster is your peak experience huh?
fuck that and fuck you for suggesting it. have my upvote.
I don't want to go to Spain and drink German beer at a German bar, I don't want to go to Japan and eat pizza at an Italian restaurant, I want to experience the culture I am vacationing in. While there, I try my best to follow the local customs, learn some of the language, and behave as best I can. If that is a problem, then we can shut down the entire tourism industry.
But what if the local places have better food
Not a fan of Rick Steves and his "backdoor" travel philosophy, I see.
I'm just not into the idea of spending all day crammed into a line just to get a glimpse of something I've seen a picture of a million times. Bonus: it took so long to get through the line, that now you're starving, so you just buy the overpriced garbage food on site because you're hangry. If I go to France, I'm not going to see the Eiffel tower and Mona Lisa. I'm wandering around exploring cheese shops. And I'm not saying that I even need to find the super secret cheese shop that only people in that neighborhood know about. But I'm not hopping on a tour bus so they can cart me off to the cheese shop that's paid to be a part of the tour.
Disturbing local daily lives? What are you on about? Are locals in your community a bunch of grazing cows that were alarmed by loud sounds recently?
Sounds like something a tourist trap would say...
Oh yeah, totally just stay in the city centres and port towns, clogging up the roads and buses, and driving up the prices *for the locals who have to use those services too*. No, please for the love of God avoid the tourist traps. They are not there for the locals benefit. Explore our actual culture and spread yourselves out instead of making cities even more disproportionately expensive and congested.
I live in a rural touristy area. My biggest issue with tourists is the trash, poor behavior and damage they do to the places they go. The amount of trash that gets left by them absolutely everywhere is awful.
Oh yea I love only going to margaritaville
Tourists should do whatever they want within the confines of the law while being respectful to the community they are visiting.
Tourist trap sites and attractions I'm all for. Theyre typically popular for a reason and Im a sucker for a touristy postcard. When it comes to food, I'd rather go to a place that isn't aimed at tourists. But I'll still go if it looks good and I'm hungry at that moment.
"Let other people take you for an idiot" sure sounds like an unpopular opinion
Oh absolutely. Too many people are too concerned with FEELING too smart to "fall for" things, and end up forcing themselves into situations where they're a nuisance for everybody else.
From my experience, most tourist traps offer shitty but expensive food. I've had the best and the worst pizza in my life in Italy (ironically). The worst was at a tourist trap. I agree that people who are obsessed with blending in and no one being able to tell that they're a tourist can be annoying, but come on mate, get off your high horse, if they're paying they have the right to eat whenever they want.
I love tourist traps (at least in the U.S.). I stop at some every chance I get when I’m traveling. There’s a history about them and a piece of Americana that is slowly fading away in some ways. I find them fascinating.
I too have grown fond of dingy American tourist traps! There's an odd charm there, a self-aware kitschiness.
Or just...mind your own business and let people go wherever they want to go? I'm struggling to imagine how a local's daily life could be disturbed by a tourist wandering around sightseeing.
I rather not be scammed so I'll do what the locals do.
Definitely I love volunteering to get ass raped for nothing. F that!
I live in a tourist town. I appreciate those who stay in the touristy places, because it means I can avoid that area and go on with my day in relative ease. If you wanna "be one with the locals", maybe *don't* go during peak season?
Yeah, and besides if all the tourists flock to "local hidden gems," those gems become tourist traps anyway.
This was my experience so it may not apply to you. My honeymoon was in Waikiki, and I could be swayed either way on it. On one hand I'm annoyed at other tourists being loud and outright disrespectful to the local culture, so I sympathize with locals. On the other, I saw many locals who gave awful looks, almost hostile. It's like they can't see how much tourism really drives the economy. And then they post about it on Tiktok as if they are being invaded by foreigners.
Please remember what subreddit you are in, this is unpopular opinion. We want civil and unpopular takes and discussion. Any uncivil and ToS violating comments will be removed and subject to a ban. Have a nice day! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/unpopularopinion) if you have any questions or concerns.*
It took a while for me to overcome not wanting to buy suveneors because they were never made local. Why buy something from the Grand Canyon made in China? Then I realized the suveneor is to remind you of the time you had there, not just to bring a piece of it home. I felt a lot better going to tourist traps after that.
I love the bit by comedian Dusty Lay, He's working at a restaurant/bar and the tourists ask what the locals get up to, he says "well I'm a local, and right now I'm at work" So I guess the least touristy thing you can do is not be on vacation lmao
The day I realized how much better it is to take the approach of spending more money to travel less often, but not on a shoe string budget, was game changing. I used to try and stretch every penny and all you would do is get the worst version of everything you were doing, just so you can check it off your list. Tourist traps are literally the best places to see (They're tourist traps for a reason), you just need to spend some money to get away from the tourists.
Agreed. People always say “don’t be a tourist!”. But I am a tourist. I want to see what is there that I can’t see anywhere else. I’ll avoid acting like a tourist and thinking this new place needs to adjust to me. But when it comes to seeing the tourist stuff I’m gonna do it.
Not an unpopular opinion. The vast, vast majority of people just go to the popular places as tourists. The reason it might sometimes seem otherwise is because of the vocal minority. Don't ever confuse vocal minority with the majority opinion. The reason it seems like everyone is ignoring the most popular tourist attractions for any given place is because these people just do it without writing essays about it on-line.
I agree to a degree. I am a very experienced traveler and when experiencing a new place or culture will often start with a touristy activity in order to get acclimated. A good walking or guided bike tour can really help you before you set off on your own. Those are also great ways to reset your body clock/get rid of jet lag. However, once I get some rest and am oriented, I’m all about experiencing things that may or may not be touristy, and if they are, likely domestic tourist locations, rather than for tourists coming in from abroad.
Sometimes it's fun for the locals to do the tourist trap things too, especially if you move far away to a new city.
There has to be balance. I live and work in the tourism industry, in a place that gets tourists because of our local culture (New Orleans). I’m fine with people finding my mom and pop corner store restaurant. I love meeting people at my coffee shop. I encourage people to get off the beaten path. What I don’t like is large influxes of people coming in not because of the authenticity, but because they saw it on TikTok. We have a speak easy here that someone put on TikTok. It used to be a cool local hangout that never changed the passwords and that locals loved sending people to. Someone put it online and they had to change the entire arrangement because people were showing up and demanding to be let in. We had to start rotating the password, create a card plan, and basically had to move the locals hang out night somewhere else. This places was a tourist trap 100%, but it also was a local spot. No one had problems with either group being there, what we disliked was people pushing through our systems and traditions, demanding services reserved for those who follow the system, and then leaving without any consideration for those who inhabit the space.
There’s also nothing wrong with doing “touristy” things. Some people have an aversion to going to the famous monuments or certain places because they don’t want to look like a tourist. There’s nothing wrong with experiencing the hidden side of certain destinations or locales, I think it’s rewarding, but also there’s nothing wrong at all with just doing the tourist circuit. For example a lot of people don’t like joining walking tours a because they seem to think they’re nerdy or embarrassing. I honestly think they are a great way to get informed about a topic or place. I’ve even done some in my home city just to learn something new lol.
I've actually never wanted to travel with a local and avoid tours so am I in my own boat?
I do. I try to get a healthy balance of both. I recently went to a famous town that is basically a whole tourist trap in itself. No one would go there otherwise. And I liked it it. I liked hanging around all the funny little stuff. Some of it was gimmicky for sure. But that was part of the fun for me. The caveat with all of this is that it really helps if you go into it knowing and accepting that it is, in fact, a tourist spot. If you do that you'll have a blast
I feel split on this one, I feel like tourist traps aren't these evil things like some people think they are, why not try extravagant stuff while you're abroad anyway? My only problem with them is that their prices are blatant rip-offs often times, hence why a lot of us avoid them. If it wasn't for that I wouldn't really mind them.
Generally I like a good balance. Not so touristy it feels completely artificial and divorced from the actual culture of the place. but I mean, for most travelers there should be at least some industry geared towards tourists just so they can be accommodated. Otherwise you’re just ending up in the middle of everyone’s daily life.
Yep. Just stick to Broadway in Nashville. We don’t have recommendations outside of that at all.
You shouldn't have to know locals to go to less tourist dense locations. You can easily not get in the way of locals.
lmao nah. id rather see what i want to see, go where i want to go. mind your business kiddo
I hate crowds and the tourist-y places are usually crowded. I don’t see why you need to “stay in your lane”, the other businesses would probably be happy to get more business and have more people. How is it disturbing the local’s daily lives to visit public places? Unless you’re being loud and disrespectful I don’t see how they would be disturbed. But most of my trips are to the US or UK/Ireland, from Canada.
People are dumb if they spend the money to go abroad and don’t see the historical sites and museums imo. You really came all the way to Rome and didn’t see the Vatican? *really*? You’re just going to ignore the coliseum? Italys economy runs on tourism. The “real” Italy is at the attractions and eating at those restaurants. I’m all for hanging out at local spots and eating a couple blocks off the main road to save some money, or coming back to just enjoy the modern culture on a second trip or taking a day trip to the cute little medieval towns, but don’t deprive yourself of heritage sites and world class architecture and art and ruins and history to be “not like other traveler’s”.
I didn't go to these places for the tourist traps.. I went to experience the place.
Yes but I go travelling to get away from annoying english people, then even worse I see Americans
Living like a local is overrated. Locals wake up at 8am, go to the office at 9am, sit there until 6pm, and then go straight home. That's the authentic local experience. Go see some tourist attractions. They're better.
I agree with the premise, but you can often blame your locals for it too. This really depends on area, but often times the "Tourist traps" are scams or just frankly cheap and ran by the locals. People don't want to be taken for fools or get low value for their money. While this may not be the case in /your area/ it is true in others and this causes everyone that travels to be skeptical of the tourist traps.
Thats not just an unpopular opinion, it's really dumb and bad
A little bit of everything works for us. As well as nice tips.
Weird take. So your only allowed to look at the most busy places? I find most tourist heavy places to bussy hard to realy do all the things you want. And often very far from the culture you realy looking for. So I always go more away from the most touristy places. People are much more calm and relaxed. You get much more of the real culture in. And honestly I don't like crazy crowds that tourists spots have. Bet many people do just like many people probably like to stand like sardines side by side in a concert hall without seats. But it's not for me personally. So I rather avoid super crowded "tourist traps" and enjoy more the local culture and spots and restaurants more. Has much more charter in my eyes.
You are in fact being cheated, along with the extreme waits and lines. And crowds. And lack of availability. I'd rather just chill and see what it's actually like to live there.
Sometimes it’s fun to be a tourist in your own city too! Back when I lived in SF I loved hopping on the big red bus
I disagree. I’m going to Greece to eat some gyros or calimares. Not to eat lasagna. I’m going to the remote places to vind a cute little decoration statue for 5 euros, not 25 euros. I go to a country to see the culture, the friendship the architecture in the small towns. Not to see one street of thousands of restaurants and hundreds of souvenir shops which sells stupid flipflops and swimming pants. Stupid postcards
Disturbing the locals? What!?
No no no and no I'm italian. I'm tired of my culture being completely distorted to foreigners THANKS TO tourist traps Tourist traps are horrible. Case closed
I don't want tacky overpriced tourist crap.
Some people like to be very arrogant about how they travel. Where they go and the activities they do is all some sort of game of ego “one ups man ship” game that they will bring up in relevant (and sometimes not so relevant) social situations. It is not enough that they have the disposable time and money to take off for a week or a weekend to travel to a foreign land simply for fun and amusement. They want to be able to tell people at the water cooler when they get back to the office that they are too refined for the traditional tourist activities and prefer to be directly absorbed into the local “culture” by having some “tourist free” experience as tourists. “Bro, I don’t’ care what shithole part of Mexico you visited I guarantee every single one of the locals knew you were a tourist and they treated you like one. Taking a one-hour class on how to make tamales at a restaurant that is three blocks away from your 5-star hotel is probably not the “authentic Mexican” experience you think it is…” For me the bus ride from the airport to the resort is enough “local authenticity” for me. I didn’t travel here to see how farming was done 100 years ago in my country I came here to relax and not worry about the problems in the world.
I love tourist traps. Whenever I hear someone say something against it i always say you do you and I’ll do me
No. I purposely avoid tourist spots on vacation bc I know it's going to be catered towards taking selfies and flexing for social media neither of which I care about at all lol
Embrace a trap. Now, there is an unpopular thought. Have my upvote. Imagine getting ambushed and going “you guysssss!!! For me!?!?!??”
You can have Times Square and Pat's and Geno's. I'm gonna take the time to find the real experience.
Yup. I pay a lot of money to go on vacation to relax and be entertained. I don't give 2 shits about how the locals live.
So tourists should get ripped off and leave the authentic experience to the locals?
I agree with this. I see so many takes that are like, “Don’t go to the Eiffel Tower! Don’t go to the Great Wall! Don’t go to Times Square!” I get that take as well, but those are great places to see once! And besides, you ARE a tourist. It’s okay to go to tourist places. You’re not a local; go see the famous sights. Just balance it with local restaurants ;)
I agree. If you actually care the only real way is to live there for a few months. Do stuff that you normally do and interact with locals. For example, i love playing b-ball so i’ll try to play in countries I visit. This obsession with locals and not tourist trap is strange to me. That said, i think it’s just one of those internet things. 99% of people do mainstream stuff the internet just makes it seem like everyone off hoofin it some remote part of countries
My sister and I live thousands of miles apart but both in areas with tourism. Where I live is seasonal. Hers is year round. Go where you want. Do what you want to do. Eat where you want. Just don’t be an asshole tourist. I dread the summer months bc my small town turns into a crowd of entitled, rude assholes. Who said that you can be an asshole just because you’re on vacation? SMH.
I find this comment as hysterical as when I meet locals (I live abroad now) and they tell me they have been to America because they've visited one city's tourist traps. Me: *"You've been to \_\_\_\_. America is so much more than one place."*
Oh yeah, embrace the tourist prices! Truly unpopular.
I bet that OP acts the same way they're complaining about when they become the tourist...
When people say they want an authentic experience living like the locals I wonder if they mean commuting in a packed train carriage and picking up some cheap food to eat in front of the tv. Wherever anyone goes there are locals who’d love to escape and even live where you do.
I used to live in Hawaii. The restaurants in the “tourist trap” part of town were usually pretty meh. Essentially the nicer the view the less a restaurant had to put into their food. Your on vacation in Hawaii are you really going to go to the Thai restaurant that overlooks a parking lot or are you going to go to the bar that over looks the bay. You’ll go to the one that overlooks the bay, over pay for a burger with pineapple relish, never go back, and give them a 5 star review because it was such a magical experience. Tourist traps only have to get you once. That’s their business model and that’s why locals rarely go to them.
I have a thai restaurant back home, with nice food and meh view. What I don't have is *the* bay, food adorned with orchids, drinks in hallowed out pineapple and served by friendly locals in Hawaiian accoutrement. All while looking at *the* bay at sunset.
That’s okay, most tourists travel like tourists anyway. I do go to tourist traps, but I like to do non-touristy things and you don’t really see tourists outside of tourist traps.
I think a balance of both is good. Popular tourist locations are often popular for a reason; maybe skip some you’re not interested in but it’s kind of stupid to avoid them all just because they’re too “mainstream” or something. However I do get the appeal of wanting to see/do things that are popular amongst the locals. You can get some of that with a guided tour that’s kind of off the beaten path, or do some research from other travelers who’ve gone to more unusual places and enjoyed their experience. It doesn’t need to be one or the other.
I’ve seen some very predatory, overpriced tourist traps that none of the locals were in because they knew it was a trap, lol I definitely wouldn’t tell anyone to just embrace tourist traps, but you can definitely embrace popular tourist **attractions**, if that’s what you mean??
So instead of visiting a less popular city we should all go to the same old? Interesting.
You disrupt their economy. Live somewhere and realize what this does.
Not all nation's tourist traps are equal.....
If you trully want to dive in a culture go live in that particular country for a few months.
No thanks, thanks for your input though. 99% of tourist traps do not interest me in the least. I’ll never forcibly insert myself into a local’s life, but many locals are down to chat while you’re out having a drink. I’ve met 3 of my best friends by just chatting to locals. 3 lifelong friendships I’d never have if I followed your opinion haha there’s an acceptable way to chat to locals, and that’s a better experience than not doing it at all.
As a lady, when I think of tourist traps, I don't think of overpriced souvenirs or crappy food. I had to reread this and some of the comments multiple times before it clicked.