Top travel tips: 11 common tourist scams to look out for and avoid being ripped off
Travelling the world is great, but there are some real horror stories of visitors being duped in foreign countries. Don't be one of them
No matter how hard you try to fit into the crowd, when you're travelling abroad, almost everyone stands out as "foreign". If you're wandering the streets of some far-flung locale, you pretty much have the word “TOURIST” flashing above your head like a neon sign, and that makes you an easy target for scammers.
Here are some real scams you might encounter. You have been warned
1. Milk for a hungry baby brother
“Please, I need to buy some milk for my baby brother/sister!” Most people will just give that kid money. But it won’t go anywhere near a baby.
If you think there maybe is a starving infant, and it's better to go with the kid to buy the milk yourself, the kid will steer you to a particular shop. Decline the offer and buy it elsewhere. If you buy from the shop recommended by the kid, you can be sure your milk will have a very short trip straight back to the shop’s fridge, and the money will have a short trip into the scammer's pocket.
2. Money for reformed citizens
If a teenager or anyone old enough, really, asks you for money to help a centre for reformed drug addicts, criminals, etc ... nope. You have no proof that this is what they are putting the money to.
Don’t be fooled by convincing testimony or glossy pictures or handwritten pleas. Don't give in to guilt; instead imagine the person asking for money heading off to the nearest pizza house or bar and laughing their head off at you.
3. Backpacker in distress
I’m a backpacker like you and I’ve lost EVERYTHING. I don’t know how I’m going to get home! Some might even shed tears. Offer to go with them to the police station and report the crime. You’ll be amazed how quickly they leave you alone.
4. Stationery for orphans
Please buy these hard-working orphans some stationery. They are so eager to learn. But there isn't a stationery shop in sight, and I'm just on this tour. Not to worry, here’s the stationery, if you pay for it, we’ll give it to them. LOL no. It’s a variation on the milk story. That pile of books or pens has been sold a few hundred times a week. It’s not going anywhere near eager kids.
5. Money for a meal
We are not saying there are no poor people in desperate need on the streets of the world’s cities. The best thing you can do is donate to an organisation that looks after these genuinely needy people. However, if someone does strike you as in desperate need, again, don’t give them cash. If a scrawny kid is hungry, by all means, buy them a meal. Or share a meal with them. If they are genuinely hungry, they will be grateful.
Many street kids work for gang leaders who will take their money and then put them out on the streets again, with no thought for their well-being. Also, many street kids are not looking to buy food; they are looking to buy drugs, or even glue that can be inhaled, so they can briefly escape from their life of pain and misery. If you want to make a more immediate impact than waiting to get home and donating online, find a reputable church in the area and make a donation there.
6. Money for the church
Religious people asking for money? Lol nope. The vast majority of religions are very rich. Check out their temples sometime. They don’t need your cash.
7. I just need to break this large bill
Don’t take money from people seeking change. It seems so simple: “I’ll give you ‘x’ amount because I need change to buy food etc, and the shop/vending machine won’t take this note ...” Sometimes, they’ll distract you, and you’ll find the money gone from your wallet – like magic. Or, they may pass you a counterfeit note. Either way, avoid!
8. Shady fortune-tellers
Many fortune-tellers are scammers. Some of them give comfort to troubled people and that’s their business. But don’t you go paying them unless you understand full well that you're paying money for nothing. Nevertheless, they are very convincing, so if you do end up parting with your money, think of it as the price you pay for a show. It's a performance, after all.
9. A team of scammers
Scammers often don’t work alone. You need to remember that there are others who may be after your money. You will often see this under bridges where people play a game called “Three Card Trick” or “Find the Lady”, "Three Card Monte", "Pea in Shell game".
These games are used by conmen to trick hapless observers. If you guess which card (or shell or cup) contains the lady, you win the bet. It seems so easy. People in the crowd seem to be winning! So you decide to have a go and fail badly, losing your money. The guy winners are part of the con-team. You can’t win. The dealer is performing a sleight of hand trick, like a magician, keeping the ball in his hand for whichever cup you don't pick. Walk away.
10. A priceless relic
Another scam involves a priceless relic/diamond/whatever. Someone near you will begin talking to someone else about this amazing thing they have. The second person might ask to see it, and agree that it is priceless, and wants to buy it. But they don't have any money on them, and the seller has to go.
Somehow the conversation begins to involve you. If you could give the seller a deposit, and hold on to the relic while the buyer goes to collect the small fortune it's supposedly worth, the buyer will give you a fee for your trouble when they return. No they won’t. This is because the relic is worthless and they’ve fled with your money by the time you realise you’ve been scammed.
11. Asking for directions
One of the easiest to fall victim to. If people ask you for directions, don’t let them get too close; just move along and mumble something in another language. Once you stop and engage, you open yourself up to scams and pickpockets.
This article was curated in conjunction with Young Post.
