So I saw an article on Ranker the other day talking about the 28 worst tourist traps out there.  Okay okay I know that it’s just one of those clickbait style slideshow posts, but it did get me thinking about some of the crazy tourist traps out there.
a tourist trap is an establishment, or group of establishments, that has been created or re-purposed with the aim of attracting tourists and their money.
Some of the biggest tourist traps I’ve been to
Looking through that list, I definitely had to agree with some of the tourist traps in the list, starting with #1 on the list – Plymouth Rock
Not to mention that there is a decent amount of skepticism as to whether the Pilgrims even landed at Plymouth Rock. Â We visited Plymouth Rock way back in 2001 and you get there and it’s pretty much like “Yup, that’s a rock”. Â You can’t even get anywhere close to it as it’s under glass in an enclosure.
A couple of other of the tourist traps on the list that I’d been to (and agree with) were #3 Hollywood Walk of Fame, and #5 Salem, Massachusetts, which they described as “This town was basically invented to separate tourists from their money. If you really feel like being cursed with the spell of ‘moneyus spendingus’ go in the off season; Salem is a nightmare from September through October” – something I totally agree with. Â We visited Salem back in 2001 (on the same trip as Plymouth Rock) and it was pretty lame. Â #25 The Tower of London was something we visited when we were in Europe last year and I’m glad we just checked it out from the outside.
We also just got back from #10 The Space Needle
And of course, I’ve already written about #11 Four Corners
(SEE ALSO: Four Corners: Bucket list worthy or total ripoff?)
Branson, Missouri is not on the list but is another place for tourists that is famous for…. having a lot of tourists. Â But when we were there a few months ago, we ended up having a lot of fun at the various things to do in Branson.
Still, a couple of places on the list seemed like they weren’t very tourist trap-py – things like #13 Times Square, #15 the Taj Mahal, #23 the Great Pyramid of Giza. My son and I were in Giza a few years ago and while yes, there were lots of people there, it didn’t really feel like a tourist tap per se.
(SEE ALSO: 1 Day in Cairo Egypt (Pyramids, Sphinx and traffic))
How many of these 28 tourist traps have you been to? Â What’s the biggest tourist trap you’ve ever been to?
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Times Square not a tourist trap? You’s a tourist!
The problem with the Pyramids is that the only place you are not continuously harassed by people try to sell you souvenirs, camel rides, “special access”, etc., is on the bus to/from the site. (The bus stopping at the “special shop” on the way back is another story.) Technically, vendors at the Pyramids are illegal, but the tourist police officers in the area make a nice income on the pay-offs from the vendors who operate there. If you can manage to get away from the hawkers, Giza is quite spectacular.
Yeah. We hired a driver who was able to keep those guys mostly at bay
I’ve done about half of these. As a tourist visiting new places – I’d argue that most of these are worth doing one time provided you have the time and are in the nearby area.
I’ve only done most of the American places. I thought they were all worth seeing once. I think I’d throw Mt Rushmore on the list. I’m glad I went once but it’s not worth seeing twice.