Travel Scams & Lessons After 4 Years On The Road

In this blog I will share a bunch of lessons I’ve learned from my travels relating to money, scams, and things not going to plan. This is based on 4 years of full-time travel and nearly 2 decades of frequent travel. This is also my personal experience, and yours might be different.

Shoe shine

This is a pretty old one, however my mum and I fell for it. We were in Istanbul a few years ago when one of the local shoe shine guys dropped his brush conveniently in front of us. I had heard of this scam, however my mum hadn’t, and being the good human that she is, she picked it up and gave it back to him. At this point he stopped, said thank you, and offered to shine my shoes for free. The first red flag was the fact that I had pristine white trainers on, so I’m not quite sure what he was planning to shine. I politely said no thank you, at which point he started to get more persistent, eventually grabbing my arm and becoming aggressive. I had to raise my voice and display some aggression for him to back off.

The scam part is that while he shines your shoes for “free”, he tells you a sob story so you feel sorry for him and give money. If you don’t, aggression usually follows. If you see a brush being dropped, ignore it.

Overly friendly behaviour

One of the best parts of travel is meeting different people, which is often much easier if they are friendly and open. However, there are times where people will be overly friendly for no clear reason. This is a double-edged sword, as you can easily miss amazing opportunities, but equally you can avoid scams.

This happens in many countries, with the usual setup being a local striking up a conversation. They are very keen to learn about you and seem overly enthusiastic. In my experience, most of these interactions eventually lead to that person asking you to come into their shop and buy something, or to a bar owned by a mate for an overpriced drink.

Context matters. In Morocco, many people behaved like this and it was clearly to get you into their shop. In Japan, an old man just wanted to say hello and show us his garden overlooking Mt Fuji. In Istanbul, an older man chatted to me in a tourist area and after 15 minutes asked me to visit his shop. I politely declined as I was waiting for a friend and had other plans. This resulted in him becoming visibly irritated before walking away to another group of tourists. Only with experience do you start to confidently tell what’s fake and what’s genuine.

Overly persuasive sales

We’ve all been walking down the street when someone tries a little too hard to get you into their shop, restaurant, or bar. In most cases a polite no is enough, but sometimes they keep pushing. I always avoid these places, because every time I’ve said yes, I’ve ended up with an awful meal or buying junk. This isn’t a scam, just something to be aware of. High quality places don’t need someone persuading people to come inside.

Giving you a “gift”

This is a common one across Europe. Someone selling random items like bracelets or sunglasses will approach you and start a conversation. As you engage, they’ll say they like you and offer you a bracelet as a free gift. If you accept it, the sob story follows and you’re expected to give money. At this point the bracelet is usually already on your wrist and the situation can quickly become uncomfortable if you refuse. Avoid this by not engaging and by not allowing anyone to put anything on you.

Street games

If you live in London or Paris, you’ve probably seen this. A group of people playing a game where a ball is hidden under a cup and the cups are shuffled. A bystander picks the cup and magically wins money. The scam is that everyone you see playing is part of it. They win on purpose to draw you in. The moment you join, you will lose. It’s all rigged and you will never win.

Asking you to sign something

I don’t see this as often, but a few times people have approached me asking to sign petitions. If you do, they will then demand a donation. Usually it’s framed as a noble cause, which is often not true. Best to avoid these situations altogether.

Not keeping valuables on the table

Don’t keep valuables on the table, especially when sitting outside in busy areas. A common trick is for someone to distract you while placing a newspaper or flyer over your phone, then walking off with it. Often more than one person is involved. By the time you realise what happened, your stuff is gone.

Avoid places that don’t display prices

You’ll come across shops, markets, and food stalls that don’t display prices, especially in tourist-heavy areas. This is often designed to give you a very different and inflated price compared to locals. I don’t mind paying more than locals and often do when shopping in small independent places, but not displaying prices is a good indicator that you might be overcharged. It’s not always a scam, just something to keep in mind.

Never hold a note in your hand when asking for a price

This is a mistake I’ve made a few times, most recently in Hong Kong. I was buying fruit at a market and had a 100 HKD note in my hand. I only picked up a handful of items, yet they conveniently came to exactly 100 HKD. I’d bought the same items there before for less. This isn’t a scam, but it’s something to be aware of, especially if you’re on a budget. Never hold cash in your hand when asking for prices.

Always ask for a price

This sounds obvious, but if you don’t see pricing, always ask and agree on a price beforehand. This is especially important with taxis in foreign countries. Once the price is clearly agreed and acknowledged, only then decide whether to go ahead.

Clearly say how much you’re giving someone

This was an expensive lesson. Last year I arrived in Hong Kong and took a local taxi instead of an Uber. These taxis only accept cash and are official, so I let my guard down. The journey should have been 500 HKD. I remember taking out 800 HKD, one 500 note and three 100 notes. As we arrived, I was distracted on my phone and forgot what notes I had. I handed over four notes, thinking they were all 100s. The driver said I’d only given him 400 HKD, when in reality I’d given him 800 without realising. For some reason my brain completely checked out and he took full advantage. I felt bad and even gave him £10 on top. In short, I was stupid, he exploited it, and I tipped him for the privilege. Always count your cash and clearly state how much you’re handing over.

Not allowing people into your personal space

I value my personal space and get uncomfortable when people enter it. While travelling, people will sometimes try to get too close, and while this can be unavoidable in some situations, I do my best to prevent it. This also helps reduce the risk of pickpocketing.

Dressing appropriately

I often see tourists draped in designer gear from head to toe. Even if all these items are fake, and cost less than a cup of tea, they still give off the image that someone might have something worth stealing. When travelling you want to attract as little attention to yourself as possible. This isn’t just for safety reasons, but also to not “bruise” the place you’re in. I always go for plain clothes with no labels in neutral colours. Are they fashionable? Absolutely not. Do they help me blend in? Yes.

Not travelling alone

Even when I’m solo travelling, I tell people I’m travelling with friends. This is especially true when taking taxis or when strangers start conversations. Until I know someone’s intentions, I don’t want them to know I’m alone.

Not posting live

This applies more to people with a social media following, however anyone with a public profile should avoid posting where they are in real time. I had it before when I was shooting for a client, shared where in the city I was, and had someone come to say hello and wanting to hang out. I had to be pretty abrupt with him because I was in the middle of a client shoot, and he was just hanging around. While this person was well meaning, it does highlight the danger of sharing exactly where you are in real time. I now only share a location after I’ve left. The negative aspect of this is that you will miss out on random meet-ups with people who follow you.

Sitting where you can see the room

Whether dining solo or with others, I always try to sit where I can see the whole restaurant, or at least most of it. This allows me to react if something happens and prevents anyone from sneaking up behind me. Some might call this paranoid, but I once experienced someone walking into a café in Turkey and firing a gun. Since then, I’m happy to be cautious.

Faking confidence

Confidence can be the deciding factor between someone trying something with you or leaving you alone. I’ve watched enough interviews with former criminals to know that posture, body language, dress, and how you carry yourself can influence whether you’re seen as an easy target. I’m no expert on confidence, but it’s something worth being aware of.

The issue with being overly careful

I’m fully aware that some people might read this and feel worried about travelling, or think I’m overly cautious and missing out on spontaneous opportunities. That’s not what this is about. I’m not saying don’t trust anyone or see everyone as a threat. That would make for a miserable trip. I’m simply saying don’t be naive, and use experience, yours and others’, to learn how to separate genuine interactions from those with ulterior motives. As you travel more, your gut feeling gets better. If you’re too cautious, you’ll miss great experiences. If you’re too naive, you’ll get taken advantage of.

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