It is currently the height of the tourist season in many countries. As such, smart tourists must be aware of — and protect themselves against — the numerous scams that are out there.
As UK-based Just the Flight puts it:
“Tourists are often the most vulnerable to scams; they are probably unfamiliar with the surrounding area; they are often in need of help and information and tend to be trusting of locals; they are likely not to question what they see or are told; they often cannot speak the language where they are; and they are probably carrying large amounts of cash and credit.”
“Most scammers are smart. They know how to cheat money out of tourists in ways that make identification difficult, if not impossible. Some scams are quite obvious once they have occurred, with the victim realizing they have been cheated but only after it is too late. Others are more subtle, where the victim may never realize that anything went wrong, and they rationalize that they have either lost of miscounted their money. Tourist scammers and pickpockets take advantage of weak laws and law enforcement, thereby allowing them to effectively operate indefinitely while nothing is stopping them.”
Take a look at this infographic from Just the Flight and avoid the worst tourist scams.
