Traveling Soon? Here’s Where You’ll Face the Most Scams and How to Protect Yourself

Traveling should be exciting, relaxing, and enjoyable. But for scammers, tourists are an easy way to make money fast. From inflated taxi prices to fake booking sites, scammers have become creative in taking advantage of visitors.

“Many of these travel scams work because they blend in with what feels normal in a tourist environment, such as crowds, confusion, and a general lack of local knowledge,” says Jason Zirkle, CFE and Training Director at the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.

Knowing what some common scams are, where they occur the most, and how to protect yourself against them will ensure you have only positive memories from your travels.

Top Scam Locations

According to Bounce, a website that helps travelers secure their luggage worldwide, the following cities are most often cited in customer reviews as locations where travel scams often occur.

Riga, Latvia

Riga is often cited as one of the major tourist scam spots, with travelers claiming cabbies do not use meters or take longer routes to increase fares. They also claim that marketed “free” tours end with a lot of pressure to provide a large tip to the tour guide.

Istanbul, Turkey

This is a city rich in history. Scams can vary greatly in Istanbul, especially around the many cultural landmarks. One that may not be so obvious to the unsuspecting traveler is when locals befriend solo travelers and suggest going for drinks, ultimately leaving the tourist with the high bill. While meeting people when you travel is great, be careful about money and people you don’t know.

Budapest, Hungary

One of the most beautiful cities in Europe, Budapest ranks high on forums for travel scams, often centering on surcharges added to the bill at restaurants and other forms of evening entertainment. When traveling, prices may not always be clear, and service charges are added to the bill. Always double-check your bill and call out what was not clear beforehand.

Bangkok, Thailand

Scammers in Bangkok often use the “closed temple scam,” where locals tell tourists their temple is closed and offer to take them elsewhere, which often ends up being a shop where they’re pressured to buy. Always head to the site yourself or check opening times beforehand.

Barcelona, Spain

As one of the most visited cities in the world, Barcelona is often where pickpockets can be found. Specific areas, such as La Rambla or Sagrada Familia, are packed with people, making it a prime location for scammers to swipe your valuables.

Other cities with high scam rates include Paris, Delhi, Cancun, Hong Kong, and Hanoi.

Common Travel Scams and How to Avoid Them

Here are some of the most common travel scams tourists face: a mix of older, traditional scams and ones utilizing modern technology.

Taxi overcharging: This is a simple scam to conduct for taxi drivers where they overcharge for a taxi ride. “Aggressive friendliness, broken meters in taxis…can all be signs of trouble,” warns Zirkle. They may also take an unnecessarily long route or quote a flat rate that is way above the standard fare.

The best way to avoid this scam is to use official taxi stands, ask your hotel to arrange one, or use rideshare apps like Uber. If you must grab a taxi in the middle of a street, set the price before starting the ride or insist on using the meter. If these don’t work, don’t get in the taxi.

Fake booking sites: Scammers are creating fake sites that closely resemble legitimate ones, often using new technology, such as AI. The sites feature extremely low prices, enticing travelers.

“Scammers are now using AI tools to build professional-looking fake websites, generate convincing customer emails, and even write fake reviews that sound authentic. It’s no longer just obvious red flags like bad grammar,” says Zirkle. “A common trick is swapping a single letter or using a different domain extension to fool people into thinking it’s legitimate.”

To protect yourself, book from trusted sites, verify URLs, and check reviews on third-party sites. Additionally, Zirkle notes, “If a site is pressuring you to pay quickly, asking for unusual payment methods like wire transfers or gift cards…it’s worth pausing and double-checking.”

Pickpocketing: Pickpocketing is one of the oldest scams. Crowded places, such as markets, big tourist attractions, and public transport, are the battlegrounds for pickpockets who take advantage of jostling crowds to lift items from tourists.

Many also work in teams, where a few cause a distraction, diverting a traveler’s attention, and another swipes a wallet, camera, purse, or other item. Always be aware of your surroundings, pay attention, keep your wallet and money safely secured, and don’t carry all your cash, cards, and IDs in one place.

ATM skimming: This involves scammers stealing your card information at an ATM by installing devices over card slots or placing hidden cameras where they can see your PIN information.

“ATMs that appear to have been tampered with or [have] ‘helpful’ people near [them] offering assistance…are often card skimmers or people running a distraction scam where they steal your money,” says Zirkle.

You can prevent this by using ATMs in safe locations, indoors at banks, covering the keypad when entering your information, and inspecting the machine for strange attachments.

Fake police: Scammers dress up as police officers and stop travelers, claiming they’ve violated some law, and suggesting a bribe would resolve the issue. Ask for their official police ID or to be escorted to the nearest police station to handle the matter.

Unsecured public Wi-Fi networks: Using unsecured Wi-Fi connections is extremely dangerous because scammers can intercept your data, stealing all critical information on your phone, such as passwords and account numbers, and install malware.

“When you’re traveling, especially internationally, your digital footprint can be just as vulnerable as your physical belongings,” Zirkle says. “The biggest risk usually comes from using public Wi-Fi at airports, hotels, or cafes.”

“That’s where a good VPN (virtual private network) on your computer, device, or your phone comes in,” Zirkle adds. “It encrypts your connection and helps keep your personal information safe.”

If you’re using public Wi-Fi, keep it to surfing the Internet and avoid logging into sensitive apps, primarily financial ones.

Tips to Keep Yourself Safe

• Look up the most common scams in the place you’re visiting and ways to protect yourself from them.
• Try using credit cards over cash or debit cards as they provide better protection.
• Double-check booking sites and any transportation companies to ensure their validity.
• Don’t carry valuables on you. Most hotels have safes where you can store cash, passports, and other important items.
• Always use strong passwords for any apps on your phone, set up two-factor authentication (especially for email and banking), and use a VPN when accessing public Wi-Fi.
• Zirkle notes that “Some travelers even use identity monitoring services while abroad,” and that “it’s also smart to have a secure cloud backup of important documents like your passport and travel itinerary.”

The Bottom Line

Vacation is meant to be a break from stress, not a time to worry about getting scammed. You can ensure peace of mind on your travels by staying one step ahead of all the common tricks. Whether it be avoiding overpriced taxis or people trying to steal your valuables, a little vigilance goes a long way.

Trust your instincts, research before you go, store away your valuables, set up tech-savvy precautions, and your time away from home should be fun and worry-free. “A little caution upfront can save a lot of trouble later,” says Zirkle.