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Scams in Italy travel? Yes, unfortunately, they exist.
Who cannot help but love Italy? Rich history, interesting culture, majestic architecture, and good food—it’s every traveler’s paradise!
However, our first foray to this Mediterranean spot is sadly marred by an unfortunate happenstance of getting scammed—not just once, but thrice. And after having done our research on the matter before the trip, notwithstanding. Oh, it wasn’t anything serious or dangerous, really, but still. The first one we managed to deflect successfully; the last two, not so much.
Yes, perhaps not our finest memories, but there’s a lesson or two to be learned from them. They’re also part of this huge package of travel experiences that have made us better travelers. Or at least, we’d like to think so.
At any rate, we hope that this post will help you avoid falling prey to these kinds of dirty tricks.
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Italy Travel Scam 1: Dishonest Locals
Some locals would mislead travelers for their gain. A case in point was during our first Venice, Italy travel.
We arrived close to midnight at our San Marco Vaporetto drop. Since it was autumn, the tide was high and the streets were flooded, Piazza San Marco included. There were raised platforms for pedestrians to walk on in some areas. However, other narrower side streets like those leading to our hotel didn’t have that luxury. So unless we were going to hire a gondola (which there were none because of the lateness of the hour) we’d have a fat chance of sleeping in a warm bed that night.
Boot Incident
Our other option was to buy these plastic knee-high boots designed to be worn over your shoes for protection from the flood. They were being peddled in the streets and cost around €15 a pair. We weren’t keen on spending that much for something temporary or for waddling in murky water, so that was a no.
Ergo, we whipped out our trusty GPS and looked for alternative routes that weren’t flooded. We could see via the GPS that we were getting near our hotel, but this guy who was peddling those plastic boots came to us and asked if we wanted help. Since he seemed to know Venice, we asked if our hotel was near. He repeatedly said no, claimed that it was much farther and flooded to boot, and might he interest us in buying his boots.
To cut the story short, it turned out that our hotel was just a few doors down and not flooded at all. It wasn’t hard to realize then that he lied to us just so we’d buy his boots.
We encountered similar personalities in Venice like storeowners who claimed that they were selling real Murano glasses, when in fact they weren’t.
Beware of these people who are desperate enough to lie to get your money during your Italy travel.
Italy Travel Scam 2: The Helpful Stranger
There are also those who would suddenly approach you out of nowhere and offer you help (like carrying your luggage) without waiting for your consent. They wouldn’t listen to your refusal despite being firm about it. And then by the time you’ve arrived at your hotel or wherever your destination is, they’ll immediately ask for money. Money for help you never even asked for or were given the chance to consent to in the first place.
“Helpful” Strangers in Venice
This happened to us when we had just disembarked from our Vaporetto in Venice (yes, again). We were on our way to Venezia Santa Lucia train station. Suddenly two big guys approached us and immediately got hold of our luggage before we could even say no. We told them we could carry our small cabin luggage ourselves. In fact, we did so for almost the last month that we’ve been going around Europe. They wouldn’t listen nor let go of our bags, though, and just kept walking. They had longer strides than us so it was difficult to keep up.
When we reached the station, they started demanding €25 (what the…) for that short walk from the Vaporetto to the station. Suffice it to say, we didn’t hand out any money, but not without much anger and shouting on their part.
The thing is, we have no problems paying for a service we were honestly appraised of from the start and to which we consented. But having been tricked and our bags forcibly taken from us in the guise of “help” and then asked to shell out hard-earned cash for that pseudo-help is another thing. Had they been upfront and honest about it from the start and had they given us the chance to agree, then we would have considered it.
Italy Travel Scam 3: The Fake Tourist Information Employee
These are scammers who pose as tourist information agents. They would roam train stations and tourist spots on the pretext of helping travelers.
We had this experience when we arrived at Roma Termini station in Rome. While we were still finding our bearings, this tall and burly man with a British accent approached us. He claimed he was from the Tourist Information Office and was tasked to help travelers navigate the train station. Then he showed us an ID, which we later realized looked badly printed and fake. He said he’d help us find the right platform to board the train going to our hotel.
Since it was late and we were really tired, we said okay. He did help us. But had he been a real Tourist Information employee, he wouldn’t have found it necessary afterward to ask money for his help since that was his job in the first place. We did give him a small amount, though. Later, we saw that he pulled the same scam on another unsuspecting traveler.
Wrap Up
We hope you find this article helpful and hopefully will keep you from those scammers. Always be vigilant and safe! As always, happy travels!
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Hi Olivia, thanks for sharing your personal experiences and thankfully, they didn’t turn out too bad as you mentioned! Italy faces one of the highest scam rates in Europe, somewhere around the top 3 behind Spain and France and there too many unscrupulous scammers around. The worst culprits are the taxi drivers and restaurant owners. For anyone travelling to Italy soon, do check out (http://travelscams.org/europe/23-most-common-tourist-scams-in-italy/) to learn of the latest scams, protect yourself and enjoy the holiday that you deserve.
Hi there! Yes, a good thing they weren’t the worst. At least they helped me become more careful and always be on guard during my travels. Thanks for the tip and the visit!