Travellers Reveal Their Worst Blunders Abroad And Ooft, They’re Bad
You can plan your butt off, read all there is to read about a country and ask all your mates about their experiences, but some things while travelling abroad are just totally outside of your control.
From pizza thieves to impromptu engagements, we searched the wonderfully weird boards of Reddit to bring you the absolute worst travel mistakes people have made while overseas, so you can learn from their travel mistakes (or at least have a little laugh at their expense).
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Slip slop slap
“Got so badly sunburnt in Thailand that every time I smiled my face bled.” – markovitch1928
Be aware of your surroundings
“I was hiking in the rainforest on the Brazilian / Argentinian border near Iguazu Falls with one of my best friends. It was a stunning landscape and we were having a great time until I heard a shriek come from behind me.
“My friend had wanted to take a picture of something slightly off the path, and walked directly into a spiderweb. This wasn’t just any spiderweb, it was about two metres tall and spanned between two large trees.
“Her entire body was coated in web. We all laughed at her and cleaned her off…and luckily never saw the spider that went with it.” – laurahrahrah
Worth It
“I ate a delicious sisig and adobo platter in the Philippines, then spent half an hour in the bathroom giving birth to Satan’s fiery, scalding love-child.
”The rest of the trip was great though.” – juskajo
Hold Your Mates Close, And Your Pizza Closer
“It was my first time abroad and I was staying at a hostel where I made good friends with this English girl. One morning, after a big night out, we were both hungover and craving pizza.
“We asked the owner of the place where the best place to get pizza was. He told us, and said it would be about a 20 minute walk to get to the joint. So, Emma and I embarked on a long, hungover walk for pizza in 45º heat.
“We get there, wait 25 minutes, and finally get the pizzas and decide eat them once we got back to the hostel, so we embarked on the 20-minute walk home.
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“About 50 metres into our journey, in the middle of casual conversation, pizza under my arm, someone runs up and grabs my pizza. Thinking it was someone from the hostel, I turn to face the person.
“Not a hostel stayer, a complete random… trying to steal my pizza. We have a tug-of-war with the box, pizza is flying everywhere, and I just let go and let the thief run off with the remaining 3 slices.
“Bitch stole my pizza.” – [user deleted]
Leave Your Parents At Home
“I went to the beach with my parents and they wore matching outfits (including shirts with the city name on them) and fanny packs. It was horrifying.” – [user deleted]
A Little Research Never Hurt Anyone
“I signed up for a three-day trip to Amsterdam that said it had good accommodation in the centre of the city. It actually turned out to be a boat that was docked in a canal in the middle of nowhere.”
“It was the middle of winter, and there was no heat on the boat. The sewage system malfunctioned and leaked everywhere on the second day, so the boat stank really bad.
“There was nowhere to even buy food nearby, so I spent most of the trip huddled under a blanket feeling cold and hungry and wishing I had the energy to walk into the city.” – ihopeyoulikeapples
Triple Check Your Luggage, People
Some travel mistakes can be easily avoided.
“I was trying to board a domestic flight in China and had forgotten to take a can of mace, which is illegal in China, out of my bag. Suffice to say I didn’t know the word for ‘pepper spray’ in Chinese.” – ag_sci14
The Worst Kind Of Love Story
“I was exploring this little village, and stopped at a restaurant for a beer, and a guy came up and started talking to me in very broken English.
“Within 5 minutes he asks, ‘You married?’ I said no. So he then says, ‘You marry me?’ with a big-ass goofy grin on his face.
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“I assumed he was joking, because we’d known each other for five minutes, so I said yes. He was not joking. He immediately began yelling something in Vietnamese, then grabs my hand and starts waving it around in the air.
“Within minutes we were surrounded by dozens of people who are all cheering and smiling and shaking my hand. He then took me to his house to introduce me to my future in-laws. I broke that poor boy’s heart when I left for another city the next day.” – [user deleted]
There you guys have it, the worst travel mistakes to make you feel a little better about your last mess-up! The more you know, the better-prepared you’ll be for those unexpected travel moments when they happen to you – or you’ll be able to prevent them happening at all.
*Responses have been edited for style and clarity.
(Lead image: Broad City / Comedy Central)
