The travel bug may have hit many of us really hard as sitting at home for two years hasn’t been easy. As travel picks up, here are a few venues where you really need to watch out for pickpockets along the way:
- Eiffel Tower, Paris, France
Paris in general and more specifically the Eiffel Tower has a pickpocketing problem. Street scams are also fairly common. In 2015 the Eiffel Tower had to be shut down as employees held a protest due to the number of pickpocket street gangs in the area.
- Trevi Fountain, Rome, Italy
As the folklore goes, anyone who tosses a coin into the fountain will someday return to Rome. This translates to almost $1.7 million worth of coins collected annually. This also provides a nice avenue for thieves to hunt for coins and pick the pockets of people surrounding the fountain.
- Charles Bridge, Prague, Czech Republic
This famous place also has a legend behind it. Charles Bridge is a medieval stone arch bridge that crosses the Vitava river in Prague. It’s construction started in 1357 under King Charles IV and finished in the early 15thcentury.
Touching the statue of St John of Nepomuk on the bridge is said to bring good tidings and a return to Prague. Thieves see this as a fantastic opportunity to distract you while you go about this ritual and make some money at the same time.
- Sacre-Coeur, Paris, France
This church is another iconic landmark in the beautiful city of Paris. This Roman Catholic Church is located at the summit of the butte of Montmartre. From the dome, two hundred meters above the River Seine, one can see all of Paris and the countryside for 50 km surrounding it. However tourists need to take note that pickpockets actually line the entrance to the main building and it is highly dangerous. Hold on to your belongings tightly if you are visiting this place.
- Colosseum, Rome, Italy
The oval amphitheater in the centre of Rome is the largest ancient amphitheater ever built. Over six million people visit this landmark every year. The building is made of limestone, volcanic rock and concrete and can hold 50,000 to 80,000 spectators. Famous for gladiatorial contests and executions, this favourite tourist haunt consequently attracts a huge amount of snatch thieves and pickpockets.
- Louvre, Paris, France
This famous attraction brings in nine million people a year and consequently pickpockets and thieves abound as well. The Louvre is the world’s most visited museum and a historic landmark. It is the home of some of the best known works of art including the Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo.
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