Buzz
Tourists can sometimes be insufferable. From the very moment they leave their homes and head towards their destinations, something shifts. Their less pleasant side emerges, marked by arrogance, entitlement, and reckless behavior. Good manners? What are those? They cause chaos for drivers, airport staff, hotel personnel, and local residents. Anyone who grew up in a tourist area has witnessed their share of rude, demanding, and self-important visitors who went too far.
However, there are those tourists who go beyond the usual behavior and cross the line into illegal activities. These inconsiderate visitors damage property, steal, violate boundaries, disrespect traditions, and bring shame upon their home countries. When this happens, you can’t help but feel a sense of justice when they get caught. This list highlights ten of the most appalling tourists, their ridiculous offenses, and the (hopefully) well-deserved consequences they faced.
10. Who Would Abandon a Baby?
In 2019, a British tourist in Tenerife, Canary Islands, was arrested after a drunken altercation in public led to her leaving her three-month-old baby on the streets. A three-month-old can’t even sit up on their own yet, let alone fend for themselves. Police reports indicated that the crime was preceded by a series of concerning actions.
While dining at a local restaurant, the unnamed woman and the baby's father both became intoxicated and had a loud argument. The woman stormed off, taking the baby with her, while the father, worried, called the local authorities to track her down. They quickly found the mother near the hotel, but the baby was missing. When questioned, the mother claimed she had no idea where the baby could be. It took 40 minutes for a pair of kind-hearted bystanders to locate the child. The tourist's reckless behavior, fueled by anger and neglect, resulted in a six-month prison sentence and, hopefully, lasting embarrassment.
9. Stop. Carving. The. Colosseum.
It’s not just one person at fault here because this continues to happen. Tourists from all over the world keep engraving their initials into the Colosseum (as though anyone is really interested in seeing 'JJ + AK' carved into its ancient walls). Despite the Colosseum’s 2,000-year history, its place as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, and its distinction as the largest amphitheater ever built, visitors still think it’s fine to deface its exterior. For instance:
- In 2020, an Irish tourist etched his initials into one of the Colosseum's pillars.
- In 2017, an Ecuadorian tourist engraved the names of his entire family on a wall.
- In 2015, two Americans carved their initials into a wall and filmed the act.
- In 2014, a Russian tourist carved a single letter before being caught.
The good news is that the offenders were caught, and in Italy, damaging a historical site like the Colosseum can lead to a fine of at least $2,400 and up to a year in prison. Of course, they could always fight for their freedom in a modern-day gladiatorial contest (where are you, Caligula?).
8. They Stole…the Beach?
In 2019, a French couple vacationing on the Italian island of Sardinia was caught stealing sand from a beach. As ridiculous as that sounds, they didn’t just sneak a handful into a bag or pocket. Instead, they stuffed fourteen soda bottles full, packed them into the back of their SUV, and attempted to take the car on a ferry ride back to the mainland. The stolen sand weighed almost 90 pounds.
The couple claimed they had no idea that taking sand was illegal and just wanted a souvenir. While that might be a plausible explanation under normal circumstances, the absurd 90-pound load and the fact that sand from Sardinia is a rare commodity often sold online made their story seem a little too convenient. It’s unclear how much of their potential one- to six-year prison sentence they actually served.
7. The Easter Island Ear
In 2008, 26-year-old Finnish tourist Marko Kulju managed to chip off an ear from one of the famous Easter Island statues. His intention was to steal the fragment, but it fell and shattered when he tried to remove it. So much for that plan… That’s when a nearby woman witnessed the incident and promptly reported him.
The ancient statues, which have stood for a millennium, are located on a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Kulju, who attempted to steal them, faced the possibility of a seven-year prison sentence. After what must have been an extraordinary apology, Kulju was instead fined $17,000 and banned from the island for three years.
6. When Swimming Becomes Its Own Form of Punishment
Many remain unaware, so let’s clarify this: swimming in the canals of Venice is illegal. Beyond its illegality, the canals are notoriously filthy, making swimming not only repugnant but also hazardous.
Consider the 2019 incident where two Norwegian women were caught swimming in a Venice canal while wearing only their underwear. After their arrest, the police informed them of the canal’s unsavory reputation, including its current rat infestation. Upon learning this, one of the women vomited at the police station. The penalties they faced are unknown (aside from sheer disgust), but the same year, two Czech men swimming in a canal were fined approximately $3,320.
5. 'Ding Jinhao Was Here'
In 2013, Ding Jinhao became infamous almost overnight due to an act of vandalism while visiting Egypt. During his tour of the 3,500-year-old Luxor Temple, Ding carved the phrase 'Ding Jinhao was here' in Chinese characters into a hieroglyphic mural. Although he initially escaped detection, other Chinese tourists later recognized the characters and shared images of the defacement on social media.
Within days, the viral post had exposed Ding’s identity, leading to his personal information being made public and his school’s computers being hacked. Both Ding and his parents issued apologies, with Ding even shedding tears during his apology. The Chinese government also issued an official apology. In the aftermath, the Egyptian government implemented stricter laws to protect cultural heritage. Meanwhile, Ding was subjected to doxxing, online bullying, and harassment, which led many to debate whether, at 15, he received just punishment or if the consequences were too severe.
4. Chicken Cordon Yellow…stone
A headline from The Guardian simply stated, 'Men sentenced for cooking chicken in Yellowstone hot spring,' and bizarrely, that was the whole story. In 2020, three men ventured off the trails in Yellowstone’s Shoshone Geyser Basin, gathered around one of the geothermal springs, and attempted to cook a chicken.
At their sentencing, one of the men explained that his intention was simply to 'make dinner.' All in their 40s and 50s, the men were fined, placed on probation, and banned from ever visiting the park again.
3. Of All the Places…
It should be painfully obvious, but stealing from the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp is not only disrespectful but utterly reprehensible. Nevertheless, numerous tourists have attempted to steal or successfully made off with items from this solemn site, hoping to turn their heinous actions into souvenirs, daring fate to punish them.
In 2019, an American tourist tried to steal a piece of metal from the train tracks that once led to the camp. In 2018, two Hungarian visitors tried to swipe bricks from a crematorium. The most infamous theft in recent memory occurred in 2009, when the sign above the camp’s main gate—bearing the Nazi phrase 'Arbeit Macht Frei' (Work Will Set You Free)—was stolen. Though recovered in pieces and restored, the theft of the sign was not only a dark chapter in history but a glaring example of the depths to which some tourists would sink.
2. Come Home, Dirk
In 2012, two Welsh tourists in Australia made headlines for their bizarre and criminal actions when they stole Dirk, a seven-year-old fairy penguin. After attending a beach party and presumably indulging in excessive drinking, the two men decided to break into Sea World and wreak havoc, eventually taking the penguin with them.
While intoxicated and trespassing, the pair decided to jump into a dolphin tank for a swim and even set off a fire extinguisher inside a shark enclosure. Naturally, they then stole little Dirk, though they had no recollection of the events. They only discovered their crime the next day when they woke up, hungover, to find the penguin in their apartment. When they tried to release Dirk into a nearby canal, they were caught and arrested. The fine of 1,000 Australian dollars each seems like a small price for such a bizarre act.
1. The Holy Water Bidet
Bali, Indonesia, is known for drawing in some of the world’s worst tourists. For reasons unknown, they gravitate to the island, causing frustration for locals. There were the five Australian men who, drunk, ran naked through the streets of Bali, urinating and vomiting as they went. And then there was the man who, after a drunken fight, dropkicked a local off his moving motorbike.
But the most shocking incident involved Czech tourists Zdenek Slouka and his girlfriend, Sabina Dolesalova. Slouka dipped his hand into a holy fountain at the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary and used the water to cleanse his girlfriend’s behind. They filmed the whole incident and posted it online. Astonishingly, the government pardoned them after conducting a purification ritual.
