While it surely can’t be easy out there for a costumed character on the streets of New York City, one Spider-Man landed in hot legal water after a kerfuffle with a tourist in the winter of 2013. While he said she started it by throwing snow in his face, a judge convicted him yesterday of harassment. [More]
tourists
Moscow Mall Creates Replica Of Times Square, Because Apparently One Tourist Trap Isn’t Enough
By 6.10.14
At first the idea of a mini Times Square sounds like a New Yorker’s worst nightmare — the real thing is bad enough, filled with swarms of slow-walking tourists and the glare of flashing billboards incessantly hawking whatever product can afford a spot there. But hey, not everyone can visit New York City, which is why a Moscow mall decided to bring that experience to Russia with a scale replica of the popular tourist destination. [More]
Man Sued Over Pic Of Topless Woman At Empire State Building Redefines “Tourist Attraction”
By 1.14.14
Oh, the sights you can see from atop one of New York City’s Empire State Building! Over there is the Statue of Liberty! And look, yonder! It’s a young hipster just rolling out of bed at noon on a Thursday! But one sight the landmark building’s management didn’t want visitors to see on the Observation Deck was a topless model taking it off for a photographer’s camera. [More]
20 Tourists Stuck On Drifting Ice Floe Pretty Sure The Brochure Didn’t Mention This Part
By 6.26.13
A group of 20 tourists found themselves on a floating, icy version of Gilligan’s Island, after a bit of ice they were standing on in the Arctic Bay broke off and drifted away. They were joined on their drifting adventure by a bunch of hunters on another ice floe that went for a cruise yesterday morning off Baffin Island, and traveled a few miles offshore. [More]
Lawsuit: NYC’s Metropolitan Museum Of Art Misleads Visitors Into Paying High ‘Suggested’ Admission Price
By 3.25.13
When you ask for a ticket at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, you get charged $25. Because that’s the admission price, right? Not so fast! As the fine print says, it’s actually a “suggested donation.” You have to pay something, but that “something” could be a penny that you found on the sidewalk. Upset at this, two museum-goers have filed a class action lawsuit accusing the museum of misleading the public. [More]
Top 5 Mistakes Tourists Make In Lisbon
By 3.21.11
Before you hit Lisbon, the beautiful capital of Portugal, on your next tourist jaunt, be sure to apprise yourself of these 5 common mistakes tourists make, says the Go Lisbon Blog. Besides “Spanish is not the official language, Portuguese is,” I think my favorite tip is that you should respect the lines. In Lisbon, people don’t just bumrush the doors to board public transit. They queue up in order of arrival and board accordingly. Break this rule and be ready for a grumbly little old lady to accidentally on-purpose whack you with her cane as she walks by you. [More]
Woman Says Donald Duck Groped Her
By 8.16.10
Did Disney’s eternally overreacting duck mascot put the moves on a woman visiting Epcot Center a couple of years ago? That’s what the woman claims happened; in her lawsuit, she says a park employee dressed as Donald Duck grabbed her breast and molested her, “then made gestures making a joke indicating he had done something wrong.” She’s asking for $50,000. [More]
Are You Ready To Go Shopping On Your Next Flight?
By 11.17.09
American Airlines is beginning to experiment with turning flights into shopping opportunities, reports the New York Times. We’re not just talking about in-flight purchases of Sky Mall schwag, either: the paper reports that limousine services, tickets to theme parks and Broadway shows, and train tickets are some of the offerings being considered or currently being tested.
Couchsurfing Can Help You Save Money And Make Friends While Traveling
By 8.11.09
CouchSurfing is an online community of friendly hosts who are ready and eager to throw their convertible couches open to travelers from across the world. The service offers more than a free place to crash; it connects travelers with like-minded people who are excited to share their enthusiasm for their hometown. But aren’t you going to be immediately robbed and stabbed by the opportunistic lechers lurking on the internet, you ask?
Unlicensed Cabbie Welcomes Tourists To New York With High Speed Police Chase
By 6.28.09
Jean-Jacques Dulugat learned yesterday why you should never let an unlicensed cabbie give you a lift from the airport. Police tried to stop Dulugat and his family as they got into a van driven by a pair of known solicitors, but the duo took off and led cops on a high-speed chase through Brooklyn…
How To Avoid Being Victimized On Vacation
By 7.8.08
Whether you realize it or not, as a tourist, you are very conspicuous to would-be criminals who would like to take advantage of you. To help keep you safe, CNN and BudgetTravel have compiled a list of some common crimes at some of the most popular travel destinations. The list, inside…
By 12.7.07
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Riot police had to be called to quell 120 angry Chinese tourists in the Vegas-like resort territory of Macau. The tourists complained they were being forced to shop even though they were on vacation to gamble, and they began rioting after their tour guides took them to a cold beach and locked them out of their tour busses. [Reuters]
Travel Prices To Rise in 2007
By 12.21.06
The San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that travel prices will rise, in some cases dramatically, in the new year. Due to the weak dollar acting as a siren song for European tourists, tourism from the old country will increase 5%, to over 54 million visitors. What does this mean to you? More expensive hotels. American Express is estimating that already pricey New York hotels will raise their rates by 18%, Domestic coach airfares will rise 3 to 5 percent, and across the nation hotel prices will increase 2 to 8 percent. —MEGHANN MARCO
