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They screamed for ice cream, then screamed for the cops.
American tourists James and Marian Luciani and a friend were so surprised to get their £33 (more than $50) bill for just three ice creams and a bottle of water in Rome's Bar Il Caffe, they called the police.
When I went to Rome for the first time in 1998(before the Euro and prices went up higher), some street vendor near the Coliseum tried to sell me a bottle of water for the equivalent of $10 in blazing hot 95 degree summer weather. I just laughed in shock and walked on to buy water somewhere else. There's a lot of tourist traps in places like Rome and Paris if you're in the tourist areas--that's why you always look at the price before ordering anything.
I spent $28.00 for a large Pizza (multiple toppings) at a well-known pizza franchise a few days ago for my office staff. However, I did not call the police for this outrage, but paid the bill. Next time I will refrain from the meatball and olives.
You should really refrain from franchise pizza places.
I went to a Diamondbacks baseball game in Phoenix the other day. Small water bottles were $4, soft drinks were $5, all-beef hot dogs were $5.50. Plus tax. Food wasn't anywhere near as expensive in PNC Park when I lived in Pittsburgh. Tourists can't have expectations things will cost the same as they cost at home. It's on the tourist to inform themselves of local customs.
I wish that ALL restaurants were required to post their entire menu out in front of their restaurant BEFORE you enter.
My favorite scam are the restaurants that post a lunch special for like $7.95 and their dinner entrees are all $30+. I have walked out on a few occasions.
I've had problems ordering at restaurants in Italy as well. They 'mistakenly' charged us for 2 bottles of wine (which happened to be for the table next to us for 4) which tacked on an extra 30 Euros. Of course they were more likely than not banking on tourists that would hopefully feel too intimidated to confront them about it because they couldn't speak Italian and couldn't read the receipt in Italian. You could absolutely tell by their clerks' body language that it wasn't a simple mistake, but most likely a scam. They probably do this all of the time and pocket the difference.
Location: where you sip the tea of the breasts of the spinsters of Utica
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Deezus
When I went to Rome for the first time in 1998(before the Euro and prices went up higher), some street vendor near the Coliseum tried to sell me a bottle of water for the equivalent of $10 in blazing hot 95 degree summer weather. I just laughed in shock and walked on to buy water somewhere else. There's a lot of tourist traps in places like Rome and Paris if you're in the tourist areas--that's why you always look at the price before ordering anything.
Can you haggle in Italy at less formal places like a sidewalk vendor? Or a taxi? Is there any haggling at all like in Mexico?
Seriously though, how naive do you have to be to purchase something without checking the price? ESPECIALLY something in a tourist area of a foreign country where this sort of thing is much more likely to occur?
They paid around $50 for 3 Gelatos and a bottled water in Rome.
That's about $15 per Gelato and $5 for the water.
Sorry, but welcome to Rome, New York City, London, Paris, Disneyland, professional sports stadiums, etc where that's what people pay!
These people were just naive. Its one thing if the prices were posted and the proprietor tried to charge them more, lets call it equally guilty if the prices weren't posted, they were too dumb to ask and the proprietor tried to scalp them but if the prices were posted, you're on the hook. I hope the Polizia di Stato arrived and beat them for filing a frivolous police claim.
In Zurich did a lot of walking and stopped at a small bar in the city center for a small bottle of water. The price was $5, and that was the summer of 2002. I shudder to think what that water might cost today with the dollar in a free fall against the Swiss franc.
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