You want to look at the Seine from the top of the Eiffel Tower, kiss the Blarney Stone, and hear the long forgotten cries of gladiators at the Colosseum, but you want to do it on your own terms. On your next Euro trip, check things out authentically and avoid the hubbub we fondly refer to as \u201ctourist traps.\u201d I put my thinking cap on for this one, and came up with the best ways to avoid getting taken advantage of when your traveling cross the pond:<\/p>\n

1. Say \u201cNo\u201d to Bundle Packages<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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Initially, you were only interested in seeing the Louvre. But now, you\u2019ve signed up to spend the day at the Louvre, Mus\u00e9e de l’Orangerie, and Mus\u00e9e d’Orsay, all for one low price! Just kidding, you blew half your euro on the excursion and you never even made it through half the Louvre before you bailed to find more chocolate croissants. Before you travel, map out what sights you can\u2019t miss<\/em> and skip the ones you know nothing about or don\u2019t have time for. Besides, do you really need to see 100+ Impressionist paintings? Le no.<\/p>\n

2. Figure Out Your Transportation Options<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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You feel a little discombobulated on the Emerald Isle, and reluctantly say yes to the first cab driver that passes your way. As you exit the cab and realize the pub was within walking distance from your hotel, you feel a little cheated. Always walk or bike when possible, and use public transportation before even considering<\/em> a cab or private car. Sure, walking might not be the most glamorous option, but you\u2019ll be able to more fully explore your surroundings and keep some cash in your pocket to boot.<\/p>\n

3. Learn That Souvenirs are for Rookies<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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You\u2019re planning on bringing home Spanish fans from Barcelona for your mother and a bullfighting memento from Seville for your dad. Do a little research before you bite the bullet on souvenirs, so that you don\u2019t end up buying something for $50 that you could have acquired for $10. Furthermore, think about what you and your loved ones will use in their everyday life. Chances are, they probably won\u2019t be proudly wearing a t-shirt that says \u201cSomeone went to Spain and all I got was this lousy shirt\u201d too often. The same goes for things that are cheaply made; those earrings you got for your sister are adorable, but they made her earlobes turn green after 10 minutes of wearing them.<\/p>\n

4. Do as the Locals Do<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Sure, you can consult a tour guide or concierge about where to spend your time in London, but you\u2019re better off getting closer to the source. Forget about being bourgie and chat up locals on the street or in neighborhood pubs. They\u2019ll direct you to the best places to eat, shop, and find smashing deals. Although it wouldn\u2019t hurt if you offered to buy their next pint for them.<\/p>\n

\u00a05.\u00a0Get Lost<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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One of the biggest perks of being in a new city is the fact that you have no clue where you are! Ditch the map and use this to your advantage by spending leisurely days meandering around cobblestone streets on your own. You\u2019ll stumble upon cool attractions you wouldn\u2019t have seen otherwise, and get to forego the commotion that comes with crowds and your typical tourist trap.<\/p>\n

Ready to take Europe by storm? Forget about the hullaballoo of advertised attractions and find your own way around. If all else fails and you end up horribly lost, perhaps you\u2019ll meet a kind and sexy stranger who\u2019s willing to show you around.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Just because you look like a tourist, doesn\u2019t mean you need to act like one. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":355,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[41,59,80],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=249"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.flights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":912,"href":"https:\/\/www.flights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249\/revisions\/912"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.flights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.flights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}