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tourist trap

Definition of tourist trap

Examples of tourist trap in a sentence.

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tourist trap.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

1942, in the meaning defined above

Dictionary Entries Near tourist trap

tourist season

Cite this Entry

“Tourist trap.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tourist%20trap. Accessed 9 Apr. 2024.

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Definition of 'tourist trap'

Tourist trap in british english.

IPA Pronunciation Guide

tourist trap in American English

Examples of 'tourist trap' in a sentence tourist trap, browse alphabetically tourist trap.

  • tourist town
  • tourist trade
  • tourist traffic
  • tourist trap
  • tourist visa
  • tourist visits
  • tourist zone
  • All ENGLISH words that begin with 'T'

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Definition of tourist trap noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

tourist trap

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Nearby words

  • the Tourist Trophy

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¿Cuál es el significado de "tourist trap"?

  • tourist trap
  • tour de force
  • tour d'horizon
  • tour en l'air
  • Tourette's syndrome
  • touring car
  • tourist class
  • touristically
  • tournedos Rossini

Inicio de sesión social

tourist trap

  • 1.1 Alternative forms
  • 1.2.1 Derived terms
  • 1.2.2 Translations
  • 1.2.3 See also
  • 1.3 Further reading

English [ edit ]

Alternative forms [ edit ].

  • tourist-trap

Noun [ edit ]

tourist trap ( plural tourist traps )

  • 1900 , Grant Allen , chapter 1, in Linnet ‎ [1] : As for Will Deverill, less critical of Nature’s handicraft, he found the inns over-civilised; the Post and the Bräu were too fine for his taste: they had come thus far in search of solitude and Alpine wilds, and they lighted instead on a sort of miniature Grindelwald, with half-a-dozen inns, a respectable café, experienced (or in other words extortionate) guides, and a regular tourist-trap for the sale of chamois-horns and carved models of châlets.
  • 1911 , Charles Neville Buck , chapter XX, in The Lighted Match ‎ [2] : For fifteen minutes they walked morosely and in silence through the steep streets where the shops are tourist-traps , alluringly baited with corals and trinkets.

Derived terms [ edit ]

  • tourist-trappy

Translations [ edit ]

See also [ edit ].

  • sucker trap

Further reading [ edit ]

tourist trap significado

  • English lemmas
  • English nouns
  • English countable nouns
  • English multiword terms
  • English derogatory terms
  • English terms with quotations
  • English terms with non-redundant non-automated sortkeys
  • English entries with topic categories using raw markup

Navigation menu

Tourist Traps: How to Recognize and Avoid them

We have all heard the term “tourist trap” but it is easier to get caught in one than you may expect. Even highly experienced travelers will get stuck in a tourist trap from time to time and in some scenarios, tourist traps are virtually unavoidable. However, there is definitely a difference between a tourist trap and a situation where there are no other options available; therefore, the establishment, service etc. is simply taking advantage of that fact. These scenarios are quite easily recognizable, so we do not believe it is necessary to go into further detail.

The Restaurant: A Classic Tourist Trap

The most common tourist trap comes in the form of eating establishments. This is more than just a restaurant jacking up the rates simply because they are in a heavily crowded area. Obviously, any larger city will have higher rent and property taxes in high traffic areas, which forces restaurant owners to raise their rates to keep up with the finances. However, this does not mean that the rates need to be unreasonable or include hidden costs.

The example he most well remembers is from a trip he took with his parents, where they found themselves hungry in Brussels, Belgium. The majority of their time was spent in the high-traffic, largely touristic areas. There is a street near the historical district which features nothing but restaurants; all of which fall under the term “tourist trap”. Every one of these establishments had a sign out front featuring a three course meal for a great rate. In addition to that, almost every one of them had an employee standing out front literally begging you to come in and take advantage of the fantastic deal. Many people simply fall victim to the pressure and just sit down. After all, we are tourists. How are we supposed to know where the locals eat and where to find the best deals?

Now, these establishment owners are smart. These employees standing out front selling visitors on dining at their restaurant are a sneaky way to keep people from noticing their other trick, which is the most obvious sign you are being duped. Almost every restaurant will have a menu outside, where potential customers can be enticed by the delicious selection of food and determine if the rates are reasonable. This is common practice for many restaurants and not a sign of a tourist trap. What one needs to note, however, is the cost of drinks.

If you are perusing a menu outside of the restaurant and there is no page including drink prices, run. Furthermore, if there is a drink listing and you do not see prices next to the selections, run. This most often means that you will be paying double or triple the standard rate—a cost you will not be made aware of until you are handed the check at the end of your meal. Likewise, if it is a menu that one can flip through, the drink pages may be listed in unusual places. In searching for the drink selection, one will often look in the very front or the very back of the menu first. Restaurant owners know this; therefore, the clever establishment will hide the drink listing somewhere in the middle of the menu, behind all of the pages listing their amazing lunch and dinner specials. Before you reach this page, however, you will have already been ambushed by the above mentioned employee (sometimes restaurant owner) whose job it is to keep you from catching on to the dupe until it’s too late. Americans may be used to restaurants not providing drink prices and therefore, will not think twice about such a thing, but that is not common practice in Europe and it is nevertheless something one should look out for when traveling in the United States.

Finally, after sitting down to take advantage of the deal, you will be served unimaginably small portions that will leave you needing to eat again within the next couple of hours. Obviously, once it gets to this point, you are beyond being saved and the trap was a success. This is exactly what happened to him and his parents. He quickly noticed the trap, based on the lack of drink prices in the menu, but by that point, it was already too late and they were sitting down and ordering. Just as with his case, most people are simply too nice to just get up and leave after noticing the trap.

If the restaurant has passed all of these tests and you find yourself in a seemingly honest establishment, you should still pay attention to what is included with the meal. In many restaurants, it is implied that your meal is served with sides, but if it is not indicated, you should always ask. Especially in tourist areas, you may find yourself paying a normal price for a complete dish, only to find out that that lasagna you ordered is only a single slice on an otherwise empty plate, which is charged at the rate of a meal which would normally at least include breadsticks, if not a side salad.

How to Avoid Tourist Traps

Now that you are aware of some of the most common things to watch out for, you should know that the easiest thing to do is to just walk away before entering. Even if the establishment is pressuring you to enter, simply ignore them or say something like “we are just looking for later.” The next problem is finding a place to eat before the hunger emotions come out and cause arguments amongst your group or family. Obviously, it is difficult to go and look at every single menu outside of the multiple restaurants, so one of our suggestions is just to walk in a direction away from the main tourist areas until you find a place you’d like to eat. This is another way to help you explore the city like a local.

The most obvious thing you can do is look on any review website to find the local favorites. You will also find plenty of restaurant reviews from travelers, who will often tell you exact prices and expectations of menu items. This is how we were directed to an amazing burger in the touristy city of Heidelberg .

There are many things to look out for when traveling to avoid spending more money than necessary. We hope that this article will help you spot some of the most obvious indicators associated with tourist traps and help you avoid falling prey to such establishments. If you are interested in some tips for traveling on a budget, be sure to read our General Travel Tips and Tricks .

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tourist trap noun

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What does the noun tourist trap mean?

There are two meanings listed in OED's entry for the noun tourist trap . See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.

Entry status

OED is undergoing a continuous programme of revision to modernize and improve definitions. This entry has not yet been fully revised.

How common is the noun tourist trap ?

Where does the noun tourist trap come from.

Earliest known use

The earliest known use of the noun tourist trap is in the 1930s.

OED's earliest evidence for tourist trap is from 1939, in the writing of Graham Greene, author.

tourist trap is formed within English, by compounding.

Etymons: tourist n. , trap n. 1

Nearby entries

  • tourist flight, n. 1959–
  • tourist guide, n. 1924–
  • touristic, adj. 1848–
  • touristical, adj. 1863–
  • touristically, adv. 1928–
  • touristing, n. 1883–
  • tourist park, n. 1927–
  • touristry, n. 1878–
  • touristship, n. 1849–
  • tourist track, n. 1912–
  • tourist trap, n. 1939–
  • Tourist Trophy, n. 1907–
  • touristy, adj. 1906–
  • tourize, v. 1837–
  • tour jeté, n. 1935–
  • tourmaline, n. 1760–
  • tourmalinic, adj. 1880–
  • tourmalinite, n. 1896–
  • tourmalinization, n. 1899–
  • tourmalinize, v. 1899–
  • tourmente, n. 1847–

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Meaning & use

Entry history for tourist trap, n..

Originally published as part of the entry for tourist, n.

tourist, n. was first published in 1913; not yet revised.

Revision of the OED is a long-term project. Entries in oed.com which have not been revised may include:

  • corrections and revisions to definitions, pronunciation, etymology, headwords, variant spellings, quotations, and dates;
  • new senses, phrases, and quotations which have been added in subsequent print and online updates.

Earlier versions of this entry were published in:

A Supplement to the OED, Volume IV (1986)

  • Find out more

OED Second Edition (1989)

  • View tourist in OED Second Edition

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Citation details

Factsheet for tourist trap, n., browse entry.

tourist trap significado

Significado de "tourist trap" no dicionário inglês

Pronúncia de tourist trap em inglês, categoria gramatical de tourist trap, o que significa tourist trap em inglês.

tourist trap

Armadilha para turistas

Tourist trap, definição de tourist trap no dicionário inglês.

The definition of tourist trap in the dictionary is a place that attracts a lot of tourists and where food, drink, entertainment, etc is more expensive than normal.

PALAVRAS EM INGLÊS QUE RIMAM COM TOURIST TRAP

Palavras em inglês que começam como tourist trap, palavras em inglês que terminam como tourist trap, sinônimos e antônimos de tourist trap no dicionário inglês de sinônimos, palavras em inglês relacionadas com «tourist trap», tradutor on-line com a tradução de tourist trap em 25 línguas.

online translator

TRADUÇÃO DE TOURIST TRAP

Tradutor português - chinês, tradutor português - espanhol, tradutor português - hindi, tradutor português - arabe, tradutor português - russo, tradutor português - português, tradutor português - bengali, tradutor português - francês, tradutor português - malaio, tradutor português - alemão, tradutor português - japonês, tradutor português - coreano, tradutor português - javanês, tradutor português - vietnamita, tradutor português - tâmil, tradutor português - marata, tradutor português - turco, tradutor português - italiano, tradutor português - polonês, tradutor português - ucraniano, tradutor português - romeno, tradutor português - grego, tradutor português - africâner, tradutor português - sueco, tradutor português - norueguês, tendências de uso de tourist trap, tendências de uso do termo «tourist trap».

Tendências

FREQUÊNCIA DE USO DO TERMO «TOURIST TRAP» AO LONGO DO TEMPO

Citações, bibliografia em inglês e atualidade sobre tourist trap, 10 livros em inglês relacionados com «tourist trap», 10 notícias nas quais se inclui o termo «tourist trap».

Cambridge Dictionary

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Meaning of tourist trap in English

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  • be the armpit of something idiom
  • inhospitably
  • sausage machine
  • the Black Hole of Calcutta
  • what's the world coming to? idiom

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Translations of tourist trap

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tourist trap significado

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IMAGES

  1. The Biggest Tourist Traps In The World, Mapped

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  3. Tourist Trap Horror Movie Poster

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  5. TOURIST TRAP Uncut Blu-ray with Action Figure

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VIDEO

  1. Tourist Trap Tourist Landscape

COMMENTS

  1. TOURIST TRAP

    tourist trap Significado, definición, qué es tourist trap: 1. a crowded place that provides entertainment and things to buy for tourists, often at high prices…. Aprender más.

  2. TOURIST TRAP

    tourist trap significado, definição tourist trap: 1. a crowded place that provides entertainment and things to buy for tourists, often at high prices…

  3. tourist trap

    Inglés. Español. tourist trap n. figurative, informal (site that exploits sightseers) gancho para turistas nm. All the shops near the beach are tourist traps selling low-quality merchandise. Todas las tiendas cercanas a la playa son ganchos para turistas que venden mercancía de baja calidad.

  4. TOURIST TRAP

    TOURIST TRAP definition: 1. a crowded place that provides entertainment and things to buy for tourists, often at high prices…. Learn more.

  5. Tourist trap Definition & Meaning

    tourist trap: [noun] a place that attracts and exploits tourists.

  6. tourist trap

    Inglés. Español. tourist trap n. noun: Refers to person, place, thing, quality, etc. figurative, informal (site that exploits sightseers) gancho para turistas nm. nombre masculino: Sustantivo de género exclusivamente masculino, que lleva los artículos el o un en singular, y los o unos en plural. Exemplos: el televisor, un piso.

  7. Tourist trap

    A tourist trap is an establishment (or group of establishments) that have been created or re-purposed with the aim of attracting tourists and their money. Tourist traps typically provide overpriced services, entertainment, food, souvenirs, and other products for tourists to purchase. [1] Tourist trap derives from the information asymmetry ...

  8. TOURIST TRAP definition and meaning

    Informal a place that attracts a lot of tourists and where food, drink, entertainment, etc is.... Click for English pronunciations, examples sentences, video.

  9. What Is A Tourist Trap? And Is It A Bad Thing?

    Wikipedia (if it's to be trusted) defines a "tourist trap" as follows: Tourist trap is an establishment, or group of establishments, that has been created or re-purposed with the aim of attracting tourists and their money. Tourist traps will typically provide services, entertainment, food, souvenirs and other products for tourists to ...

  10. tourist trap

    tourist trap en tema Tourism Del Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English tourist trap ˈtourist ˌtrap noun [ countable ] DLT a place that many tourists visit , but where drinks, hotels etc are more expensive - used to show disapproval Ejemplos desde el Corpus tourist trap • The one tourist trap we fell into was St Tropez.

  11. tourist trap

    Definition of tourist trap noun in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.

  12. Tourist trap Definition & Meaning

    1 ENTRIES FOUND: tourist trap (noun) tourist trap noun. plural tourist traps. Britannica Dictionary definition of TOURIST TRAP. [count] disapproving. : a place that attracts many tourists and that charges high prices. The street market is a tourist trap that mostly sells cheap souvenirs. That hotel is just a tourist trap.

  13. Significado de tourist trap en inglés

    tourist trap significado, definición, qué es tourist trap: 1. a crowded place that provides entertainment and things to buy for tourists, often at high prices…. Saber más.

  14. tourist trap

    tourist trap. From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English Related topics: Tourism ˈtourist ˌtrap noun [ countable] a place that many tourists visit, but where drinks, hotels etc are more expensive - used to show disapproval Examples from the Corpus tourist trap • The one tourist trap we fell into was St Tropez. • We went to this ...

  15. TOURIST TRAP

    tourist trap volume_up UK // noun a place that attracts many tourists and where goods and services are more expensive than normal Examples Britain is an expensive tourist trap where visitors are ripped off and overcharged for terrible service in restaurants and hotels .

  16. tourist trap

    tourist trap (plural tourist traps) ( derogatory) An establishment, such as a shop or display, where tourists are encouraged to spend money on goods or services not necessarily of good value . 1900, Grant Allen, chapter 1, in Linnet ‎ [1]: As for Will Deverill, less critical of Nature's handicraft, he found the inns over-civilised; the Post ...

  17. Tourist trap Idiom Definition

    Tourist trap is an idiom that has been in use since the mid-1900s. We will examine the meaning of the idiom tourist trap, where it came from, and some examples of its use in sentences.. A tourist trap is a roadside attraction that caters to travelers. Generally, a tourist trap is a place where one may partake of an activity that is not considered edifying and then may buy cheap trinkets to ...

  18. tourist trap

    tourist trap - WordReference English dictionary, questions, discussion and forums. All Free.

  19. tourist trap

    Definition of tourist trap. English dictionary and integrated thesaurus for learners, writers, teachers, and students with advanced, intermediate, and beginner levels.

  20. Tourist Traps: How to Recognize and Avoid them

    The Restaurant: A Classic Tourist Trap. The most common tourist trap comes in the form of eating establishments. This is more than just a restaurant jacking up the rates simply because they are in a heavily crowded area. Obviously, any larger city will have higher rent and property taxes in high traffic areas, which forces restaurant owners to ...

  21. tourist trap, n. meanings, etymology and more

    The earliest known use of the noun tourist trap is in the 1930s. OED's earliest evidence for tourist trap is from 1939, in the writing of Graham Greene, author. tourist trap is formed within English, by compounding. Etymons: tourist n., trap n. 1. See etymology. Nearby entries.

  22. Significado de "tourist trap" no dicionário inglês

    definição de tourist trap no dicionário inglês. A definição de armadilha turística no dicionário é um lugar que atrai muitos turistas e onde comida, bebida, entretenimento, etc. é mais caro do que o normal. The definition of tourist trap in the dictionary is a place that attracts a lot of tourists and where food, drink, entertainment ...

  23. TOURIST TRAP definition

    TOURIST TRAP meaning: 1. a crowded place that provides entertainment and things to buy for tourists, often at high prices…. Learn more.