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unfriendly countries
Nothing travels faster than a bad review.
Travel options on Planet Earth (and beyond at this point) are unlimited.
I want to go where the people are.
The people that at least leave you with a smile.
And not a sense of danger.
Redditor SimpletonSwan wanted to discuss the places to avoid going to, so they asked:
"What's the unfriendliest place you've ever visited?"
Rotten
"Nigeria. Hands down. The entire visit was a sh*t show. Crooked AF and never felt safe."
- Suzzie_sunshine
"Coming into this thread as a Nigerian and immediately seeing this made my stomach sink for a split second. But you're right, I haven't been to Nigeria in 5 years and don't plan to ever live there again if things continue this way. You're valid. Not even locals feel safe."
- myaltforrants
"My dad did some work there back in the 70s. He would agree with you 100%. He was almost murdered several times."
- 72scott72
You're Unwelcome
"Kingston, Jamaica. I was there a few days on business a number of years ago. The whole city is like a series of armed camps. Concrete walls, often topped with rebar or broken glass, and barbed wire everywhere. The people I interacted with at the hotel and the customer site were very polite and often friendly, but I was warned not to walk down the street unescorted because being white would make me stick out and maybe become a target. It's not a welcoming city at all.
- Captain_Hammertoe
Come, Come!
"Marrakech, hands down."
"Every single interaction my wife and I had with people outside was hostile. There are these 'Come, come!' dudes that promise to guide you to the tourist attractions, and they invariably point and try to lead you in the opposite direction from where you already know that you’re going. I told one dude to go away and he started accusing me of racism and saying I was treating him 'like an animal.'"
"And don’t take photos!! Some a-hole will descend on you shrieking for money and will follow you until you give her 5 bucks. And she’ll still accuse you of racism, anyway."
"This one time, this woman in a hijab darted out of a crowd in the Medina and grabbed my wife’s hand, and started wiping henna on her. My wife is, well, 'nice' so she let this woman do it. My wife later said that this woman was pinching my wife’s fingers so hard that it hurt, not letting her go."
"This woman painted on her hand, all the while talking about how sexy it was and how I was going to want her that night. It was really uncomfortable. I told her to f**k off, that we never asked for that, and then she started to shriek and follow us and a crowd started to gather. I had to give her 20 dollars to get her to go away."
"It was scary as hell. For the rest of our (short) time there, every single God damned merchant and sh**head who saw my wife’s hand called out to her like she was a wh*re."
"Don’t go to Marrakech. They hate outsiders, and they love your money."
- peachy-carnahan
Loo Issues
"I went into a pub in Rugeley, Staffordshire once and asked if I could use the loo. Three men turned and laughed at me, mocked me for asking to use the loo, and made fun of my accent and I just turned around and left. I was about 17. Never felt so ashamed to pee before that."
- EeriePancake
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The Tourist Trap
Morocco, in particular Marrakech and Fes. Had groups of men attempt to steal our suitcases and then follow us to the hotel screaming. Two randos on separate occasions trying to force themselves to enter the Ryad's inner courtyard with us, people intentionally trying to mislead us l, just a general sense of violent energy, etc. The tourist scams and overpriced trinkets were really the mildest part of the entire experience. Also, some of the most openly racist and antisemitic people (even tour guides) I have had the displeasure to meet."
"Probably the only country I will never go back to or recommend to anyone. It also made me extremely wary of traveling anywhere in North Africa frankly. I don’t say this lightly either, Havana at night with no working street lights felt (and probably was) safer."
- methcurd
The Hype
"Egypt. The pyramids are def hyped beyond belief, and the whole place wants to scam you. And they are not playing around. You got money - they want it, and use everything at their disposal to get at it. Got robbed 2 times in one extended weekend. DON'T CARRY CASH IN EGYPT."
- Simen155
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In the West
"West Helena, Arkansas is my vote. Many other contributors offered many great choices, but West Helena, Arkansas was just plain unfriendly."
"While working in the Memphis area, I took a day trip and drove down and around the Mississippi River and stopped in West Helena for lunch. It’s a small town and I found an open bar. The woman working at the bar glared at me when I sat down, barely acknowledging my order and when the food came out she told the cook, 'It’s for the fat guy down there…”'Now, that’s not an entirely untrue statement, but that woman had at least 75 pounds on me."
"Moral of the story, don’t go to West Helena, Arkansas."
- justinbeuke
Venomous
"NYC customs. The posters said 'Welcome' in every language under the sun but the customs officials were like who are you, why the f**k are you doing here and when will you leave. A mixture of contempt, suspicion, and borderline venom."
- TheBleeter
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Run Quick
"Some small town in Tennessee. I went to Bonnaroo years ago with friends, all of us minorities. We stopped at a gas station and were waiting in line to pay for gas and snacks. All of a sudden the line in front of us just parted, like everyone just made way for us to walk right up the middle and the clerk said 'Weeellpp, better to just get 'em on and git em out, riiight? Yall better finds the border quick' and everyone in the line just nodded and grumbled as we walked up, including a state cop."
"It seemed so weirdly coordinated like we were crashing some secret party at the gas station. Yeah, we found the border of that town real quick and got the f**k out before the sun could even think of setting."
- Derp_State_Agent
The American
" Italy. There's a famous photo called 'American Girl in Italy,' and that was what I felt like the entire time. A piece of meat. Dudes literally draping their arms around me (no deodorant) on public transport like they had a right to my body. At one point I was having a medical issue and I went into a cafe to beg for a glass of water because I needed to take a pill and they told me to go drink from the bathroom sink. I would have gladly paid for it but they were closing and couldn't be bothered."
"My mom was with me and is not a seasoned traveler, so at one point she left her purse in her room just to go down to the lobby. At that time, the hotel staff stole her credit cards. We had to make a report at the police station, where they shouted at us and then had a huge argument in front of us where two cops were just screaming at each other." - Reddit
Terrifying
"Internationally I’d have to say, South Africa. What an absolutely terrifying place. Beautiful, but terrifying. It’s the one place where I’ve felt genuinely unsafe and couldn’t wait to leave."
"In the States, I’d say St. Louis and Albuquerque. I lived in Albuquerque for a bit and it’s pretty scary. People have a weird, aggressive, and eccentric edge to them. Almost like they’re ready to fight at any moment. St. Louis looks like it’s falling apart, and people are super cold, distant, and just plain unfriendly. I’ve been to each place multiple times and have no desire to go back."
- Prize-Ad560
HANDS OUT YOUR POCKETS!
"Maybe Philly. My family went there on vacation as a kid. Dad was trying to order cheesesteaks for us from a food truck and people kept bi**hing cause he was actually trying to read the menu. Parked in a parking garage to visit the Mutter Museum and someone parked right behind us and blocked us in when we were trying to leave."
"They weren't even in a spot. Went to see the Liberty Bell and we were going through security. I had my hands in my pockets and the security lady mumbled at me 'Hands out your pockets.' I didn't hear what she said so I said 'What?' Then she got an attitude and yelled 'HANDS OUT YOUR POCKETS! NOW!' Overall, not a pleasant experience."
- phil_davis
Food Worker Revolt
"You said unfriendly so l will go with the actual word, not dangerous, criminal, or unsafe."
"The cafeteria at the Museum of Tech and Science in Shanghai. Those food workers hated their jobs so much that it felt like they were indentured. I was a tired foreigner asking for slop. I couldn't eat any of it."
"And the moose lodge in Ft Myers, FL. If you are not over 68, white, and deeply wrongly tanned, you are shunned."
"I've been to moose lodges all over the country that were warm, friendly, and inviting to their members from other lodges. Not the one in Ft Myers."
- bugwrench
Forgotten
"Drove from Ontario where I live down through the middle of Pennsylvania to a smaller city near Philly. Holy f**k are there definitely places that God has forgotten in the middle of that state. It’s just… uneasy."
- DeadEndStreets
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Well, I appreciate the list of places to skip.
I will admit I had high hopes for a few of these places.
I already deal with enough danger and rudeness on I-95.
Travel will always be a roll of the dice.
But there is nothing wrong with playing the odds.
Vegas anyone?