'Clueless' tourists mistakes revealed online

One tourist tried to beckon a wolf 'like it was a golden retriever', the thread said. File photo / 123RF

Whether it's not knowing the language or misunderstanding the local customs, most people will have done something embarrassing while travelling.

But some backpackers have moved beyond this to committing definite faux-pas - and an internet thread is highlighting the worst of them.

Tourists have been caught putting toddlers on untrained horses, haggling over a one dollar price difference for a room and beckoning a wild wolf "like it was a golden retriever".

The rookie mistakes have been aired on a Reddit thread, and it's user YoSoyUnPayaso in Colombia who kicks things off.

He wrote: "I once saw a guy give a 50,000 Colombian peso bill (at the time NZ$30) to a homeless person because he thought it was 50 peso."

Other users quickly jumped in with their stories of stingy backpackers determined to haggle over minuscule amounts of money.

Jippiejee in Holland shared a story of someone who walked away from "a $10 (NZ$15) guesthouse because they couldn't haggle the price down to $9 (NZ$13.50) or so".

This, he wrote, was despite the fact that the property had "beautiful rooms with large balconies overlooking town" and that the "price included own bathroom with hot shower and free breakfast".

Similarly, middlemanmark encountered some American travellers who tried to haggle over a shared £1.40 (NZ$3) taxi fare in Georgia. They wanted to pay the equivalent of £1.10 (NZ$2.40) instead.

Apparently they refused to pay the extra few pennies and waited an hour for another.

Some travellers have also been accused by Reddit users of going all the way to a remote place only to sit around and do nothing because the main touristic activity was too expensive.

Meganebahia wrote: "In Puerto Madryn there was a girl in our tour who chose not to go whale watching because it was "too expensive".

"That's something I absolutely don't get as these destinations are expensive to get to from the beginning and pretty much the only thing they offer is wildlife and nature."

It's not just money matters that land travellers in muddy water - interactions with wild animals are also particularly nonsensical, according to Reddit users.

TravellingUpNorth, based in Toronto, wrote how he and his father saw a wolf by the side of the road in Canada that was being beckoned "like it was a golden retriever or something" by a group of tourists.

Even relatively safe animals could become a hazard, as user Stellere revealed on the Reddit thread.

He described how he saw "clueless people" putting toddlers on the backs of untrained young horses at the farm he used to live on, for a "photo opportunity".

Sometimes, feeling too at home could make you wish you were there sooner.

Accprova wrote: "Once I was backpacking through Morocco, met a guy who drank tap water. In Morocco.

"Needless to say he sat on the toilet for the next week."

And one traveller made the possibly costly mistake of falling in love with a Thai bar girl, according to electricsheep12345Canadian. He sent her money on a regular basis "to pay for a Condo he "bought"".

The user added: "All he has to show for it is a piece of paper written in Thai... that he can't read".

- Daily Mail