Deadly selfies to plane mistakes: These are the world’s stupidest tourists

Tourists can be embarrassing, but every now and then a traveller does something so jaw-droppingly stupid it makes headlines, like these folks.

Tourists are often prone to embarrassing, obnoxious and silly behaviour.

But every now and then a traveller does something so jaw-droppingly stupid it makes international headlines.

From critical mistakes on planes to expensive moments of clumsiness, here are some of the dumbest tourists the world has seen in recent times.

ON ACID AT DISNEYLAND

Disneyland turned out to be the trippiest place on Earth for one visitor. Picture: Disneyland Paris

A Swiss tourist visited Disneyland Paris in 2019 and decided it would be a good idea to take LSD. He fell into a lake.

When he didn’t resurface, his girlfriend reported it to park staff and they immediately began looking for him. The search included 10 police officers, 30 firefighters, 80 Disneyland employees, a helicopter and a thermal camera, according to The Washington Post.

The following morning, a driver in a nearby town came across a naked man walking along the road. The driver returned him to Disneyland Paris, where he was identified as the missing man.

The couple were then arrested for narcotics use but were eventually let go with a citation. Worst. Trip. Ever.

UNLUCKY COIN TOSS

PSA: Plane engines don't work well with tiny bits of metal tossed in them.

At an airport in Mongolia in April last year, a 66-year-old Chinese woman reportedly threw six coins at the jet engine when she was boarding the plane. After being removed from the aircraft, she told authorities she was praying for a safe flight. Concerned the rogue coins could damage the engine, passengers were transferred to a new plane, delaying them for two hours.

A similar thing happened involving an 80-year-old woman in 2017.

WRONG TOILET DOOR

Few things are quite as terrifying as the wrong door being opened on a plane – even when it’s still on the tarmac.

Last year a man on a Pakistan International Airlines flight went to use the bathroom while the plane was still on the tarmac. Instead, he opened the emergency exit door, activating the emergency exit slide.

All 40 passengers on the plane were evacuated and the flight was delayed seven hours. Can you imagine the dirty looks he would have been getting at the baggage carousel at the other end?

MAN’S EXTREME SNACK

Weird place to heat up a snack, but sure.

In 2015 Simon Turner hiked to the top of the Marum Crater in Ambrym, Vanuatu and roasted a marshmallow in a 2000C lava pit. While wearing thongs.

Thankfully for Simon it turned out OK. He retained his eyebrows and the video of him doing it got a bunch of hits on YouTube.

FAMOUS LAST PHOTO

A particularly lethal photo prop.

In 2015 two men were hiking in the Ural Mountains of Russia and happened upon a grenade with the pin pulled. Most people would back away slowly or run like crazy. Not these daredevils! They decided to take a selfie with it. They blew themselves up.

(But incredibly, their smartphone survived.)

NOT VERY SMOOTH CRIMINALS

109 boozy drinks but sure, blame the food.

A few years ago a bunch of (predominantly British) tourists were involved in a “food poisoning scam” that involved claiming compensation from hotels for bogus illnesses. The scam was prevalent in Spain and other European countries.

But it didn’t pay off for everyone. One couple (who allegedly suffered stomach cramps and severe diarrhoea), were busted when it was discovered they had enjoyed 109 alcoholic drinks during their short holiday.

THE $200,000 SELFIE

Not the fun kind of dominoes. Picture: LiveLeak

This has to be one of the most cringe-worthy videos of all time. A tourist tries to take a selfie in the middle of a sculptural installation (at 14th Factory in California), loses her balance and knocks the pillars over in a domino effect. This caused $200,000 worth of damage to the artwork.

FIERY REACTION TO FLIGHT DELAY

Setting your luggage on fire sure is one way to express discontent.

We’ve all been there. You’re at the airport and the announcement comes over the PA that your flight has been delayed. You feel frustrated and annoyed. It’s something many of us can relate to.

What we probably can’t relate to is being so annoyed that you set your own luggage on fire in protest. But that’s exactly what one man did in the middle of the airport when his 7am flight from Islamabad International Airport was delayed in 2018. There’s even video of it.

NOT-SO-SLICK KID-IN-COFFIN TRICK

The family’s photo stunt significantly damaged the priceless sarcophagus.

“You know what would be funny?” said the woman to her partner. “If we put our child in this 800-year-old sarcophagus at the Prittlewell Priory Museum in Southend, England for a photo.”

Thinking a picture of your kid in an old coffin is going to make strong Instagram content is already a bit off, but it really comes unstuck when a chunk of the priceless coffin breaks off. The family quickly left without notifying staff, but were later found on the CCTV footage.