3 Tourist Traps That Are Totally Worth It

The word tourist has gotten a bad rap lately. It’s been a convenient way for people to separate themselves from the “bad kind of traveller.” I'm not a tourist, I'm a traveller! I'm “living like a local!” ~*~I'm different~*~.

And though we've all seen the type of traveller we think about when we think of the word “tourist” (I'm imagining the American guy booming “Sweet Caroline” out of his jammy pack in Trastevere in Rome), at the end of the day, if you travel for fun or pleasure, you count as a tourist.

And I don't think that's a bad thing! It situates your place while visiting a community much more clearly, so that then you can act more ethically and in line with your own values. Ultimately, that's much more respectful to actual residents than “living like a local,” when your 7 days in a place can't possibly give you an idea of what people living there actually do and care about. It takes years for expats to integrate and understand a place after moving to a new country; a few days in a place is a true blip.

With that in mind, places that rely on tourism as an economic pillar definitely have “tourist traps” where the locals wouldn’t dare to go and sometimes, they're worth it! Here are a few of my favorites:

1. Sagrada Familia, Barcelona

Barcelona has been at the epicenter of the conversation on overtourism. Residents are rightly protesting the rise in cost of living and the catering of tourists over locals in restaurants and shops. That said, I believe you can still be an ethical traveller here.

I travelled here in late November, past the height of the tourist season. I hired local guides who were happy to have the work during the slower part of the year. I stayed in a hotel vs. a rental (highly recommend the Kimpton Vividora located in the heart of the Gothic Quarter). And when I have travelled there in peak season, I travelled to the rest of Catalonia, including Girona and Costa Brava, which not only were much less crowded, but gave me a deeper sense of Catalonian identity and culture outside of the tourist-heavy hotspots.

That said, my favorite Barcelona attraction is still its most visited, and for good reason!! The Sagrada Familía is a still-unfinished Catholic Church designed by Antoni Gaudí, but it’s the only place in the world where I’ve been surrounded by people and yet felt completely at awe when stepping inside.

Unlike the traditional overtly religious or figurative motifs seen in other cathedrals, the Sagrada’s stained glass is pure color. A literal rainbow of light dances into the great hall and reflects off the tree-inspired white pillars, which makes it feel holy in the highest sense.

If you go, definitely hire a local guide who can help you skip the line. I loved my time with architecture expert and guide Cayatano Vinzia, who’s love and respect for Gaudi poured out throughout the tour of this and other’s Gaudi spots.

2. The Eiffel Tower, Paris.

Sure, locals wouldn’t be caught dead within 3km of this World Fair icon, but for tourists, you at least have to experience La Tour Eiffel once. It’s an attraction much more approachable in the off or shoulder seasons if you can swing it. I visited at 9:30 p.m. on a cold November night with no reservation and no line to get straight to the top!

Despite being a place designed for tourists, there’s something about taking the strange elevators up to the top and seeing Paris from a different vantage point that feels magical, and offers an appreciation for the City of Lights and why it still deserves the nickname.

The structure hasn’t much changed since it’s debut in 1889 so you also feel like a bit of a time-traveller, with all the same wonder someone from that era might have felt at seeing the largest man-made structure of its time!

3. Fisherman’s Wharf, San Francisco

Long before San Francisco was the tech hub it is today (just try to get out of the Uber without hearing your driver’s startup idea!), it was a working port city. I love a port city anywhere in the world, with their usual mix of fresh seafood, ocean views, and the little bit of grit and seedy past that makes it interesting (see also: Portland, ME, Seattle, WA, and Plymouth, UK).

Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco has definitely become built for tourists over the past decades, but that doesn’t make it any less worth seeing. Seeing the sea lions bark at each other off of Pier 39 never fails to be fun, chomping down on a bread bowl from Boudin’s is still better than most sourdough anywhere else in the United States, and the cool fog and view of the San Francisco bridge offer a sense of place that few places in the world can match.

The Embarcadero is easily walkable, and you can cover a lot of “tourist” ground in a short amount of time. Not many evenings get more perfect than a 3-fish dinner at Scoma’s, followed by a nightcap Irish Coffee at The Buena Vista. Stay at The Argonaut Hotel for an easy stumble back home.

I also can’t recommend enough a hot fudge sundae at Ghirardelli’s Square, crowds be damned. It easily earns the title of world’s best.

What about you? What are your favorite tourists-only spots that you absolutely loved and would recommend to other travellers?

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