Popular Dublin location named third worst 'tourist trap'

Extra.ie​

15-07-2025

Temple Bar has seen its high prices and cobbled streets finally rewarded — as the third biggest 'tourist trap' in the entire world.
Famed for its €10 pints of Guinness and being where most tourist will enjoy their first pint while on holiday in Dublin, Temple Bar's reputation precedes itself, with most Irish people, either from the capital or elsewhere, usually trying to avoid the place.
Now, Nomad eSIM has released its list of the biggest tourist traps in the world, with Temple Bar taking home the bronze, coming in ahead of Paris' Eiffel Tower and Niagara Falls. Temple Bar has seen its high prices and cobbled streets finally rewarded — as the third biggest 'tourist trap' in the entire world. Pic: Derick P. Hudson/Shutterstock
Checking reviews of the cobbled streets of Temple Bar, the term 'tourist trap' was mentioned a massive 687 times — with Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco and Las Ramblas in Barcelona coming in first and second.
Rounding out the top five was Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin, once a crossing point between East and West Berlin and one of the lasting symbols of the East-West divide during the Cold War, and Edinburgh's Royal Mile.
Among the chief complaints about Temple Bar from tourists include its prices, as well as dirty streets and lack of safety and local culture — with one person who reviewed the location describing it in three words: 'overcrowded, overpriced and overrated.' The Temple Bar in Dublin Pic: Joaquin Gomez Sastre/NurPhoto via Getty Images
'Disgusting place,' another wrote. 'The smell of urine, dirty, drunken people, litter everywhere, overpriced, rude, unfriendly people. It was simply disgusting. Not safe during the day and definitely not at night. Not a place to bring kids.'
Nomad eSIM, who sell eSIMs to people who are travelling abroad so they don't have to pay roaming charges, has said that tourist traps should be avoided by said tourists, saying that they're more about 'selling to visitors' rather than being about the place itself.
'Crowds grow, prices rise, and what made it special fades away,' Eric Morhenn of Nomad said. 'Sometimes it's best to just a few blocks away and see where the locals go.' Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco has been named the biggest tourist trap in the world. Pic:As for his advice, Mr Morhenn said 'avoid the spots with big signs and pushy sellers and instead, look for places that feel a little quieter, and simpler.
'Visiting outside the busy season helps too; things slow down, and you get a better feel for the place. And don't be afraid to ask someone who lives there. People usually love to share their favourite hidden spots.' Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco Las Ramblas, Barcelona Temple Bar, Dublin Checkpoint Charlie, Berlin The Royal Mile, Edinburgh Niagara Falls, Canada Victoria Peak, Hong Kong Takeshita Street, Japan Eiffel Tower, France Stockholm Old Town, Sweden