Have you ever been the victim of a scam targeting tourists? I’ve fallen for several small-scale cons, but thankfully, never anything to completely blot out all good memories of a trip. A reader asked me to address this topic, so here goes.

You’ve seen them on the boulevards and pedestrian zones of large cities everywhere. My last glimpse of such operators was on Las Ramblas in Barcelona. A game in which three cones are placed on the sidewalk, covering a single ball. The cones are then shifted several times, and an intrigued passer-by is asked to identify the cone covering the ball. Maybe the first try comes for free. The passer-by correctly identifies the cone. A few people stop to watch. Time to lay the money down. Five euros come out. He’s won again. This is too easy. More people gather round. Time to take out a 50 euro note. And that’s when fortunes change. So where’s the con?

The con is actually not only in the game, but also all around you. While your attention has been diverted, clever accomplices are working the crowd, emptying the pockets of the tourists who are concentrating on figuring out the trick to the game, rather than keeping a watchful eye on their possessions.

Another trick to which I’ve been exposed, but not succumbed, is the winning holiday lottery ticket scam. In Maspalomas, on the Canary Islands, we were approached by an affable young man with good English who said he was building exposure for his company by offering free lottery tickets. We took one, scratched and lo and behold, we had won 500 euros. To claim, all we had to do was visit the company’s headquarters. We had heard enough about these deals to walk away, but sadly, not everyone does. Many people end up, in the best case, wasting several hours of precious vacation time listening to high-pressure sales pitches for time shares or “holiday clubs;” the truly hapless among them sink their savings into something that’s quite literally too good to be true.

Sometimes, as happened to me on the island of St. Maarten, you’ll be offered an incentive prize for simply showing up to a presentation. After a half-hour’s worth of the spiel, you’ll be asked if you are truly interested. If you admit that you’re not, you are thanked, told you don’t qualify for the gift you were supposed to get for merely turning up, and sent on your way. If you’re stubborn, you can waste yet more of your time listening to the unabridged version of the pitch, and maybe walk away with the goods, but on a limited vacation, is this really how you want to spend a day of your time?

Two area-specific scams have to do with Prague. The first one takes place on the Metro. You stand in front of the machine, baffled as to what kind of ticket you need. A helpful local points out the proper choice for you. You thank him and board the next train, where you are confronted by a “ticket inspector” who then informs you that you are illegally traveling on a child’s ticket, and now must pay a fine. Were the inspector and the helpful passer-by in cahoots, and possibly even employees of the Metro? You could leap to that conclusion.

The second Prague rip-off has to do with currency exchange (it happened to me long ago, so I cannot say whether it exists to date). The exchange office posts a favorable rate, so you change money, and for your business, you are provided with a courtesy city map. Only if you examine your receipt will you understand that the map was not complimentary, but actually cost you several dollars.

Perhaps you wouldn’t call this a scam per se, but it’s another easy way to become parted with your money. Restaurants along the Croatian coast, and surely, elsewhere, advertise a fish dinner special. The price seems reasonable -- that is, until you realize that price reflects the cost per 100 gram portion, and your actual bill is much, much more.

Have you seen those elaborately costumed folks around historical sites and bustling squares? They might invite you over for a photo op. Great stuff, and what a shot, but if you wander off without tipping, or fall short of their “suggested amount,” you may find yourself with an earful of obscenities.

In Moscow, my friend was victim to a clever scam in which someone intentionally punctured the tire of his parked car. While he was engaged in changing it, someone reached into the unlocked rear door of the vehicle and made off with his laptop computer.

Another often-witnessed scam in Moscow has to do with a wallet found in an underground passageway. It is picked up by a concerned woman, who approaches you to ask if it is yours. No, you reply, so she carefully examines it for identification. Alas, there is none. There is, however, cash inside, so she gives you half of it, along with the wallet itself. As if on queue, a policeman and a distraught citizen appear and find you standing there with the wallet in hand. The citizen identifies the wallet, and tells the policeman exactly how much cash was in it. Meanwhile, the finder of the wallet has vanished, and you are told the missing cash amounts to much greater than the half you were given. You are forced to make up the difference or face a trip to the police station. The policeman is phony as well, so who knows where they would try to haul you off?

You could spend hours reading up on schemes and ploys on the internet. A good compilation “Tourist scam alert” can be found on Rick Steves’ graffiti wall. While being well-versed in all the ways folks are trying to part you with your money can save you from sorrow, don’t let it put you off travel completely.

What scams have been tried on you and where?