Hi to all, Just of curiosity to me, I know there are alot of street scams plaguing much of Eastern Europe (particularly in the far Eastern countries of Romania and Bulgaria) that prey on naive tourists and relieve them of their valuables. Incidents like plain-clothes policemen snatching passports.... etc. I just wanted to know if any of this occurs in Czech Rep. and its cities? I realise that street scams today have become more and more complex as people are becoming more aware, but if anybody knows of any street scams in the Czech Rep. can you please tell me? Thanks! Jason
Funny you should mention policemen, as I have just read in my local paper about some people posing as police officers, gaining entry into people's homes, then handcuffing them and making off with valuables! This is in the UK, but I just thought I'd mention it after reading your posts.
Prague is like DisneyLand compared to other cities. BAck in 92 you might have had a problem with street scum, but generally speaking, if you are not a naiive girl from a farm, there are no issues like in Berlin, New York, Kiev....
l OH yes and the cash made from selling the valuables will probably be used to buy drugs flooding into the U.K. from Eastern Europe !!
:wink: True!! Most of the drug stuff in this town comes via bigger cities in the UK first, though... Not mentioning which ones, but when large amounts of stuff is seized by the cops, people from these cities are normally involved! (and London isn't one..) The main thing I have read about street scams in CZ is pickpocketing, but that is ditto for many countries. I don't really think street crime is as bad as over here in the UK. CZ streets I reckon would be a lot safer. According to my copy of Culture Shock, the author says car crime is on the increase, with BMWs and Mercs being the main targets. He also says that 78% of cars are Skodas, and they appear to be equally desirable as they blend in with the crowd! Not sure if folks here agree with that, but it is the author's words not mine! This is not a street scam, but it is something I thought I'd put!
When travelling in the CR by car last summer, we got several recommendations from locals to remove the panel from the stereo and to leave the glove compartment open (to display that it's empty) when parking over night in Praha and Brno. Probably, when travelling with foreign plates, this is a recommendation that suits any bigger city in any country.
Search for "Valuables and pickpocketing" discussed in the Travel Tips and Advice forum (February 2004).
I don't know about street scams but I will tell you this. My sister and I were in prague in '02 and both had the pleasure of experiencing slight of had at it's best. My sister, a pair of gloves right off the table in front of 4 people and no one saw a thing. Me, 2 pieces of luggage out of a locked trunk in the middle of the day on a busy street. Most of the rentals over in the cz have stickers on them basically advertising that they are being driven by tourists. Not good. Other than those episodes the rest of the trip was amazing.
