A sad reality of travel is that people will try to overcharge you constantly. No matter where you are in the world, this is bound to happen at some point.
Some people are shy about bargaining down prices and end up paying a “tourist tax” that often overvalues items. While we don’t believe in bargaining for the sake of bargaining, and we always condone paying a fair price — especially for hand-made items — letting people take advantage of you is just a bad financial (and moral) choice.
What to do instead: Learn how to bargain. Again, only do this if someone is overcharging you, not when you want to save a couple of bucks on an item that took an entire month to make.
People don’t realize that bargaining is as simple as asking. Sometimes it won’t work, and people will push back. You can then decide to either push again or go somewhere else.
But merely asking can be magic, and people will often concede right away. Asking has gotten us discounts for restaurants, wedding gifts, and even a New York City apartment.
