4 SCAMS in Paris you’ll definitely encounter in 2025.
*Yes, that’s an AI generated picture
We’re going to Paris!!!!…………Hold up there sis! There’s a few things you wanna be aware of first.
Wearing a beret does NOT make you look more Parisian. On the contrary, you’re definitely getting scammed/pickpocketed with a beret on your head. I’m afraid the Cowboy hat doesn’t help either. This is a tour-guide’s guide to the everyday tourist scams in Paris. Don’t even think about switching to Tiktok. No. NO!
Good. Now, Let’s pay attention here:
1. The Petition
You’ve seen this in most European famous cities. Just got off Metro 6 or 9 at Trocadero, I’ll click a few pictures with the Eiffel Tower before heading up the 330m tall icon of Paris. I’m walking towards the entrance and I. have. been. spotted. “Speak English?”….
A young not-so-french-looking girl/boy comes close to you, an empathetic tourist. They don’t speak much english themselves after asking you if you do. Notice something, Watson? She uses shabby sign-language to indicate her benevolence. “Oh! Honey, she’s collecting signatures to support the hearing-impaired. How nice!”
She points to the petition form asking you to sign. A signature doesn’t cost anything. “There you go dear! Keep up the good work.” Oh you’re not leaving yet….
*poor sign language for money*
Yep, you’re forced to pay the adolescent for the signature. Correct, you’ve got free will, well guess what, her friend behind you has sticky fingers. As you say no to giving her any cash, you’ve already been pickpocketed.
So I SHOULD have given her money? Well you might get your wallet outta your pocket for a fiver but scam-anator here has noticed a 50€ note right behind it. A swift flick of the hand and she sprints off with her loot.
How to avoid it?
Keep an eye out for these scammers. You’ll find them walking about in most locations with heavy-footfall namely – the Eiffel Tower, Louvre Museum, Musee d’Orsay, Montmartre, Sacre Coeur, Pont des Artes, among others.
Pro Tip:
Learn the following words and practice your French Accent on the flight to Charles de Gaulle: NON MERCI! (Remember to shout)
2. The Cups and Balls Game
Find the Ball. Where’s the Ball?
Find the Ball. Where’s the Ball?
Find the Ball. Where’s the Ball?
You hear the street-vendor voice despite the heavy crowds. A small audience of ‘tourists’ to a shady man in a hat and glasses spinning around 3 cups and a ball. A huge round of applause for one of the onlookers who doubled their 50€. Easy Money, right?
I hope you noticed the air-quotes on the ‘tourists’ above. It’s a SCAM! The audience is a part of game. It appears simple but it’s a clear 3-card monte. A single naive tourist loses upwards of 1000 euros on these games every day. They encourage you to invest your money claiming their testimonies as evidence of quick returns. Do NOT buy into the peer pressure!
How to avoid it?
IGNORE THEM
You’l find them in the same locations: the Eiffel Tower, Louvre Museum, Musee d’Orsay, Montmartre, Sacre Coeur, Pont des Arts (the Love-lock bridge), among others.
3. The Friendship Band
Bonjour ma cherie! You are so pretty. Here, I have a gift for you.
A string? It goes around your finger and a braid develops within minutes while you hear praises of your beauty. You’ve just made yourself a friend in Paris and you’ve got this new band around your wrist to prove so.
You know what come’s next. Time to pay. Oh right, free will?
Well your friend has other friends who’ve surrounded you now. They want you to pay. And even while you do decide to give them some money, you may have also lost the contents of your pocket.
How to avoid it?
Remember the words you’ve been practicing on the flight.
You know the locations now: the Eiffel Tower, Louvre Museum, Musee d’Orsay, Montmartre, Sacre Coeur, Pont des Arts (the Love-lock bridge), among others.
4. Attenzione Pickpocket!
You’ve seen the reels and the tiktoks. You know this is common in Paris. Now let’s see how they target you.
Beyond the above-mentioned scam tactics of pickpocketing, the most common place for thieves is the metro, or in fact any public transportation.
If you’re standing close to the door in the metro, with your phone in your hand, there’s a strong chance someone will grab it at the last moment before the door closes and run out of the train before you can say au revoir.
There’s also a familiar group of pick pocketer resembling the petition gang. They enter the train as a group and often try to come in close proximity, sometimes despite evident space in the metro. Parisians, on the contrary, do love their personal space no matter how good their perfume might be. So when you see this group, keep your hand on your phone and wallet.
How to avoid it?
Keep your phone and wallet in the front pocket of your jeans and NEVER, in your jacket. Constantly check these pockets for belongings and if you do lose your phone use the tracker app to find it. Ask the police to help but do not get in a fist-fight with the pick pocketers.
BAGS: Make sure the zips are always closed while travelling in the metro.
Be extra careful on crowded stations like Charles de Gaulle Etoile (this is not the airport but underneath the arc de triomphe), Chatelet, Marne-la-Vallée Disneyland, and any other major junctions with high passenger traffic.
The metro line 1 is pretty vulnerable to these pick pocketers since it is a completely automated line and runs through major points such as the louvre, concorde and champs-elysées.
Pro Tip:
Buy yourself a strap or a ring/pop holder for your phone. They’re pretty cheap on amazon.
If you do not have an anti theft zip on your bag, buy yourself a cheap travel lock with a code.
The word for thief in French is – Voleur (for males) / Voleuse (for females). Remember to shout 🙂
Bonus Tips
Passports
Your identity is really important (I can’t believe I wrote this sentence in 2025) and it’s not just the internet scammers looking for it. There’s a strong chance a thief might target only your passport especially in transit to or from the airport/train stations.
While in the city, it is recommended to keep your passports locked in your hotels. Do remember to lock the bags with the passport before you leave your room. For Shopping and getting tax refunds, stores generally only need your passport number, so carry only a physical photocopy of your passport along with you.
The Baby Scam
This one hasn’t occurred in front of my eyes but I can vouch for 3rd person accounts. A woman shows up with a toddler/baby and urgently hands you the child. Now you’re not the devil to drop a kid. Or are you?
Though, I’m sure the devil couldn’t escape this one. While you take note of the situation, there’s a group of her friends who empty your pockets within seconds. The best way to deal with this: be pragmatic. Do not take the baby in your hands! Also, Call the police. This situation can easily be considered child abuse.
Luggage Storage
Most famous places in Paris like the Eiffel Tower’s not that luggage friendly, so either leave yours in the hotel/AirBnb or use the luggage storage services like Bounce (they work pretty well all over Europe). Museums may have storage (they’re called ‘Vestaires’) however, they may not fit anything bigger than a backpack.
Aaaaaand finally…..
If someone puts a knife to your throat.
GIVE THEM WHAT THEY WANT!
Otherwise, have a great time 🙈
Now you’ve become quite the expert on how to be careful in the city of love, it’s about time you reward yourself. Click below and discover our tours to explore Paris.