US tourists are ‘tricked’ into paying 44 euros for two ice creams in Rome
An American couple were ‘tricked’ into paying 44 euros for two ice creams while on holiday in Rome.
Nicole Ann and her partner had been visiting the popular Piazza Navona in the Italian capital on Wednesday when they received the hefty bill.
The couple visited the Don Nino gelateria, where they ordered two ice creams, each meant to have two scoops at a price of 12 euros.
However, they received two ice creams with three scoops each for 12 euros, equating to four euros per scoop.
The parlour also added whipped cream for an extra two euros, a small macaron for three euros, and a small cannolo for five euros.
This came to a staggering 22 euros per ice cream. The tourists reluctantly ended up paying the 44 euro bill.
In a Facebook group for holidaymakers in Italy, the woman from Florida vented about the ‘tourist trap’ and about how the dessert was ‘the worst ice cream I’ve ever had’.
Nicole Ann said she only realised she had been ripped off when she saw the receipt, as she claimed the ice cream shop had given the impression that the extras were free.
Nicole Ann and her partner had been visiting the popular Piazza Navona in the Italian capital on Wednesday when they received the hefty bill
The parlour added whipped cream for an extra two euros, a small macaron for three euros, and a small cannolo for five euros
In the Facebook comments, many tourists reported similar experiences and shared their frustration.
‘This is a scam, but it seems to be very common in tourist areas,’ one user commented.
‘Yes, I was there too, and it was awful,’ wrote another.
‘You should always go a few streets away from the very touristy areas,’ advised one woman.
It comes after tourists were charged a £1.20 washing-up fee for eating ice cream out of a bowl while dining in a popular European holiday destination.
Two travellers from Lower Austria had been holidaying near Vienna when they decided to visit an ice cream parlour.
The establishment seemed popular, with one of the tourists, named Wolfgang, telling Heute: ‘There was a huge queue’.
The pair entered the dessert shop and sat down at a table before ordering an iced coffee each and a bowl of ice cream.
But after they had finished, Wolfgang took a closer look at the receipt and noticed there was a third fee charged.
The popular Don Nino ice cream parlour, based Piazza Navona in Rome
The receipt showed £6 for the drink, £7.30 for the dessert, plus a £1.20 ‘glass surcharge’ fee.
‘I immediately got up and asked at the counter if we had paid a deposit,’ Wolfgang told the newspaper.
The answer left the tourist stunned: ‘That’s how it is with us, for the washing-up,’ the parlour worker responded.
Wolfgang said he questioned this, stating that this was usually included in the price.
The worker explained that the charge was added as the ice cream was served in a container that needed washing, but if it had been dished out in a cardboard cup, then there would have been no extra charge.
The owner of the ice cream parlour explained to the newspaper: ‘We don’t have separate table prices, we simply charge this surcharge – it’s displayed on a sign in front of the shop’.
But the tourist said he saw no information in the restaurant that stated this fee, and he was not informed by staff when he ordered.
‘It’s not about 70 cents, you just don’t treat customers like that!,’ he said.
‘We will not be visiting this ice cream parlour again!’