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20 Tourist Attractions RUINED by Morons

 20 Tourist Attractions RUINED by Morons
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VOICE OVER: Peter DeGiglio WRITTEN BY: Jordy McKen
From ancient wonders to natural marvels, some people just can't behave themselves! Join us as we explore the most outrageous cases of tourist attractions damaged by thoughtless visitors. From carved initials to toppled formations, these sites have fallen victim to humanity's worst impulses. Our countdown includes the Sycamore Gap Tree, Machu Picchu, the Colosseum, Moai statues, Auschwitz-Birkenau, and more! These sites span continents and centuries, yet share the unfortunate fate of being damaged by careless tourists who spray-painted, carved, toppled, or otherwise defaced irreplaceable treasures. Which case of tourist destruction shocked you the most? Let us know in the comments!

#20: The Sycamore Gap Tree

Northumberland, England

For around 150 years, the Sycamore Gap Tree stood near Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland, England. This iconic tree set in the dip between two hills became so famous that it even featured in 1991’s “Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.” However, in 2023, there was national outrage when the old tree was senselessly chopped down. Due to Storm Agnes, locals didn’t hear the local landmark being demolished. During the police investigation, 2 men were eventually charged with destroying the tree. In 2024, the duo pled not guilty and are set to face trial in April 2025. The National Trust estimated the healthy stump could take up to 200 years to develop a similar tree to what was once there. In 2024, the stump began sprouting.

#19: Tha Phae Gate

Chiang Mai, Thailand

In the Thai city of Chiang Mai sits the Tha Phae Gate, which marks the entrance into the ancient part of the settlement founded in 1296. With all that history, you’d expect tourists to be respectful, right? Well, apparently not. In 2018, people awoke in Chiang Mai to find “Scouser Lee” spray painted on the ancient gate’s wall. Even if there wasn’t CCTV footage of the crime taking place, the tag could be easily traceable to one nearby person, Lee Furlong. After all, Scouse is slang for someone from Liverpool, England, and that’s where he was from. He was arrested alongside Canadian Brittney Schneider. Furlong was given 2 years of parole and fined around $6,000.

#18: The Meiji Jingu Shrine

Tokyo, Japan

There’s a strange epidemic when it comes to tourists visiting ancient sites and graffitiing monuments with initials. In 2024, it was the turn of the Meiji Jingu Shrine in Tokyo, Japan. Dedicated in 1920 to honor Emperor Meiji and Empress Shōken, the Shinto shrine was defaced by American Steven Lee Hayes. He carved initials believed to be referring to his family into a wooden pillar at the monument’s entrance. However, unluckily for Hayes, after the markings were discovered by staff, they reviewed the site’s CCTV and saw him seemingly making the indents with his fingernail. He was arrested the following day at his hotel.

#17: Goblin Valley State Park's Hoodoo

Emery, Utah

Scattered throughout Goblin Valley State Park in Emery, Utah, are hoodoos, also known as “goblins,” “tent rocks,” and many other names. They’re unusual thin spires of rock, some of which have ties to Native American history. Well, in 2013, a group of men recorded themselves knocking a hoodoo over as they giggled. Weirdly, they claimed they were doing a civic service as the rock could’ve hurt someone, despite one putting in a lot of effort to knock it over. As well as facing criminal charges, two of those involved, Glenn Taylor and David Hall, were dropped as leaders in the Boy Scouts. The duo pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges and received a year of probation and thousands in fines and costs.

#16: The Senator

Longwood, Florida

For an estimated 3,500 years, the epically-named bald cypress tree, The Senator, stood in the Big Tree Park in Longwood, Florida, making it one of the oldest trees in the world. But that all changed in 2012. One night, Sara Barnes lit a fire in the hollow trunk so she could use illegal substances. However, the flames spread and engulfed the tree, destroying it. Now, only its burnt-out husk remains. A clone of The Senator was planted near the park’s entrance, aptly named The Phoenix. In 2014, Barnes received a suspended sentence, ordered to do community work, and had to pay $12,000 in restitution. However, due to another arrest that violated her probation, Barnes was sentenced to 30 months in 2016.

#15: Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum

Oświęcim, Poland

When walking into the Auschwitz I concentration camp at the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Oświęcim, Poland, you’re greeted by the infamous iron gates with a sign stating, “Arbeit macht frei,” meaning “work makes you free” in English. However, in 2009, the sign was stolen. While it was found days later, it’d been cut into 3 pieces. A replacement was put up in its place. The broken sign was repaired and is safe inside the museum. The theft was arranged by Swedish far-right extremist Anders Högström, who planned to sell it to collectors. In 2010, Högström was sentenced to 2 years and 8 months in a Swedish jail, while the 5 Polish men who committed the theft received various sentences.

#14: Moai

Easter Island, Chile

Believed to have been built by the Rapa Nui people between 1250 and 1500, the Moai statues on Easter Island, Chile, have baffled people since Europeans arrived on the island in 1722, leading to many conspiracy theories. In 2008, Finland’s Marko Kulju checked out the human-like figures made from volcanic rock. Yet he wanted a particular souvenir, one of the figure’s earlobes, so he chipped it off. However, a local woman caught him trying to smuggle it away. Upon Kulju’s arrest, the island's mayor, Edmunds Paoa, demanded an ear for an ear. Yikes. Instead of that punishment, Kulju was fined $17,000 and ordered not to return to the island for 3 years.

#13: The House of the Ceii & House of the Vestal Virgins

Pompeii, Italy

In 79 AD, the city of Pompeii in Italy was engulfed in volcanic debris from Mount Vesuvius. Since being rediscovered in the 1500s, it's become an incredibly preserved piece of ancient history for people to walk around in. However, instead of enjoying the experience with respect, in 2024, one tourist from Kazakhstan was recorded carving his name into a wall, only getting as far as “ALI” before he was stopped. The tourist was arrested and was expected to pay for the restorations. Several weeks later, a British tourist was caught engraving family initials and dates into a wall on the House of the Vestal Virgins. Due to these and other incidents, Italy increased fines to historical sites up to nearly $66,000.

#12: Machu Picchu

Peru

Known as one of the “Wonders of the World,” millions of tourists flock to the ancient Incan citadel of Machu Picchu in Peru every year. However, in 2020, a group of 6 international tourists did something gross that ruined the iconic place. They were found in a restricted part of the Temple of the Sun and had damaged some of the stonework by causing a crack. To make it even worse, they’d also defecated there. Yep. Unsurprisingly, the group was arrested and deported from the country. One Argentinian, Nahuel Gómez, was sentenced to 3 years and 4 months. However, due to having no criminal record, Gómez was spared jail if he followed conditions, but he was fined around $1900.

#11: The Colosseum

Rome, Italy

Unveiled in 80 AD, the Colosseum in Rome, Italy became famous for its gladiatorial fights. However, its rich legacy doesn’t stop people from ruining it. In 2020, an Irish man was arrested as he was carving his initials into a pillar. Then, in 2023, Ivan Dimitrov, who lived in England, was recorded etching “Ivan + Hayley 23” into the wall. After Italian authorities uncovered his identity, Dimitrov wrote an apology letter to the city’s mayor, where he also claimed he didn’t know how old the Colosseum was. He was fined around $1000. However, Dimitrov’s lawyer stated the officials hadn’t provided him with an IBAN to make an international transfer.


#10: Casa dos Mouros Dolmen

Vigo, Spain


Despite the fact that there are so many morons doing moronic things in this world, it’s always kind of shocking when things like this happen. A popular tourist attraction in Vigo, Spain, is the Casa dos Mouros dolmen, a 4,000-year-old megalithic stone formation. In 2016, someone spray-painted one of the dolmen’s stones with a symbol from “Harry Potter” of all things, and wrote “Always” with what appears to be an emoticon heart at the end. It’s honestly an inexplicable action, and defies any common sense. Dolmens are believed by archaeologists to be tombstones and gravesites, so not only is this immature, it is highly disrespectful.




#9: Margate Beach

Margate, England


This is something that happens frequently, but let’s just pick out one beach in particular. Margate in Kent, UK, refers to itself as “The Original Seaside” on tourism sites, and is home to many attractions such as a theme park and art galleries. In 2019, an event attracting around 500 people was held on the beach, in addition to the number of usual beachgoers. The event was provided with trash bins, bags and plenty of provisions to not make a huge mess in the sand. This was all futile, however, as visitors were said to leave a “heartbreaking” amount of litter on the beach. The seagulls were thrilled. Humans, not so much.




#8: Cliffs of Moher

Ireland


The Cliffs of Moher were naturally formed over 320 million years ago and are a unique, geological wonder to behold on the coast of Ireland. They’ve been declared part of a UNESCO Global Geopark, which means that there is extra effort to conserve the location and its awe-striking visuals. However, we clearly can’t have nice things. In 2013, two French graffiti artists who go by “Mama” and “Dirty Edoir” decided to spray-paint an eight-by-six-foot swirly, multicolored and impossibly unwelcome abstract piece of street art on the cliffs. Why? Just, why? Geologists were quick to assess the damage, some saying the erosion and waves will likely naturally remove the paint, however it could take years and possibly decades to entirely disappear.




#7: “The Little Mermaid” Statue

Copenhagen, Denmark


Copenhagen’s most famous statue, “The Little Mermaid,” has been victim to vandalism an astonishing number of times over the years. It seems people have seen the piece fit for a number of protest declarations. The statue was commissioned in 1909, and has since been beheaded twice, had her arm sawed off, was found floating in the harbor, held some adult toys and has been covered in paint a couple of times. In 2020, a vandal spray-painted the words “Racist Fish” onto the stone beneath the mermaid, without any direct explanation. A number of monuments have been defaced in the past few years, with explanations. It’s hard to see what the character that would eventually become Ariel did to anybody, however.




#6: Fifteen Statues

Parque Museo la Venta, Tabasco, Mexico


The problem with allowing tourists to view historical objects in a large, open space is that they are much too close to the artifacts. This has often been an issue in the British Museum for the same reason. The Parque Museo la Venta is a stunning outdoor museum and park, in which visitors can view centuries-old Olmec culture sculptures. In 2018, two men, tourists from Indonesia were taken into custody after damaging fifteen of these sculptures by pouring oil over them. Fifteen. It’s difficult to know why anyone would do this, but thankfully these two idiots were caught.




#5: Azalea Trees

Liangshan, China


The Sichuan province of China is home to the incredibly beautiful bloom of azalea trees and idyllic scenery. Because of this, thousands of tourists flock to the area in their cars, blocking local traffic and life. That’s not the worst part, however. The tourists can’t just look with their eyes. Aside from the trash left everywhere, tourists have been known to uproot and steal the azalea trees, tear the branches off to get “better pictures” and even use the azalea branches to start barbeque fire pits. Azalea trees can only grow 2,800 feet above sea level, atop mountains, and are thus delicate to begin with. These are earthly wonders that will rapidly disappear with continued barbaric behaviors.




#4: The Duckbill Rock Formation

Oregon, US


The “Duckbill” was a sandstone rock in Cape Kiwanda State Natural Area in Oregon, US. It was an ancient hoodoo formation (which is basically a tall, thin spire) naturally resembling a duck’s head, hence its nickname. The keyword here is “was,” as it’s no longer there. In 2016, a group of teenagers decided to topple the formation over, destroying it. Over the years, the structure had become weakened from the abundant amount of visitors climbing it, so the park had erected a fence around it to avoid tourist contact. Claiming to be doing the park a “public service” to avoid accidents (sure), the teens pushed the rock until it collapsed and shattered.




#3: The Hot Springs

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming


Yellowstone is known for its impressive natural hot springs, and many a tourist has done stupid things in or around them. However, this one is a slow burn, caused by large numbers of visitors. “Morning Glory” is one of the most famous springs. Images from the 1940s show the spring in its former glory (pun intended) with a tropical blue hue, hence its floral name. However, recent photos show the spring is now a dark green, edged with yellow and orange. This has been proven recently to be due to the abundant amount of pennies, rocks and general trash tourists throw into Morning Glory. If your penny wish was to ruin a stunning natural phenomenon, congratulations.




#2: Seven US National Parks

US


Social media has really led to some moronic behavior in the past decade or so. Over twenty-six days in the fall of 2014, twenty-three-year-old Casey Nocket defaced government property in seven US National parks with her graffiti which consisted of her mediocre artwork and Instagram handle. She claims to have done so “in the name of art,” but that’s a little hard to believe, given the social media info provided. Due to said info, she was quickly tracked down and caught by authorities. Nocket was subsequently sentenced to two years probation, and is banned from all government-owned parks. Can we go back to cairn stones if we must leave a trace of ourselves? There’s a reason they’re natural.




#1: The Pyramids & the Sphinx

Egypt


Arguably the most recognizable tourist attractions, the Egyptian pyramids and the Sphinx are subject to decline due to massive amounts of visitors. There are some natural phenomena at work here, such as breath and humidity from tourists in abundance doing damage to the ancient structure walls. However, there is, of course, a human stupidity element as well. Once again, people can’t just use their eyes. Tourists have been known to chip away at the rocks on the attractions to get “souvenirs,” as well as flat-out steal parts of artifacts and illegally climb the structures. In 2013, the Temple of Luxor was defaced by a teenage tourist, who wrote the classic “so and so was here” on ancient Egyptian artwork. Bravo.




What other tourist attraction that was ruined by morons did we miss from our list? Let us know below!

tourist attractions damaged vandalized monuments defaced landmarks Sycamore Gap Tree Tha Phae Gate Meiji Jingu Shrine Goblin Valley hoodoo The Senator cypress Auschwitz-Birkenau Moai statues Pompeii graffiti Machu Picchu damage Colosseum vandalism Casa dos Mouros Margate Beach litter Cliffs of Moher national parks vandalism Egyptian pyramids Documentary Education Science People watchmojo watch mojo top 10 list mojo
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