Remember travel agencies? I mean, I don’t, really. I’ve been around for a while but even I’m too young to know a time when those were particularly relevant.
But weirdly enough, in the Chicago neighborhood in which I lived a couple years ago, there was a full-fledged (apparently still in business) travel agency storefront. No idea how they survived that long or if they were a mafia front or what.
But if I had ventured in, they might have warned me against the kinds of experiences underwent by the poor anonymous souls behind these travel nightmare stories.
20. “Woke up to a bear”
“I traced away the fog so I could see the Mississippi on her knees…”

Source: Whisper
19. “Safety Harbor, Florida”
I think maybe they need to change the name of that town.

Source: Whisper
18. “Some tall creepy guy was on one knee…”
I have my doubts about this story as Fazoli’s is, in fact, a fairly cheap Italian chain restaurant that only has locations in the U.S. but ok.

Source: Whisper
17. “Temporarily lost”
If was a lifetime, because now you have the curse upon you.

Source: Whisper
16. “Playing with chalk in the park”
Man, laws sure do work differently out there.

Source: Whisper
15. “I don’t know what kind”
I need to scroll past this one as quickly as possible so I don’t have endless nightmares about it, moving on.

Source: Whisper
14. “Basically incapacitated”
Oh, cool, the worst thing ever.

Source: Whisper
13. Maine man.
Those um…those cities are 3,000 miles apart…

Source: Whisper
12. “He had a big tattoo”
You seem to have a good sense of humor about this.

Source: Whisper
11. “Robbed by children”
I’m guessing it was less adorable than it sounds.

Source: Whisper
10. How far to touch the rainbow?
So. Um.
1) Rainbows are an optical illusion, you can’t reach them.
2) You gotta be super careful of the undertow in the ocean. It’ll sweep you right out.

Source: Whisper
9. Flaming planes
That would be really scary. And yet everyone was fine!

Source: Whisper
8. The much older man
That’s gotta be a truly terrifying scenario.

Source: Whisper
7. Old Amsterdam
The dangers you face out there may be hauntingly familiar.

Source: Whisper
6. The kidnapping
Man, I don’t think that I’d ever be able to fall asleep in a hotel room again.

Source: Whisper
5. Things got heated
Literally nothing about staying in a hostel has ever sounded appealing to me.

Source: Whisper
4. Waiting for the drop
That’s the moment when even the atheists on the plane start praying.

Source: Whisper
3. The sneak
I’m sorry, what exactly was your plan here?

Source: Whisper
2. The raid
That would be absolutely bonkers.

Source: Whisper
1. The very scariest moment
I need a vacation from this vacation.

Source: Whisper
Happy travels to all!
Do you have a travel nightmare story?
Share it with us in the comments.