Worst tourist trap in Washington State is found in Seattle

Ahh, the dreaded Tourist Trap.

Every state and major city as them.

Some towns even build one just to have a reason to visit. Smaller towns known for something. Maybe they have an eclectic shop that features the remains of Jake: The Alligator Man (found in Long Beach, WA) a world record for smallest park (like in Portland, OR).

The art of a tourist trap is to bring in people, preferably families our groups, for everyone to spend a few dollars to witness something only to discover there's more reason to spend more money with bumper stickers, t-shirts, keychains, photo opportunities... anything to get you to open your wallet again and again.

If you can show up optimistically and leave with nothing more than a few cheap trinkets and some memories of the thing you saw, congratulations, you just survived a tourist trap.

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Cheapism listed the worst tourist trap in every state and the one they listed for Washington State wasn't what I thought it would be.

What's the biggest tourist trap in Washington State?

Believe it or not, it's not the Space Needle or even Pike Place Market, but they list it as Seattle Children's Museum.

Cheapism said this about the Seattle Children's Museum:

Visitor reviews of Seattle Children's Museum, along with local media, say the exhibits are far from innovative, many of the toys are similar to what's at home, and exhibits are poorly maintained. For children older than 4, it could easily be deemed a tad boring and not worth the cost of admission, which is $14 for adults and children.

I suppose I could see it that way. Sure, the Space Needle has you enter and exit through the gift shop and you have to pay to take the elevator to the top, but it is a pretty neat experience.

And if you visit Pike Place Market nobody is forcing you to buy anything. You can enjoy just walking around and window shop.

When you hit up these tourist spots, just be safe with your money.

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