What Is The "Tourist Police?"

People who call themselves the "tourist police" are actually con men and criminals and are out to defraud tourists in Bucharest, Romania. Other major cities in Eastern Europe may also be plagued by a similar problem, but this is most acute in the Romanian capital.

It is important for all tourists heading to Bucharest to remember that officially, there is not such thing as the "tourist police." You may, however, be stopped on occasion by local authorities, who have the right to see your photo identification. If this happens, however, the officer must wear a badge with his/her name and must also produce an ID showing that he/she is a police officer. Most of the time, however, Romanian police are not in the business of stopping tourists and asking for identification.

If you are stopped by someone who claims to be the "tourist police," the individual will often produce a plastic ID card, which every Romanian national has, and will ask to see your passport. You may be approached by 2 or 3 of these self-appointed officers at the same time. They will also want to see your wallet. What ends up happening most of the time, is that they will take money from your wallet, often without you even noticing.

If you are stopped by anyone purporting to be the "tourist police," you should tell them that you will not cooperate with them on the street, but would accompany them to the nearest police station. You may also simply say "nu" ("no," in Romanian) very forcefully and walk away.