The Paris Syndrome and Coping with Tourism Disappointment

The dangerous thing about expectation is that it can set yourself up for disappointment. In the case of travelers to some destinations, this can lead to a letdown so severe they literally faint from the experience. Paris is one city where so many travelers (particularly those from Japan) have had this reaction that it's known as the Paris Syndrome.

Japanese psychiatrist Hiroaki Ota described this as "a state of complete culture shock. Tourists from Japan … are especially susceptible to having a disappointing experience in Paris because of how the city has been idealized in Japanese pop culture and media." Apparently, this doesn't just affect the Japanese in Paris either.

Religious travelers to Jerusalem can "fall into a psychotic state" while researchers in Florence, Italy first documented the Stendhal Syndrome as a mental condition that refers to "feelings of faintness, heart palpitations, or even hallucinations one might experience upon seeing great works of art and architecture."

As we head into the final month of summer travel (for many of us), this story offers an important reminder to balance your excitement with a bit of flexibility too. No destination is perfect, nor does it need to be for you to have the trip of a lifetime. Sometimes the things you'll remember most are the ones you didn't even know you would end up doing.