When three Florida children flew to Nashville last month, rather than their intended destination, Knoxville, they became the latest victims of the “destination Doppelganger”.
In July last year an Italian couple touched down in Sydney, Nova Scotia rather than Sydney, Australia.
Last year, a British holidaymaker was sent to San Juan in Puerto Rico, rather than San José in Costa Rica by her travel agent, and other tourists aiming for San José, Costa Rica landed in San José, California, and have then had to ask the way to San José, while already there.
When hunting for cheap flights online, the “same name” mix-up is an easy mistake to make, so to help travellers get to the right place, flight comparison site Skyscanner.net looks at famous destinations across the world, and the not-so-famous namesakes.
York, England vs New York, US
Travellers would be unlikely to confuse the quaint, walled City of York in England, with the massive metropolis that is the USA’s biggest city. However, The Big Apple was indeed named after its English namesake when the Duke of York decided to rename it. Whereas York, England has no airport, flights to New York could land at any one of the Big Apple’s three main airports.
Paris, France vs Paris, Texas
Deemed a city of love, flights to Paris continue to deliver visitors looking for romance. Paris, Texas on the other hand, is less well known on the international scene, although local residents call their town the ‘second largest Paris in the World’ to distinguish it from the numerous other Paris’ in the USA including: Paris, Idaho and Paris, Ohio.
Aberdeen, Scotland vs Aberdeen, Washington
This city in the northwest of Scotland boasts some stunning coastline, which persuaded Donald Trump to build his luxury golf and leisure resort here. Aberdeen in Washington, US , is more famous for being the birthplace of grunge legend Kurt Cobain – a road sign outside the town is adorned with the words ‘Come As You Are’ after one of Nirvana’s most well-known songs.
Venice, Italy vs Venice, Louisiana
The tiny town of Venice, Louisiana has been touted the “end of the world” due to its location at the end of the Mississippi. Venice, Italy however, is far from far flung and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, luring millions each year to its labyrinth of canals and buildings built on water.
Perth, Australia vs Perth, Scotland
Perth, Australia could not be more different from its namesake. Whereas the Australian version is a metropolis, being the fourth most populous city in Australia, Perth Scotland is considerably smaller, not to mention cooler and somewhat wetter.