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This article was first published 12 years ago

MUST READ: Delhi on world's most hated cities list

Last updated on: September 5, 2012 10:54 IST

Image: Passengers alight the metro train in New Delhi

A recent survey conducted by CNNGo lists the ten most hated cities in the world.

Shabby buildings, overpopulated streets, relentless touts and obnoxious waiters make some of these cities annoying to visit, according to the survey. Here's the list.

New Delhi has been declared the eighth 'most hated city' in the world for having a high number of cons and endless incidents of locals as well as travelers being fleeced at airports, train stations, hotels and everywhere else, the survey has revealed.

"There are plenty of cons to be aware of," posted TravBuddy in a blogpost entitled 'Scam City: Delhi's Tourist Hustles and How To Avoid Them,' which lists several popular ones by name: The "Government Tourist Office" scam; The "Hotel Commission" scam; The "Fake Train Station" scam; The "Airport Transfer" scam, etc.

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Tags: New Delhi

Tijuana, Mexico

Image: Humid air from the Pacific Ocean builds over Tijuana, Mexico
Photographs: David McNew/Getty Images

Top of the chart was Tijuana, Mexico, which conjures up images of drug cartels, violence and swine flu, according to the survey.

According to a recent World Focus report, Tijuana's annual tourism numbers have plummeted by as much as 90 per cent in less than 10 years, and other research estimates that visitor-related revenue has declined by almost as much over a similar period.

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Tags: Tijuana , Mexico

Sydney and Melbourne, Australia

Image: Sydney's Opera House and the Yarra River in Melbourne
Photographs: Reuters

Last year, The Economist ranked Melbourne the world's most livable city with 97.5 points. Sydney came in sixth in this same survey with 96.1 points. But according to the CNNGo survey, Australia's top two cities are hated by most visitors.

Sydney and Melbourne's warring ways with each other make them most irritating to visitors.

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Paris, France

Image: People sunbathe on the grass near the Eiffel Tower, Paris
Photographs: Charles Platiau/Reuters

The romantic French capital surprisingly appears third on the list of the most hated cities in the world.

What do people not love about Paris apart from the usual rude waiter stereotypes, crazy lines at the Louvre and the city's knack for rekindling long-kicked smoking habits about 10 minutes after landing?

"I was wondering what was so special about the 'French breakfast' that I saw advertised everywhere we went," comments a frequent Paris traveler on VirtualTourist, who sat down and ordered one during his first visit to the city.

Every legendary city suffers some degree of over hype, but the dreamy expectations reserved for Paris -- propagated by generations of writers who haven't been here in awhile -- are in their own league, according to CNNGo.

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Tags: Paris , France , Louvre

Timbuktu, Mali

Image: A camel caravan leaves Timbuktu in Mali
Photographs: Luc Gnago/Reuters

Timbuktu in Mali is the fourth most hated city in the world.

Branded a "stifling, sand-strewn cluster of shabby buildings staving off desertification", the city is ridiculously remote and unspectacular, said CNNGo.

According to a recent British survey, a third of the public doesn't believe that Timbuktu actually exists.

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Tags: Timbuktu , Mali

Los Angeles, United States

Image: The Hollywood sign is seen on a hazy afternoon in Los Angeles, California
Photographs: Danny Moloshok/Reuters

Los Angeles in California takes the fifth place on the most hated city chart.

LA, said CNNGo, is a center-less megalopolis sloppily carved into about 90 sub-cities, over 20 ailing freeways, countless area codes and a half-million strip malls with mediocre Thai food.

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Lima, Mexico

Image: A surfer rides a wave at La Herradura beach in Lima
Photographs: Enrique Castro-Mendivil/Reuters

Machu Picchu is what comes to one's mind when one thinks about Lima. But its jaded neighbourhoods and shabby facade often annoy visitors who have voted it No 6 on the survey.

"For much of the year, a smog hangs over Lima. The city looks washed out and monochrome. When you combine this with years of news (and rumours) about Lima being unsafe, shabby or just plain boring," opines Time Out.

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Jarkata, Indonesia

Image: Traffic moves slowly along the heavily congested main roads of Indonesia's capital Jakarta
Photographs: Supri/Reuters

Describing Jakarta as a "sprawling city choked with traffic, pollution, poverty", CNNGo placed it seventh on the list.

"It is a very demanding city from a traveler's perspective, full of surprises and awaiting difficulties," noted one TripAdvisor expat.

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Cairo, Egypt

Image: Anti-Mursi protesters run as supporters of Egypt's President Mohamed Mursi throw stones at each other during clashes in Tahrir Square in Cairo
Photographs: Amr Abdallah Dalsh/Reuters

The number of protests shows Cairo in Egypt at ninth place.

Cairo ranks high on any serious globetrotter's bucket list because of it's rich history, but a recent World Health Organisation report equates breathing in this city with smoking a pack a day, said CNNGo.

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Belize City, Belize

Image: Hundreds of Belizians and international supporters gather on an island to form a message on the Barrier Reef off the coast of Belize City
Photographs: Lou Dematteis/Reuters

Belize City was declared the most hated and ranked tenth for having a very high rate of crime, drug dealings and a sense of dilapidation.

Belize's main transport hub is "consistently rated as the worst destination" among cruise passengers.

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