In a bid to keep the streets of this super-efficient city clean, the authorities in Singapore decided in 1992 to ban chewing gum completely. Stick to a mint.
Many holidaymakers head to the sandy beach at Eraclea to escape the hordes of tourists in nearby Venice. Unfortunately, those who enjoy building sandcastles can think again – it’s forbidden.
A curious loophole in the law means that smoking tobacco in a public place such as a coffee shop in Amsterdam is banned, while puffing away on pure cannabis is entirely legal.
The durian, a fruit native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia, has a smell so incredibly strong that it is banned from many public places in South-East Asia.
For those who are young, free and single and enjoy jumping out of planes in their spare time, be careful if you’re in Florida – unmarried women who parachute on Sundays can be jailed.
Bizarrely, flushing the toilet in a Swiss apartment is illegal after 10pm. It is also against the law for a man to relieve himself while standing up after 10pm.
Honeymooners might be best to avoid hiring a car in Eboli, just south of Naples. Kissing in a moving vehicle here can carry a fine of up to €500.
Locals in Capri, northern Italy, must value their peace and quiet – a couple were arrested recently for wearing excessively noisy flip-flops, following the introduction of a ban on ‘noisy footwear’.
The Southern American state has a quite superfluous law in place which states that it’s illegal to be blindfolded while driving a vehicle.
Dubai’s luxurious resorts and stunning beaches may seem like the ideal place to spend a romantic holiday, but don’t get too affectionate – kissing in public here is illegal, and many tourists have fallen foul of this law in recent years . *
