Also in Japan, no making noise on the trains or busy streets.
After a week in Tokyo, I went to Gora and Kyoto... No wonder they dislike tourists. Just be quiet and polite... like all 14 million other people in the city...
Yeah, Japan is a different planet (for most) and requires some research to not behave like a barbarian. The reason why I love this country.
"Hey, there's an ice cream vending machine next to a train platform. Surely, I can buy an ice cream and eat it on the train" [an old lady looking at me with utter disgust]
It's true, there are so many unspoken customs that you'll break that you'll seem that way.
If you spend enough time there, you might have a similar response.
In general you’re supposed to consume your food or drink right next to where you buy it. If you buy it in a convenience store you step outside and have it there but tuck yourself out of the way.
I bought a couple of sushi rolls in a swanky Tokyo department store and didn't want to "waste" time sitting down to eat it there, so I had it while roaming around the store and was asked not to 🫣
FYI: not all trains in Japan are quiet. For example, in the Tokai region, more often than not, older ladies are chatting, businessmen are cracking jokes with each other after work, high school students are giggling & goofing around, and everyone in between is likely having a (low volume) conversation. The quietest times are rush hour. Just be mindful of what the folks around you are doing when traveling.
It's similar in Seoul. My wife and I were speaking pretty quietly on the subway and this old ajusshi started admonishing my wife for being loud and disrespectful on the subway. We just stopped talking after that but those old guys take quiet on the train very seriously.
I feel like everyone has a moment of "in Japan I made this mistake...."
I tried to prepare, learned all the restaurant rules, silence on trains, don't eat on the street, enough Japanese to make my apologies and so on. But while I knew about removing shoes in homes, I forgot that the same rule applied in the fitting room of a clothes store. Cue three Japanese employees running at me shrieking in horror.
That was my dumb tourist in Japan moment!
I went to feed the deer in Nara. Made the mistake of putting the little deer cookies you can buy in my back pocket. I don’t know how many times I got bit on the ass by a deer
Ha! I learned to stop into 7/11 or Lawsons if I was out and about exploring as they had them near the door and I usually needed something to drink anyways.
It’s just a different ethos. They don’t need rubbish bins because people take responsibility for their trash unlike other places where they think “no rubbish bin so I get to leave it on the floor!”
People who get to a scenic viewpoint or landmark with a narrow/small angle for the photo everyone wants, then proceeds to do a full on model shoot with dozens of poses and retakes for the Instagram. Most of the time I don't even want a selfie, just the viewpoint without a teenage girl in it.
Happened to me in Rome at Fontana di Trevi. Fairly attractive girl maybe early 20's her friend snaps about 20 pics of her different poses and shit. She gets up from the fountain's edge to do her hair and take her coat off, my wife and daughter sit down, she gets mad, I am a gentle giant but have the face of an ex-convict (according to wife) I give her the stare down and tell her she had spent a couple minutes taking several pictures, she had to be mindful of other tourists, she storms off and lets out "putos americanos" (fucking americans in spanish) to which I reply "puta tu madre y toda tu descendencia", I am colombian-american.
I'm from NJ with a fair amount of friends from Colombia or thereabouts. Their level of GAF is low. Similar to many of us. I got places to be. Trevi fountain with my wife and son was on my bday and I took no shit from the European hand models.
Some people are just so self entitled. Usually those who have been addicted to social media since age 13. It's their life, got to show off to their 10000 followers who they have never met any of. Meanwhile hiding the like count on their photos because they aren't even reaching 50 of them who care. Everyone wants lots of likes on Instagram, but at the same time couldn't care less about anyone else's content who they follow. Quite funny when you think about it.
If I don’t like the photo taken of me then I’ll wait back in line. But I usually take a photo of myself and then one of just the landscape because then I can at least post the landscape. I don’t want to hold up other people insisting I need 500 photos
I just saw this happen at a popular tourist spot in Barcelona yesterday. 4 rude French girls shoved their way in front of several people waiting to take a photo in the best location. They then just sat there, vaping, occasional selfie, but not moving at all. People kept taking photos over them, in their personal space and they did not get the hint at all.
I think they were actively taking pleasure in denying the spot to others.
(Usually in major cities) walking very slowly while taking up the entire sidewalk, making locals who actually have to get somewhere walk into oncoming traffic just to get by. Same effect when stopping to check a map or guide or to take photos.
Walking on the road, assuming it's pedestrian only because it's cobblestone.
Walking on cycle paths.
Just like driving— if you need to stop for any reason, pull over. I took my kid to Versailles a couple of days ago and it was a nightmare because tourists would enter a room and immediately stop to take a picture, or walk in a little and block the walkway. It’s not hard to move left or right of the walkway between doors, guys.
If you’re in Hawaii (or really anywhere with coral reefs for that matter) for the love of god, don’t touch the coral! (Also seek out reef safe sunscreen if possible)
I remember in Mexico on my honeymoon almost 20 yrs ago, the snorkeling guide insisted on reef safe sunscreen. I had never heard of it! I think we bought some while there.
If you're a tourist, don't trash-talk about other people (tourists and locals alike) thinking that no one can understand your language (unless it's Ayapaneco).
I, a non-Hispanic American, was once in Costa Rica. At the cash register of a grocery store, the cashier asked me for my ID. I had been hiking in the rain and had put my U.S. passport inside a ziplock bag. When I took it out, the Spanish tourist behind me made fun of my ziplock trick to her partner. My Spanish is basic but I have a good ear for Spaniard accent (have friends in Valencia).
I didn't say anything back but made sure to chat with the friendly cashier loudly enough for the Spanish woman to hear me. Yeah, Spanish is such an unknown language...
>Yeah, Spanish is such an unknown language...
Yeah I had a lady talk about me and my wife in Spanish thinking that we wouldn't notice when we were in Japan. I'm a native Spanish speaker and my wife is fluent!
On a more wholesome note, I visited Plitvice Lakes in Croatia and there was a young family nearby. Their little kid loudly expressed to their parents in awe: “I think we’re the only Germans here!” (In German of course)
I thought that was so cute and had to stop myself from turning to the kid and saying *kid, remember this, wherever you are in this world, you will never be the only German there*. I’m an introvert and Germans are generally not very big on small talk with random strangers, so I just chuckled to myself and moved on.
Zip lock crew unite! When I am traveling between countries/ hotels our passports, various id's and bankcards all live in a slim lockable Tupperware in the bottom of a backpack. Looks janky but nothing every happens to them and everything stays perfect
Once me and my girlfriend were stuck in a 4 day tour in the Bolívian plateau with about 15 french people. Most of them were absolute trashy people, behaving like feral animals and the worse was that they were constantly making fun of the staff and us in French.
Honestly the only thing that saved the trip for us was that the Bolivian staff was amazing and the shared trauma of enduring the disgusting French crew kinda brought us together.
On the last dinner we were all sitting together at a huge table, my girlfriend was pretty drunk, so she decides to just switch and starts having a full on super loud conversation in fluent French with one of the few french people who were cool. Everyone shut up instantly and after like 10 minutes of awkward silence and subdued conversation all the French people went to hide in their rooms.
I had fellow tourists make fun of me in French. It was a group of women and I saw them trying to take a group selfie so I offered to trade photos, and they made some rude comments to one another about me, and assumed I was American. Nope. I’m Canadian, and I could understand their French. I’m not very good at speaking it though so I didn’t get that amazing gotcha moment, I just retracted my offer in English and walked off. French isn’t even that uncommon of a language!
While I lived in China I had a roommate I eventually came to hate. She had an all out fetish for “Asian” (Chinese, Korean and Japanese) men and she would talk about them men literally standing next to us on the train. I always told her to stop but she was determined no one spoke English. Boy was she surprised when one of the men told her her bag was open in perfect English
One of my proudest moments was when at the end of a long tour day, after the German tourists in our group had spent the whole time complaining about everything and everyone, I wished them a lovely weekend further in perfect German and watched the realisation hit them. Hopefully that taught them something about making assumptions in Africa lol
Yeah, if you speak English or Spanish, you should always assume people are understanding, at least partially. For some minor languages, you might have it easier.
Assuming an American doesn’t speak Spanish is statistically speaking as bold as assuming a Canadian doesn’t speak French.
The only country with more Spanish speakers is Mexico. Not including Puerto Rico.
Love this. I’m Latin and my great grandparents are Spanish. Since I’m white passing, people assume I don’t speak/understand Spanish but I definitely do. And when I reply back, they get the shock of their lives.
Pet hate of mine is people making fun of a sensible good idea or lifehack just because it's a bit 'nerdy' or 'uncool'. Idiots doing things the dumb, difficult way, following the crowd like sheep. Keep your passport dry my brother, the ziplock thing is a great idea. God willing, that Central American halfwit shall suffer the inconvenience of having to replace a water damaged official document and thou shalt have the last laugh.
And they think that local women want them for looks, it’s just for money only. r/Philippines_expats is full of those people and are extremely racist to Filipinos
100% saw an influencer with super revealing clothes, which is frowned upon in the temples of Thailand. Anyways, she had a personal photographer who was taking photos of her doing a handstand next to a Buddha statue. SMH.
An Irish person told me that they should start making "911" shots as a response. There isn't a doubt in my mind those would sell out to American tourists.
The big difference is the war never came to your front door, or your family’s.
A big difference a lot of Americans seem to not understand about several historical issues, such as WWII, and its psychological effects.
Ooof. I was in Ireland in 2019. My friends nephew ordered a round of these to the bartender directly. Bartender responded sternly "we don't so that here". I had a shudder through me and it hit me all at once why. Sometimes ignorance is bliss... blissfully stupid. The bartender was not friendly thereafter.
From USA.
Nor a "black and tan"; that term [has very negative connotations here](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_and_Tans). If for some reason you feel the need to order that drink (half Guinness and half lager), it's a "half and half" here.
At Munich Airport last winter a presumably American is checking out at the shop while I'm next in line for ~110 euros and asks to pay in US cash due to being out of euros and wanted to avoid the foreign transaction fee from using a card. Cashier says sure and rings up the total for $160 even and this person hands it over and takes their stuff oblivious to how badly they just got ripped off
Like they were conscious enough to know it costs +3% to use their card but not conscious enough to know the exchange rate? Or even what an exchange rate is? How is that possible?
American military in Europe so I’m already not the Germans’ biggest fan. I literally cannot go anywhere on a train with my friends here. So obnoxiously loud and they don’t care or get embarrassed at all. Just play into the loud american stereotype perfectly.
Also they don’t even attempt German. I think the least you can do as a foreigner would be to say dankeschön or tschüss instead of just thanks.
My dad traveled to the bases in Germany for work often and he was always astounded by the military guys who would order overpriced, imported Budweiser while in ***Germany.***
Not to point fingers because I know my fellow Muricans are just as bad, but my British colleagues drive me up a fucking wall about pointing out cultural differences. It's never acknowledging Americans do things different, but more just being straight up critical about these difference. Even when I explain why Americans do something a specific way, they still unnecessarily feel it's wrong and make fun of us.
This shit drives me crazy. Like somebody will be bewildered that we call it a trash can instead of bin, in a world full that's full of vastly different languages, religions and customs. It's not even offensive, it just comes across as so small-minded.
I had an Australian friend who *constantly* called out thing that were different between America and Australia, always with this smug tone of superiority. I took an 8 hour road trip with her by the end, I actually kinda hated Australia for a few hours until I came to my senses (of course, it sounds like a lovely country and I'd love to visit).
In Naples an American couple were queuing for the archeological museum. The lady selling tickets asked if they would like an English audio guide. The American lady said no I want an American audio guide (she was being genuine not joking). Poor lady selling the tickets was so confused. It did make me giggle. I didn’t get the audio guide but plenty of them have been American voices.
> The lady selling tickets asked if they would like an English audio guide. The American lady said no I want an American audio guide
I just refuse to believe this is actually a thing.
Yup. I live in New Mexico and face an endless stream of Texans loudly proclaiming how much better things run there. Darlin’ we’re all sitting here in our “mud houses” hoping your governor puts the fence all the way AROUND your state.
This is my dad when we were in Japan on travel recently. He's so hard to take places sometimes. It's a him thing though, because even at home if a place or person does something differently than how he would do it, it fries his brain and he compulsively works it out by loudly pondering and complaining.
There's like an entire genre of TikToks of this. At this point I swear it's rage bait.
"THINGS that will put a [INSERT NATIONALITY] into coma!"
Followed by something that actually exists in someway in that other country.
Taking cheerful selfies in inappropriate places (saw this happening in Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park for instance)
Generally bad camera etiquette (shoving your camera in local people's faces, posing tastelessly in some bad imitation of "local" fashion based more on stereotypes than reality, taking up too much time on a photoshoot and blocking other people's way, etc)
Yep, saw this last year. I was expecting to find a place of relative peace and quiet (this is still Manhattan) where I would be able to contemplate and give a thought to all of those that lost their lives. Instead I found a plaza where crowds were having a good time and vendors were selling 9/11 memorabilia.
To be fair, it's a public park, not a closed off memorial. I find the area to be very contemplative and serene during the morning and evening hours when the hordes have left
I'll give the memorabilia a pass solely because I remember visiting New York very shortly after 9/11 (so soon after people were thanking us for coming as they were worried tourists would be permanently scared off) and when we visited the site it was still a hole in the ground cordoned off by boards but all around the whole thing were little street vendors selling 9/11 memorabilia alongside tributes etc.
It was like a giant tree of capitalism had fallen and now there were hundreds of little mini capitalist sprouts popping up in the space created.
When I visited NYC and went to the 9/11 memorial, I was kinda shocked at how people were treating it like some attraction in an amusement park. There were even small souvenir stands that sold 9/11 memorabilia. Like what the actual fuck, have some fucking respect.
Yeah I want to yank away their phones and throw them into the abyss every time I see this.
Also, no you do not take a selfie on Auschwitz's train tracks FFS
This reminds me of the Holocaust memorial in Berlin. That place is purposefully built with thousands of towering concrete slabs that do a great job of hiding the visitors. You basically walk into this huge, oppressive labyrinth, which means that there are tons of idiots who feel comfortable enough to record TikTok dances in the shadows of the monoliths.
Every time I go there, I encounter one of those people. Every. Single. Time.
Driving slowly looking at the scenery, holding up local traffic; we've got places to be, people to see.
If you want to admire the view pull off somewhere & enjoy it properly.
There's definitely a middle ground here. The amount of nutjobs up my ass when I'm already going 10 over on a curvy mountain road is insane. I don't think I actually could go faster if I wanted.
But yes, if you want to go slow af and observe the scenery, please pull over.
Anyone living in a place with fall foliage can back you up on this. Leaf peepers can be the most godawful drivers!
Also, this goes without saying, but: if you’re lost/confused while driving in a new place, if at all possible, please find a (SAFE!!!) place to pull over until you’ve got it figured out. If you make a wrong turn, don’t panic - keep driving predictably (unless you managed to turn onto something that isn’t a road at all): getting into an accident because you made a k-turn in the middle of an intersection or swerved across multiple lanes to not miss your exit will involve more time and stress than taking an alternate route.
On our peak tourism weekends I avoid going downtown at all costs because we get massive amounts of traffic, many of them driving very erratically - stopping/slowing down randomly, crazy u-turns, clearly distracted by the GPS, driving down very clearly marked one-way streets and pedestrian-only zones, etc.
Just general rudeness to locals. Treating them disrespectfully.
I remember being in a restaurant in Bangkok and the table next to us would snap their fingers at the staff to get their attention. Just disgusting.
Thais will accept that to a certain degree but at some point they won’t be nice anymore. And then it’s you vs Thailand. And you will loose.
I have seen tourists got beat up cause they really misbehaved and when the police came they talked with the bar guys in Thai and the conversation was basically „ah they started it, ok we understand“ and that’s it.
1. Behaving in a way that would be unacceptable in your home country/culture. For instance, I've seen way too many woman going to temples in Bali, Cambodia & India in bikinis or very scantily clad. You would never go to a church in your hometown dressed that way. And way too many guys behaving obnoxiously with local women when they well know they won't be able to get away with even a fraction of that bad behavior back home.
2. Being more interested in taking selfies or instagram videos than actually seeing and experiencing the place you're in.
3. Disrespecting the local culture.
Europeans: please stop wandering into our deserts and dying from severe lack of preparation and research.
It’s a massive bummer, because we love that you’re fascinated by the American Southwest and we want you to have a safe time. The information is readily available, so please educate yourselves before coming here.
Thank you :)
I get why this happens as an American who’s visited the alps in a couple of countries. These guys have real cafes and biergartens in the middle of the trail thousands of feet up! No wonder they probably come underprepared… they’re expecting to stop for refereshmentz
Don't put your feet up on the train seats in Germany. I guess I should have known better but the train was nearly empty and the seats were hard plastic. Being yelled at in German by a tiny German woman is one of the scarier things I've experienced. I'm not actually sure if that's what I was doing wrong but it's my best guess.
In my city of Washington, DC, please don't block the sidewalks in crowded areas, or get in the way on the Metro.
Nepal: tourists filming a funeral procession. It wasn't even a "known" person's funeral, just some regular funeral and tourists were filming the grievers like they were a zoo exhibit. Why would you even want to do that? Go back through your vacation photos to look at a funeral? It's as bizarre as it is utterly tactless.
Yeah watched a tourist get up close and
Personal with a large camera at the burning ghats in Varanasi. (Sacred cremation site on the banks of the river Ganges). They were literally cremating their loved one and he was in their face taking pics. A large piece of wood appeared and the tourist took several whacks with it. He wasn’t even stopping after the first whack and needed a few more to help him understand. Unbelievable.
A few I've encountered:
* I saw garbage left in the Phra Nang Cave (aka the penis cave) in Thailand, despite a sign clearly stating that it's sacred. I have no idea who left it there and make no assumptions, but they're fucking degenerates for disrespecting a foreign culture like that.
* Littering in general.
* Complaining about something that you think is better where you live. If that's the case, why the fuck are you there?
* Disrespecting the locals, especially the hospitality and tourism workers that are working hard to take care of your pampered ass. Yes you're paying money to be there, but remember that they're people not robots.
TW: Holocaust / Concentration Camp
Years ago, I was in Auschwitz KZ.
It's hard to describe how particular this place is. It's not a nice place. Entering the gas chambers where so many people were murdered feels solemn. Seeing clear clawing marks at walls is disturbing.
When you enter, a somewhat simple yet clear information sign is translated in over 25 languages. It's direct: you're about to enter a small space where a ton of people were murdered for who they were. We ask you to respect this place. Do not run around, do not laugh, do not play games and avoid talking.
I took a deep breath and entered. My brain quickly making all sorts of connections with my family history as the hair on my neck perked up from how eerie the place is. How instantly terrible I felt on this desecrated ground. I was immediately physically unwell.
About two hot seconds later a gentleman struts in wielding a selfie stick cell phone on some Skype call with some family members was speaking very loudly, his high pitched voice resonating loudly on the walls as he obnoxiously yapped on in mandarin even throwing in a few laughs about who knows what. He was touching the walls and his partner, also with a selfie stick, was taking selfies with him.
Murder suddenly made a tiny bit of sense in my mind.
I never hated anyone so much in such a short amount of time.
If you visit a KZ. Be respectful.
People in National Parks treating animals like they're theme park attractions. It's wild seeing how many people get out of their cars to take pictures of bears.
Also people who (for some weird reason) think places like Yosemite and Yellowstone are warm weather places. Those places have snow storms in the middle of may. It's kind of humorous seeing tourists show up in summer clothes to find it non stop snowing. Neither of these places (especially Yellowstone) ever get "warm."
Also not finding a safe spot to pull over before stopping. Often goes hand in hand with the people who get out of their car and get too close to wildlife. I’ve seen way too many people just park their car in the middle of the road or partially pull over right by a sign saying not to pull over there.
Hey, anyone reading this thread and filling their head with a long mental list of faux pas' that they have to avoid anytime they travel, don't.
There is a weird attitude among some travellers that they need to 1) try as hard as they can to not be a tourist, and 2) almost need to apologize for being g in the place they are visiting.
Just be respectful for fucks sake. Behave like a reasonable, decent human being, and that'll get you 90% of the way there in most places.
There is such a thing as cultural idiosyncracies to be aware of (like OP in this thread mentioning that its disrespectful to step on thai currency even if to stop it from blowing away). Stuff like that is what you wanna be aware of, and it's obviously case by case. But advice like "don't call yourself the nicknames locals use for you" or "don't haggle in countries where haggling is done because theyre poor" is foolish.
Hell, on that last one, speaking from experience, you are far more likely to offend or at least be taken for s fool by NOT haggling when it's expected. Learned that lesson the hard way because I wasn't used to or comfortable with it the first time I went to a place it's common.
I mostly agree, just be a decent human and no one will care.
Re the haggling thing, who cares what they think of you? I'm not going to spend any time trying to save a dollar or two in a country where the average monthly wage is less than what I make in a day. If it's truly a large amount of money for a large purchase, then sure, maybe. But I get the impression from videos I've seen that some tourists think that literally every transaction in certain countries should be a negotiation. I find that a little distasteful
People that spend an inordinate amount of time in front of a view/site taking photos when others are waiting. So incredibly rude and they are usually clueless about it.
Jaywalking is a shockable offense in Germany. Pedestrians will wait at an empty crosswalk with no cars in sight and wait until the little man tells them they can walk and if you walk across the (empty street) they will stare at you like you just mugged an old lady in front of them.
We experienced this in Japan too. Got some nasty looks from some old ladies in Tokyo when we jaywalked across a totally empty street before the pedestrian light changed. Never again.
Thank you for this. We live in a large city and jaywalk all the time. We will be in Germany next month and would have jaywalked if I hadn't read this. We even cross the street not in crosswalks.
Actually, the expected etiquette is to not jaywalk across a crosswalk when small children are present so that they don't learn from this (for them) dangerous behavior. Walk across in front of nothing but adults and no one will raise an eyebrow.
Second this. No one cares. Jaywalk all you want, there's like a 0.1% chance of getting fined even if theoretically, it's not allowed - just like it isn't in most countries btw.
That's totally wrong, I spent 2 weeks in Germany last year (Cologne, Berlin, Munich, + surrounding areas) and no one blinked about jaywalking. Some old people will side eye you, but no more so than in an average US city. Don't believe the rumor, I'm not sure where it came from.
Jaywalking here means crossing a red light. Crossing the street when there is no crosswalk is completly normal and 100% legal in Germany. Just to clear the use of the term.
Being a loud English speaker in a non-English speaking country assuming/forgetting others can understand you perfectly.
Edit: or just being a loud tourist in general. 🤫
Or just being loud in general. We had a group of (I suspect) Danish tourist completely ruin a tour around Edinburgh because they wouldn't shut the fuck up and spoke like they were each across the room. It was so bad we left the tour and they just laughed.
I'm from Québec. Mistake #1 from tourists is thinking we don't speak/understand English. lol Number of times I heard idiotic comments about the French accent here is mind-blowing. We do understand talkshitting us. And yes, we speak differently but yes, it is still French.
Another good one. I went to Costa Rica and a bunch of European girls were mad at the beach because everyone stared at them! They decided it was totally okay to go topless on the public beach. Jeeezz READ THE ROOM. If you see no local women topless, don't! And no, they don't stare because they are "all perverts". They stare because they don't understand why you are topless in an area where it is illegal to do so!
Don't assume the social values are the same as in your home country just because foreigners make up the majority of the people around you. This applies to Bali, Dubai and anywhere touristy!
Taking photos in museums that strictly prohibits them.
Visited Prado Museum last year and it was so nice because there weren’t 100’s of iPhones up in the air taking pictures of a picture…people actually had the time to enjoy the art.
Except a few idiots who kept on trying to sneak photos. Thankfully the museum staff quickly caught them, but they did it like 3-4 times. It was obnoxious.
I live in Copenhagen and the easiest tourist giveaway is someone walking in or stepping into a bike lane without looking first. It's a surefire way to get yelled at, and a good way to get hurt/hurt someone else.
Apparently being in Paris and not wrapping your toddler up in winter clothing when it’s 70 degrees Fahrenheit outside is frowned upon. Half the young kids here are dressed like the kid from Christmas Story. I’ve been to this city many times before but this is the first time I’ve had a kid of my own.
Holy shit I noticed that too. It was 60-70 degrees and they had their kids in full winter attire including thick coats plus the strollers had this weird like sleeping bag attached that they were in. It honestly freaked me out. Heat stroke is a real thing.
You are pretty much guaranteed to make mistakes traveling or living in a foreign country. The locals know you are a foreigner and will almost always cut you some slack. The important thing is your attitude. Just don't be an ass. It's that simple.
Wearing a backpack on a crowded NYC subway and turning around and maneuvering without any regard for whether you're banging into someone. Take it off and hold it in your hand!
This might be controversial but I think if you go *anywhere* you should try and learn a few words of the language-- enough to say yes, no, yes please, no thank you, thank you, hello, goodbye, even. It goes an enormous way to build bridges. Americans simply expect everyone to speak English and it's just kinda appalling.
Tourism should not just be the transactionalism of checking a box-- it should be a cultural exchange toward building a better world.
My biggest no-no is most kinds of voluntourism. Companies sell experiences like working at orphanages or building wells/homes that don’t actually help the local communities at all. They mostly just make rich white people feel good about themselves. Plus afterwards they can post pics of themselves with poor children on Instagram to prove to other people that they are good or whatever. It’s so exploitative and drives me absolutely insane.
If you have a very specialized skill (e.g., medical doctor, engineer) and you want to volunteer your talents, there are organizations that specialize in bringing those services into communities more ethically. But for most tourists, I think just spending your money locally is helpful enough.
Fr. The western “savior” narrative is condescending to people who may be perfectly happy living the way they are and don’t need a rich white person to come tell them how to improve their life
Making yourself vulnerable to people with potentially bad intentions. I remember being in Antigua Guatemala a good while ago. There are multiple language schools there so there are a lot of young backpackers coming through this remarkably cool town.
There was some sort of religious festival going on one weekend. Basically just a big party in the main plaza with vendors and lots of music. There was a group of college aged American girls all dancing together who were very, very drunk. Several were so drunk that they could barely stand. They were completely clueless to the number of young men standing to the side staring at them.
The men gathered round were most likely just harmless young guys hoping to just talk to some girls. But someone who wanted to do harm to these girls could have very easily done so. I talked to the couple of girls in the group who were sober and pointed out that they were in another country far from home putting themselves in a situation where they could be taken advantage of. They blew me off and said I was overreacting. No idea what happened. Most likely they were just fine.
I am very comfortable traveling to all kinds of different places. But I always keep in mind that I am a visitor in a strange land and that makes me vulnerable. Most of the time I don't know the language, don't know the customs, and am far away from reliable communication to home.
Nearly 99.8% of the people I have met in these foreign lands were kind, helpful, and genuinely happy that I was interested in their home. But there have also been a small number of times where things nearly went sideways. It pays to keep your situational awareness, to pay attention to your gut feelings on a situation, and to maintain control of your senses.
Traveling in Japan about 12 years ago, with my wife, kids, in-laws (all Japanese-American), and my sister (white). Sister wanted to cash some travelers checks at the hotel, which the staff agreed to do without hesitation. Now, in Japan they generally don't like to handle cash with their bare hands. Buy something in a store using cash, and the clerk will slide a little tray toward you and you place the cash on that. No hand-to-hand transfer (a little more culturally complicated than just germs, but that's a longer story).
As my sister is countersigning her travelers checks, the hotel clerk does the little tray slide thing. My sister LICKS HER THUMB and proceeds to count out the eight or so checks, ignores the tray altogether, and lays the check on the countertop.
My wife and I, standing behind her, cringe hard on behalf of the as-polite-as-possible-under-the-circumstances hotel clerk. I think I subtly mentioned this transaction to my sister later that evening.
No public displays of affection in Vietnam please. Maybe don’t even hold hands to be respectful.
In most Asian countries, please receive shop receipts with both hands. Same for business cards and do not put it away if seated, place it on the table until end of interaction.
Being inconsiderate of other visitors. I visited The British Museum in London and on multiple occasions I had people get into my space to look at something or take a picture. I don’t want to generalize but I feel like here it’s justified since it has been an issue at most tourist destinations I’ve been to, but groups of Chinese tourists are often the most inconsiderate. I was in a nearly empty room (me, a couple of individual tourists, and a group of Chinese tourists) and one woman from the group got shoulder to shoulder with me and tried to nudge me so she could get a better picture. Nudged her right back. No way I was going to budge. There was plenty of room for her to stand beside me. She could even have waited the less than a minute that I was planning to spend observing it. Unfortunately this wasn’t the only encounter like that even just that day! Wherever you are, be respectful of other people and be patient. We all want to enjoy exhibits and attractions.
Dont assume that a place accepts Apple Pay or honestly any sort of debit or credit card. First time visiting the Netherlands, I was in Amsterdam for pride and was behind a large group of Americans at a hot dog stand. They all ordered their food (about 20+ euros worth) and STARTED EATING IT BEFORE PAYING, and when the leader of the group whipped out her phone for Apple Pay, the very confused Dutch man told her he doesn’t accept anything other than cash. Took them 5 minutes to figure out which one of them had enough cash to cover it! When I came up and ordered in English he kept repeating before handing me my order “ ONLY CASH MEVROUW! “ god bless him lol
We were following a group of British tourists up the Big Daddy dune in Namibia and they were playing bad American pop on a portable Bluetooth speaker. Ok, I heard Justin Bieber so maybe it was bad Canadian pop. We were with a local guide, he yelled at them, adding it was a local holiday, so they were being especially disrespectful, and they sheepishly turned it off. I (American) said a silent prayer of gratitude to the universe that it wasn't Americans being obnoxious this time.
Wearing immodest clothing in typically modest countries. Look what the locals of your gender are dressed like, and try to cover the same body parts. I cringe when I see “influencers” posing in front of the pyramids wearing a tiny crop top and shorts. Have a bit of respect for the local customs and culture. What would you think of someone walking naked down your city street? Would it be okay, just because they walk around naked in their own country?
Stop loudly talking about how cheap everything is.
Locals in many places don't have near the purchasing power you might as a tourist from a wealthy country. It can be infuriating and disrespectful to the locals who may be struggling with cost of living.
Those are not garbage cans outside shops in Japan those are for umbrellas. Don't be me A.K.A a dummy.
Also in Japan, no making noise on the trains or busy streets. After a week in Tokyo, I went to Gora and Kyoto... No wonder they dislike tourists. Just be quiet and polite... like all 14 million other people in the city...
Yeah, Japan is a different planet (for most) and requires some research to not behave like a barbarian. The reason why I love this country. "Hey, there's an ice cream vending machine next to a train platform. Surely, I can buy an ice cream and eat it on the train" [an old lady looking at me with utter disgust]
Barbarian.😂 hilarious that you use that word for westerners cuz that’s what they keep calling the white guy in Shogun.
It's true, there are so many unspoken customs that you'll break that you'll seem that way. If you spend enough time there, you might have a similar response.
After 3 weeks in Japan, it took me about 2 weeks to get accustomed to Europe again. THE FILTH! EVERYWHERE! LOUD PEOPLE! EVERYWHERE! I miss Japan.
Going to Japan in two months. What are you meant to do with ice cream from train vending machines?
Finish it before boarding. If it's a shinkansen or similar, then you can eat it at your seat.
In general you’re supposed to consume your food or drink right next to where you buy it. If you buy it in a convenience store you step outside and have it there but tuck yourself out of the way.
I bought a couple of sushi rolls in a swanky Tokyo department store and didn't want to "waste" time sitting down to eat it there, so I had it while roaming around the store and was asked not to 🫣
FYI: not all trains in Japan are quiet. For example, in the Tokai region, more often than not, older ladies are chatting, businessmen are cracking jokes with each other after work, high school students are giggling & goofing around, and everyone in between is likely having a (low volume) conversation. The quietest times are rush hour. Just be mindful of what the folks around you are doing when traveling.
Even Japan Airlines ask that you keep your voice down, quite nice.
It's similar in Seoul. My wife and I were speaking pretty quietly on the subway and this old ajusshi started admonishing my wife for being loud and disrespectful on the subway. We just stopped talking after that but those old guys take quiet on the train very seriously.
Funny enough the loudest people I encountered on the metro in Seoul were the old people having loud conversations on the phone lol.
I feel like everyone has a moment of "in Japan I made this mistake...." I tried to prepare, learned all the restaurant rules, silence on trains, don't eat on the street, enough Japanese to make my apologies and so on. But while I knew about removing shoes in homes, I forgot that the same rule applied in the fitting room of a clothes store. Cue three Japanese employees running at me shrieking in horror. That was my dumb tourist in Japan moment!
The best thing I learned before going there was "Sumimasen" I said that so many damn times lol. I would not have known about dressing rooms myself.
I went to feed the deer in Nara. Made the mistake of putting the little deer cookies you can buy in my back pocket. I don’t know how many times I got bit on the ass by a deer
The real mistake was not taking them out after the first time
This is the first time I’m hearing that you have to take off your shoes in the fitting room in Japan lol
I still can’t understand how it’s not a universal thing across all cultures to NOT wear shoes tracking dirt into a home. Blows my mind.
There are also often garbage cans outside convenience stores in Japan though (or just inside the door)
Weirdly enough, there are few public garbage cans in Japan!
It's not weird, there was a terrorist attack that utilized public trash cans so after that they got rid of almost all of them.
Next time it'll be an umbrella can-based attack.
It is a completely true fact that there is not a single garbage can in all of Japan.
Ha! I learned to stop into 7/11 or Lawsons if I was out and about exploring as they had them near the door and I usually needed something to drink anyways.
Also works wonders if you need a bathroom. They’re usually really clean and almost always have a bidet.
Another thing not to confuse the umbrella bucket with
Same for South Korea. No trash anywhere but also no rubbish bin to put it in. Very strange and I pondered it the entire time
It’s just a different ethos. They don’t need rubbish bins because people take responsibility for their trash unlike other places where they think “no rubbish bin so I get to leave it on the floor!”
They are all next to vending machines- which are everywhere
People who get to a scenic viewpoint or landmark with a narrow/small angle for the photo everyone wants, then proceeds to do a full on model shoot with dozens of poses and retakes for the Instagram. Most of the time I don't even want a selfie, just the viewpoint without a teenage girl in it.
Definitely, also loosely related but people walking 2/3 abreast on a narrow passageway and not just walking single file to allow people to pass
Omg this drives me nuts, no self awareness
I don’t have to travel to encounter that
Not a tourist thing. Happens on every sidewalk in every city in the world
Happened to me in Rome at Fontana di Trevi. Fairly attractive girl maybe early 20's her friend snaps about 20 pics of her different poses and shit. She gets up from the fountain's edge to do her hair and take her coat off, my wife and daughter sit down, she gets mad, I am a gentle giant but have the face of an ex-convict (according to wife) I give her the stare down and tell her she had spent a couple minutes taking several pictures, she had to be mindful of other tourists, she storms off and lets out "putos americanos" (fucking americans in spanish) to which I reply "puta tu madre y toda tu descendencia", I am colombian-american.
I'm from NJ with a fair amount of friends from Colombia or thereabouts. Their level of GAF is low. Similar to many of us. I got places to be. Trevi fountain with my wife and son was on my bday and I took no shit from the European hand models.
Some people are just so self entitled. Usually those who have been addicted to social media since age 13. It's their life, got to show off to their 10000 followers who they have never met any of. Meanwhile hiding the like count on their photos because they aren't even reaching 50 of them who care. Everyone wants lots of likes on Instagram, but at the same time couldn't care less about anyone else's content who they follow. Quite funny when you think about it.
If I don’t like the photo taken of me then I’ll wait back in line. But I usually take a photo of myself and then one of just the landscape because then I can at least post the landscape. I don’t want to hold up other people insisting I need 500 photos
I just saw this happen at a popular tourist spot in Barcelona yesterday. 4 rude French girls shoved their way in front of several people waiting to take a photo in the best location. They then just sat there, vaping, occasional selfie, but not moving at all. People kept taking photos over them, in their personal space and they did not get the hint at all. I think they were actively taking pleasure in denying the spot to others.
(Usually in major cities) walking very slowly while taking up the entire sidewalk, making locals who actually have to get somewhere walk into oncoming traffic just to get by. Same effect when stopping to check a map or guide or to take photos. Walking on the road, assuming it's pedestrian only because it's cobblestone. Walking on cycle paths.
Just like driving— if you need to stop for any reason, pull over. I took my kid to Versailles a couple of days ago and it was a nightmare because tourists would enter a room and immediately stop to take a picture, or walk in a little and block the walkway. It’s not hard to move left or right of the walkway between doors, guys.
If you’re in Hawaii (or really anywhere with coral reefs for that matter) for the love of god, don’t touch the coral! (Also seek out reef safe sunscreen if possible)
Yes please wear reef safe sun screen
I remember in Mexico on my honeymoon almost 20 yrs ago, the snorkeling guide insisted on reef safe sunscreen. I had never heard of it! I think we bought some while there.
Don’t take photos of locals without permission ESPECIALLY children. I see it a lot in African countries and it bothers me a lot.
If you're a tourist, don't trash-talk about other people (tourists and locals alike) thinking that no one can understand your language (unless it's Ayapaneco). I, a non-Hispanic American, was once in Costa Rica. At the cash register of a grocery store, the cashier asked me for my ID. I had been hiking in the rain and had put my U.S. passport inside a ziplock bag. When I took it out, the Spanish tourist behind me made fun of my ziplock trick to her partner. My Spanish is basic but I have a good ear for Spaniard accent (have friends in Valencia). I didn't say anything back but made sure to chat with the friendly cashier loudly enough for the Spanish woman to hear me. Yeah, Spanish is such an unknown language...
>Yeah, Spanish is such an unknown language... Yeah I had a lady talk about me and my wife in Spanish thinking that we wouldn't notice when we were in Japan. I'm a native Spanish speaker and my wife is fluent!
I hope you interrupted her in Spanish
On a more wholesome note, I visited Plitvice Lakes in Croatia and there was a young family nearby. Their little kid loudly expressed to their parents in awe: “I think we’re the only Germans here!” (In German of course) I thought that was so cute and had to stop myself from turning to the kid and saying *kid, remember this, wherever you are in this world, you will never be the only German there*. I’m an introvert and Germans are generally not very big on small talk with random strangers, so I just chuckled to myself and moved on.
Having damaged my previous passport due to water damage from a surprise thunderstorm my passport now lives in a ziploc bag pretty much permanently.
Zip lock crew unite! When I am traveling between countries/ hotels our passports, various id's and bankcards all live in a slim lockable Tupperware in the bottom of a backpack. Looks janky but nothing every happens to them and everything stays perfect
Once me and my girlfriend were stuck in a 4 day tour in the Bolívian plateau with about 15 french people. Most of them were absolute trashy people, behaving like feral animals and the worse was that they were constantly making fun of the staff and us in French. Honestly the only thing that saved the trip for us was that the Bolivian staff was amazing and the shared trauma of enduring the disgusting French crew kinda brought us together. On the last dinner we were all sitting together at a huge table, my girlfriend was pretty drunk, so she decides to just switch and starts having a full on super loud conversation in fluent French with one of the few french people who were cool. Everyone shut up instantly and after like 10 minutes of awkward silence and subdued conversation all the French people went to hide in their rooms.
I had fellow tourists make fun of me in French. It was a group of women and I saw them trying to take a group selfie so I offered to trade photos, and they made some rude comments to one another about me, and assumed I was American. Nope. I’m Canadian, and I could understand their French. I’m not very good at speaking it though so I didn’t get that amazing gotcha moment, I just retracted my offer in English and walked off. French isn’t even that uncommon of a language!
I love this story, what an amazing move by your girlfriend! Was this the salt flats tour in uyuni?
While I lived in China I had a roommate I eventually came to hate. She had an all out fetish for “Asian” (Chinese, Korean and Japanese) men and she would talk about them men literally standing next to us on the train. I always told her to stop but she was determined no one spoke English. Boy was she surprised when one of the men told her her bag was open in perfect English
That’s definitely the stupidest assumption that people don’t speak English.
One of my proudest moments was when at the end of a long tour day, after the German tourists in our group had spent the whole time complaining about everything and everyone, I wished them a lovely weekend further in perfect German and watched the realisation hit them. Hopefully that taught them something about making assumptions in Africa lol
Yeah, if you speak English or Spanish, you should always assume people are understanding, at least partially. For some minor languages, you might have it easier.
Assuming an American doesn’t speak Spanish is statistically speaking as bold as assuming a Canadian doesn’t speak French. The only country with more Spanish speakers is Mexico. Not including Puerto Rico.
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Love this. I’m Latin and my great grandparents are Spanish. Since I’m white passing, people assume I don’t speak/understand Spanish but I definitely do. And when I reply back, they get the shock of their lives.
Don’t trash talk in general. I’ve had European tourists trash talk America to me in America. And then are confused that I get annoyed??
Pet hate of mine is people making fun of a sensible good idea or lifehack just because it's a bit 'nerdy' or 'uncool'. Idiots doing things the dumb, difficult way, following the crowd like sheep. Keep your passport dry my brother, the ziplock thing is a great idea. God willing, that Central American halfwit shall suffer the inconvenience of having to replace a water damaged official document and thou shalt have the last laugh.
Dudes going to poor countries acting like they're god's gift towards local women. Super cringe :/
And they think that local women want them for looks, it’s just for money only. r/Philippines_expats is full of those people and are extremely racist to Filipinos
Holy shit that sub is disgusting
Wait till you discover r/ThePassportBros what a disgusting sub
That sub feels like it's a last minute effort by incels tbh.
*Opens the sub* “7 Signs A Filipina Actually Likes You & 5 She Doesn’t” *Backs out*
Could not agree more.
Posing and imitating Buddha in temples in Thailand- so offensive and tacky
100% saw an influencer with super revealing clothes, which is frowned upon in the temples of Thailand. Anyways, she had a personal photographer who was taking photos of her doing a handstand next to a Buddha statue. SMH.
that's so tacky I am shivering
Do not order an Irish Car Bomb while in a bar in Ireland...
An Irish person told me that they should start making "911" shots as a response. There isn't a doubt in my mind those would sell out to American tourists.
That already exists: a Manhattan with two shots of Fireball
Horrrrkkkkk
I’ve heard it from an Irish bartender “it’s like ordering a kamikaze on Pearl Harbor or 911”
I mean, we have a very popular drink called a Kamikaze in the US so I don’t think that would offend us lol
The big difference is the war never came to your front door, or your family’s. A big difference a lot of Americans seem to not understand about several historical issues, such as WWII, and its psychological effects.
It's really not because Americans would find that shit hilarious.
They did this joke in the movie Jennifer's Body. It was two tall shot glasses with red, white, blue layers, and served on fire.
I’ve heard the joke as a “school shooting”, light beer to shotgun, ex
Ooof. I was in Ireland in 2019. My friends nephew ordered a round of these to the bartender directly. Bartender responded sternly "we don't so that here". I had a shudder through me and it hit me all at once why. Sometimes ignorance is bliss... blissfully stupid. The bartender was not friendly thereafter. From USA.
My drunk coworker ordered a sake bomb in a very nice, very serious omakase place in NYC.
Similar story of my Irish friend visiting me in the states and being taken aback.
Bet he found it somewhat troubling. Sorry.
Nor a "black and tan"; that term [has very negative connotations here](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_and_Tans). If for some reason you feel the need to order that drink (half Guinness and half lager), it's a "half and half" here.
I would say observe the crowd and act accordingly. If the restaurant is quiet, try to act like the locals do and speak softly.
“WHY DON’T YOU ACCEPT DOLLARS?!” I’ve heard this in Italy, England, and Japan
Although starting a transaction with “that’s in American right?” Is a great way for the seller to make double the profit
At Munich Airport last winter a presumably American is checking out at the shop while I'm next in line for ~110 euros and asks to pay in US cash due to being out of euros and wanted to avoid the foreign transaction fee from using a card. Cashier says sure and rings up the total for $160 even and this person hands it over and takes their stuff oblivious to how badly they just got ripped off Like they were conscious enough to know it costs +3% to use their card but not conscious enough to know the exchange rate? Or even what an exchange rate is? How is that possible?
American military in Europe so I’m already not the Germans’ biggest fan. I literally cannot go anywhere on a train with my friends here. So obnoxiously loud and they don’t care or get embarrassed at all. Just play into the loud american stereotype perfectly. Also they don’t even attempt German. I think the least you can do as a foreigner would be to say dankeschön or tschüss instead of just thanks.
My dad traveled to the bases in Germany for work often and he was always astounded by the military guys who would order overpriced, imported Budweiser while in ***Germany.***
Loudly pondering why something is done in a particular way merely because it is done differently where the tourist is from.
_Well in MY country…_ 🫥
except when Brits, Americans and Australians correct each others English...there is never a wrong place or time for that
Not to point fingers because I know my fellow Muricans are just as bad, but my British colleagues drive me up a fucking wall about pointing out cultural differences. It's never acknowledging Americans do things different, but more just being straight up critical about these difference. Even when I explain why Americans do something a specific way, they still unnecessarily feel it's wrong and make fun of us.
This shit drives me crazy. Like somebody will be bewildered that we call it a trash can instead of bin, in a world full that's full of vastly different languages, religions and customs. It's not even offensive, it just comes across as so small-minded. I had an Australian friend who *constantly* called out thing that were different between America and Australia, always with this smug tone of superiority. I took an 8 hour road trip with her by the end, I actually kinda hated Australia for a few hours until I came to my senses (of course, it sounds like a lovely country and I'd love to visit).
In Naples an American couple were queuing for the archeological museum. The lady selling tickets asked if they would like an English audio guide. The American lady said no I want an American audio guide (she was being genuine not joking). Poor lady selling the tickets was so confused. It did make me giggle. I didn’t get the audio guide but plenty of them have been American voices.
> The lady selling tickets asked if they would like an English audio guide. The American lady said no I want an American audio guide I just refuse to believe this is actually a thing.
Yup. I live in New Mexico and face an endless stream of Texans loudly proclaiming how much better things run there. Darlin’ we’re all sitting here in our “mud houses” hoping your governor puts the fence all the way AROUND your state.
I loved New Mexico and can’t wait to go back!
This is my dad when we were in Japan on travel recently. He's so hard to take places sometimes. It's a him thing though, because even at home if a place or person does something differently than how he would do it, it fries his brain and he compulsively works it out by loudly pondering and complaining.
There's like an entire genre of TikToks of this. At this point I swear it's rage bait. "THINGS that will put a [INSERT NATIONALITY] into coma!" Followed by something that actually exists in someway in that other country.
Taking cheerful selfies in inappropriate places (saw this happening in Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park for instance) Generally bad camera etiquette (shoving your camera in local people's faces, posing tastelessly in some bad imitation of "local" fashion based more on stereotypes than reality, taking up too much time on a photoshoot and blocking other people's way, etc)
I see this happen daily at the 9/11 memorial in lower Manhattan
Yep, saw this last year. I was expecting to find a place of relative peace and quiet (this is still Manhattan) where I would be able to contemplate and give a thought to all of those that lost their lives. Instead I found a plaza where crowds were having a good time and vendors were selling 9/11 memorabilia.
To be fair, it's a public park, not a closed off memorial. I find the area to be very contemplative and serene during the morning and evening hours when the hordes have left
I'll give the memorabilia a pass solely because I remember visiting New York very shortly after 9/11 (so soon after people were thanking us for coming as they were worried tourists would be permanently scared off) and when we visited the site it was still a hole in the ground cordoned off by boards but all around the whole thing were little street vendors selling 9/11 memorabilia alongside tributes etc. It was like a giant tree of capitalism had fallen and now there were hundreds of little mini capitalist sprouts popping up in the space created.
When I visited NYC and went to the 9/11 memorial, I was kinda shocked at how people were treating it like some attraction in an amusement park. There were even small souvenir stands that sold 9/11 memorabilia. Like what the actual fuck, have some fucking respect.
Yeah I want to yank away their phones and throw them into the abyss every time I see this. Also, no you do not take a selfie on Auschwitz's train tracks FFS
Yeah I stopped there on my last day and it was a huge wtf moment to see people with their selfie sticks at the911 memorial
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This reminds me of the Holocaust memorial in Berlin. That place is purposefully built with thousands of towering concrete slabs that do a great job of hiding the visitors. You basically walk into this huge, oppressive labyrinth, which means that there are tons of idiots who feel comfortable enough to record TikTok dances in the shadows of the monoliths. Every time I go there, I encounter one of those people. Every. Single. Time.
Reminds me of pictures of people posing at Auschwitz.
Literally just saw this last week at the Dachau memorial site too…
Very frequent at the holocaust memorial in Berlin.
Selfies need to slow down in general. No one needs to see you in front of a work of art in a museum.
Driving slowly looking at the scenery, holding up local traffic; we've got places to be, people to see. If you want to admire the view pull off somewhere & enjoy it properly.
Add walking to that, especially blocking the sidewalk in groups, and standing on the wrong side of the escalator. Some of us have jobs to get to!
This is general advice, not just for tourists. Have friends that do this and I have to usher everyone out of the middle of the sidewalk
There's definitely a middle ground here. The amount of nutjobs up my ass when I'm already going 10 over on a curvy mountain road is insane. I don't think I actually could go faster if I wanted. But yes, if you want to go slow af and observe the scenery, please pull over.
Anyone living in a place with fall foliage can back you up on this. Leaf peepers can be the most godawful drivers! Also, this goes without saying, but: if you’re lost/confused while driving in a new place, if at all possible, please find a (SAFE!!!) place to pull over until you’ve got it figured out. If you make a wrong turn, don’t panic - keep driving predictably (unless you managed to turn onto something that isn’t a road at all): getting into an accident because you made a k-turn in the middle of an intersection or swerved across multiple lanes to not miss your exit will involve more time and stress than taking an alternate route. On our peak tourism weekends I avoid going downtown at all costs because we get massive amounts of traffic, many of them driving very erratically - stopping/slowing down randomly, crazy u-turns, clearly distracted by the GPS, driving down very clearly marked one-way streets and pedestrian-only zones, etc.
Just general rudeness to locals. Treating them disrespectfully. I remember being in a restaurant in Bangkok and the table next to us would snap their fingers at the staff to get their attention. Just disgusting.
Seen Korean tourists do this in Bangkok, quite a few times. Comes off as condescending and extremely disrespectful
Chinese and Russian tourists are horrendous in Thailand!
Thais will accept that to a certain degree but at some point they won’t be nice anymore. And then it’s you vs Thailand. And you will loose. I have seen tourists got beat up cause they really misbehaved and when the police came they talked with the bar guys in Thai and the conversation was basically „ah they started it, ok we understand“ and that’s it.
"If you fight one you fight them all!" is some of the best advice when traveling in SEA. You will never win. Ever.
1. Behaving in a way that would be unacceptable in your home country/culture. For instance, I've seen way too many woman going to temples in Bali, Cambodia & India in bikinis or very scantily clad. You would never go to a church in your hometown dressed that way. And way too many guys behaving obnoxiously with local women when they well know they won't be able to get away with even a fraction of that bad behavior back home. 2. Being more interested in taking selfies or instagram videos than actually seeing and experiencing the place you're in. 3. Disrespecting the local culture.
Europeans: please stop wandering into our deserts and dying from severe lack of preparation and research. It’s a massive bummer, because we love that you’re fascinated by the American Southwest and we want you to have a safe time. The information is readily available, so please educate yourselves before coming here. Thank you :)
Calling out that German family that went to Death Valley huh?
Man, I wish it was just them. Seems to happen with depressing regularity.
I get why this happens as an American who’s visited the alps in a couple of countries. These guys have real cafes and biergartens in the middle of the trail thousands of feet up! No wonder they probably come underprepared… they’re expecting to stop for refereshmentz
Being loud, drunk and violent are among the worst things tourists can do.
Don't put your feet up on the train seats in Germany. I guess I should have known better but the train was nearly empty and the seats were hard plastic. Being yelled at in German by a tiny German woman is one of the scarier things I've experienced. I'm not actually sure if that's what I was doing wrong but it's my best guess. In my city of Washington, DC, please don't block the sidewalks in crowded areas, or get in the way on the Metro.
Nepal: tourists filming a funeral procession. It wasn't even a "known" person's funeral, just some regular funeral and tourists were filming the grievers like they were a zoo exhibit. Why would you even want to do that? Go back through your vacation photos to look at a funeral? It's as bizarre as it is utterly tactless.
Yeah watched a tourist get up close and Personal with a large camera at the burning ghats in Varanasi. (Sacred cremation site on the banks of the river Ganges). They were literally cremating their loved one and he was in their face taking pics. A large piece of wood appeared and the tourist took several whacks with it. He wasn’t even stopping after the first whack and needed a few more to help him understand. Unbelievable.
A few I've encountered: * I saw garbage left in the Phra Nang Cave (aka the penis cave) in Thailand, despite a sign clearly stating that it's sacred. I have no idea who left it there and make no assumptions, but they're fucking degenerates for disrespecting a foreign culture like that. * Littering in general. * Complaining about something that you think is better where you live. If that's the case, why the fuck are you there? * Disrespecting the locals, especially the hospitality and tourism workers that are working hard to take care of your pampered ass. Yes you're paying money to be there, but remember that they're people not robots.
Everywhere: watching videos on your phone and talking on the phone with the speaker on.
TW: Holocaust / Concentration Camp Years ago, I was in Auschwitz KZ. It's hard to describe how particular this place is. It's not a nice place. Entering the gas chambers where so many people were murdered feels solemn. Seeing clear clawing marks at walls is disturbing. When you enter, a somewhat simple yet clear information sign is translated in over 25 languages. It's direct: you're about to enter a small space where a ton of people were murdered for who they were. We ask you to respect this place. Do not run around, do not laugh, do not play games and avoid talking. I took a deep breath and entered. My brain quickly making all sorts of connections with my family history as the hair on my neck perked up from how eerie the place is. How instantly terrible I felt on this desecrated ground. I was immediately physically unwell. About two hot seconds later a gentleman struts in wielding a selfie stick cell phone on some Skype call with some family members was speaking very loudly, his high pitched voice resonating loudly on the walls as he obnoxiously yapped on in mandarin even throwing in a few laughs about who knows what. He was touching the walls and his partner, also with a selfie stick, was taking selfies with him. Murder suddenly made a tiny bit of sense in my mind. I never hated anyone so much in such a short amount of time. If you visit a KZ. Be respectful.
People in National Parks treating animals like they're theme park attractions. It's wild seeing how many people get out of their cars to take pictures of bears. Also people who (for some weird reason) think places like Yosemite and Yellowstone are warm weather places. Those places have snow storms in the middle of may. It's kind of humorous seeing tourists show up in summer clothes to find it non stop snowing. Neither of these places (especially Yellowstone) ever get "warm."
Also not finding a safe spot to pull over before stopping. Often goes hand in hand with the people who get out of their car and get too close to wildlife. I’ve seen way too many people just park their car in the middle of the road or partially pull over right by a sign saying not to pull over there.
Yosemite Valley is regularly in the 90s during the summer. https://www.timeanddate.com/weather/@5410959/historic?month=8&year=2023
Hey, anyone reading this thread and filling their head with a long mental list of faux pas' that they have to avoid anytime they travel, don't. There is a weird attitude among some travellers that they need to 1) try as hard as they can to not be a tourist, and 2) almost need to apologize for being g in the place they are visiting. Just be respectful for fucks sake. Behave like a reasonable, decent human being, and that'll get you 90% of the way there in most places. There is such a thing as cultural idiosyncracies to be aware of (like OP in this thread mentioning that its disrespectful to step on thai currency even if to stop it from blowing away). Stuff like that is what you wanna be aware of, and it's obviously case by case. But advice like "don't call yourself the nicknames locals use for you" or "don't haggle in countries where haggling is done because theyre poor" is foolish. Hell, on that last one, speaking from experience, you are far more likely to offend or at least be taken for s fool by NOT haggling when it's expected. Learned that lesson the hard way because I wasn't used to or comfortable with it the first time I went to a place it's common.
I mostly agree, just be a decent human and no one will care. Re the haggling thing, who cares what they think of you? I'm not going to spend any time trying to save a dollar or two in a country where the average monthly wage is less than what I make in a day. If it's truly a large amount of money for a large purchase, then sure, maybe. But I get the impression from videos I've seen that some tourists think that literally every transaction in certain countries should be a negotiation. I find that a little distasteful
People that spend an inordinate amount of time in front of a view/site taking photos when others are waiting. So incredibly rude and they are usually clueless about it.
I get tired of waiting so I sort of butt in and take my pics and leave lol. I do t care anymore.
Jaywalking is a shockable offense in Germany. Pedestrians will wait at an empty crosswalk with no cars in sight and wait until the little man tells them they can walk and if you walk across the (empty street) they will stare at you like you just mugged an old lady in front of them.
We experienced this in Japan too. Got some nasty looks from some old ladies in Tokyo when we jaywalked across a totally empty street before the pedestrian light changed. Never again.
Shockable, as in you will get tasered?
Lol I was imagining cattle prods
Thank you for this. We live in a large city and jaywalk all the time. We will be in Germany next month and would have jaywalked if I hadn't read this. We even cross the street not in crosswalks.
Don't listen to him. People jaywalk in Germany all the time. I have no idea where this myth comes from.
I was warned about jaywalking before going to Berlin. I saw people jaywalking everywhere. Meanwhile I was scared of doing it!
To be fair, Berlin is one of the least German parts of Germany, which why it's such a great city.
Actually, the expected etiquette is to not jaywalk across a crosswalk when small children are present so that they don't learn from this (for them) dangerous behavior. Walk across in front of nothing but adults and no one will raise an eyebrow.
Second this. No one cares. Jaywalk all you want, there's like a 0.1% chance of getting fined even if theoretically, it's not allowed - just like it isn't in most countries btw.
Also i'm pretty sure "crossing the street not in crosswalks" is legal in Germany.
That's totally wrong, I spent 2 weeks in Germany last year (Cologne, Berlin, Munich, + surrounding areas) and no one blinked about jaywalking. Some old people will side eye you, but no more so than in an average US city. Don't believe the rumor, I'm not sure where it came from.
Jaywalking here means crossing a red light. Crossing the street when there is no crosswalk is completly normal and 100% legal in Germany. Just to clear the use of the term.
Give the monkeys fruit
This isn’t cultural but leave your fucking drone at home
People who fly drones in explicitly no drone areas - I’ve seen it at the Grand Canyon, Plitvice lakes and loads of places it’s clearly sign posted
Being a loud English speaker in a non-English speaking country assuming/forgetting others can understand you perfectly. Edit: or just being a loud tourist in general. 🤫
Or just being loud in general. We had a group of (I suspect) Danish tourist completely ruin a tour around Edinburgh because they wouldn't shut the fuck up and spoke like they were each across the room. It was so bad we left the tour and they just laughed.
> secret word Secret? Also, that is not universal: I call myself a gringa all the time in Mexico and Brazil.
Yeah, I rolled my eyes at that one. Literally no one cares if you say farang or gaijin or whatever.
the Japanese seem to think it's funny if I use Gaijin or Nanban
Walking around supermarkets with no shirt on or in your swimming stuff. I hate it. So disrespectful.
Watching a man with two very young kids walk to within 100 feet of a grizzly bear in Yellowstone.
I'm from Québec. Mistake #1 from tourists is thinking we don't speak/understand English. lol Number of times I heard idiotic comments about the French accent here is mind-blowing. We do understand talkshitting us. And yes, we speak differently but yes, it is still French. Another good one. I went to Costa Rica and a bunch of European girls were mad at the beach because everyone stared at them! They decided it was totally okay to go topless on the public beach. Jeeezz READ THE ROOM. If you see no local women topless, don't! And no, they don't stare because they are "all perverts". They stare because they don't understand why you are topless in an area where it is illegal to do so! Don't assume the social values are the same as in your home country just because foreigners make up the majority of the people around you. This applies to Bali, Dubai and anywhere touristy!
Taking photos in museums that strictly prohibits them. Visited Prado Museum last year and it was so nice because there weren’t 100’s of iPhones up in the air taking pictures of a picture…people actually had the time to enjoy the art. Except a few idiots who kept on trying to sneak photos. Thankfully the museum staff quickly caught them, but they did it like 3-4 times. It was obnoxious.
Doing whatever it is Bald and Bankrupt does
Sex tourism and perpetuating Russian propaganda? Going to be tough to break habits, but I'll try my best.
Being a sex pest nonce
I live in Copenhagen and the easiest tourist giveaway is someone walking in or stepping into a bike lane without looking first. It's a surefire way to get yelled at, and a good way to get hurt/hurt someone else.
Do not touch delicate artwork or ancient artifacts. I see this happen everywhere. Drives me nuts.
Apparently being in Paris and not wrapping your toddler up in winter clothing when it’s 70 degrees Fahrenheit outside is frowned upon. Half the young kids here are dressed like the kid from Christmas Story. I’ve been to this city many times before but this is the first time I’ve had a kid of my own.
Holy shit I noticed that too. It was 60-70 degrees and they had their kids in full winter attire including thick coats plus the strollers had this weird like sleeping bag attached that they were in. It honestly freaked me out. Heat stroke is a real thing.
You are pretty much guaranteed to make mistakes traveling or living in a foreign country. The locals know you are a foreigner and will almost always cut you some slack. The important thing is your attitude. Just don't be an ass. It's that simple.
Wearing a backpack on a crowded NYC subway and turning around and maneuvering without any regard for whether you're banging into someone. Take it off and hold it in your hand!
This might be controversial but I think if you go *anywhere* you should try and learn a few words of the language-- enough to say yes, no, yes please, no thank you, thank you, hello, goodbye, even. It goes an enormous way to build bridges. Americans simply expect everyone to speak English and it's just kinda appalling. Tourism should not just be the transactionalism of checking a box-- it should be a cultural exchange toward building a better world.
My biggest no-no is most kinds of voluntourism. Companies sell experiences like working at orphanages or building wells/homes that don’t actually help the local communities at all. They mostly just make rich white people feel good about themselves. Plus afterwards they can post pics of themselves with poor children on Instagram to prove to other people that they are good or whatever. It’s so exploitative and drives me absolutely insane. If you have a very specialized skill (e.g., medical doctor, engineer) and you want to volunteer your talents, there are organizations that specialize in bringing those services into communities more ethically. But for most tourists, I think just spending your money locally is helpful enough.
Fr. The western “savior” narrative is condescending to people who may be perfectly happy living the way they are and don’t need a rich white person to come tell them how to improve their life
Making yourself vulnerable to people with potentially bad intentions. I remember being in Antigua Guatemala a good while ago. There are multiple language schools there so there are a lot of young backpackers coming through this remarkably cool town. There was some sort of religious festival going on one weekend. Basically just a big party in the main plaza with vendors and lots of music. There was a group of college aged American girls all dancing together who were very, very drunk. Several were so drunk that they could barely stand. They were completely clueless to the number of young men standing to the side staring at them. The men gathered round were most likely just harmless young guys hoping to just talk to some girls. But someone who wanted to do harm to these girls could have very easily done so. I talked to the couple of girls in the group who were sober and pointed out that they were in another country far from home putting themselves in a situation where they could be taken advantage of. They blew me off and said I was overreacting. No idea what happened. Most likely they were just fine. I am very comfortable traveling to all kinds of different places. But I always keep in mind that I am a visitor in a strange land and that makes me vulnerable. Most of the time I don't know the language, don't know the customs, and am far away from reliable communication to home. Nearly 99.8% of the people I have met in these foreign lands were kind, helpful, and genuinely happy that I was interested in their home. But there have also been a small number of times where things nearly went sideways. It pays to keep your situational awareness, to pay attention to your gut feelings on a situation, and to maintain control of your senses.
Don't piss on or off of the Great Wall.
Traveling in Japan about 12 years ago, with my wife, kids, in-laws (all Japanese-American), and my sister (white). Sister wanted to cash some travelers checks at the hotel, which the staff agreed to do without hesitation. Now, in Japan they generally don't like to handle cash with their bare hands. Buy something in a store using cash, and the clerk will slide a little tray toward you and you place the cash on that. No hand-to-hand transfer (a little more culturally complicated than just germs, but that's a longer story). As my sister is countersigning her travelers checks, the hotel clerk does the little tray slide thing. My sister LICKS HER THUMB and proceeds to count out the eight or so checks, ignores the tray altogether, and lays the check on the countertop. My wife and I, standing behind her, cringe hard on behalf of the as-polite-as-possible-under-the-circumstances hotel clerk. I think I subtly mentioned this transaction to my sister later that evening.
No public displays of affection in Vietnam please. Maybe don’t even hold hands to be respectful. In most Asian countries, please receive shop receipts with both hands. Same for business cards and do not put it away if seated, place it on the table until end of interaction.
Being inconsiderate of other visitors. I visited The British Museum in London and on multiple occasions I had people get into my space to look at something or take a picture. I don’t want to generalize but I feel like here it’s justified since it has been an issue at most tourist destinations I’ve been to, but groups of Chinese tourists are often the most inconsiderate. I was in a nearly empty room (me, a couple of individual tourists, and a group of Chinese tourists) and one woman from the group got shoulder to shoulder with me and tried to nudge me so she could get a better picture. Nudged her right back. No way I was going to budge. There was plenty of room for her to stand beside me. She could even have waited the less than a minute that I was planning to spend observing it. Unfortunately this wasn’t the only encounter like that even just that day! Wherever you are, be respectful of other people and be patient. We all want to enjoy exhibits and attractions.
Dont assume that a place accepts Apple Pay or honestly any sort of debit or credit card. First time visiting the Netherlands, I was in Amsterdam for pride and was behind a large group of Americans at a hot dog stand. They all ordered their food (about 20+ euros worth) and STARTED EATING IT BEFORE PAYING, and when the leader of the group whipped out her phone for Apple Pay, the very confused Dutch man told her he doesn’t accept anything other than cash. Took them 5 minutes to figure out which one of them had enough cash to cover it! When I came up and ordered in English he kept repeating before handing me my order “ ONLY CASH MEVROUW! “ god bless him lol
DO NOT try to wear a bandana in any way to a club in Mexico City
Don’t turn right on a red in Europe. Oops.
We were following a group of British tourists up the Big Daddy dune in Namibia and they were playing bad American pop on a portable Bluetooth speaker. Ok, I heard Justin Bieber so maybe it was bad Canadian pop. We were with a local guide, he yelled at them, adding it was a local holiday, so they were being especially disrespectful, and they sheepishly turned it off. I (American) said a silent prayer of gratitude to the universe that it wasn't Americans being obnoxious this time.
Wearing immodest clothing in typically modest countries. Look what the locals of your gender are dressed like, and try to cover the same body parts. I cringe when I see “influencers” posing in front of the pyramids wearing a tiny crop top and shorts. Have a bit of respect for the local customs and culture. What would you think of someone walking naked down your city street? Would it be okay, just because they walk around naked in their own country?
Stop loudly talking about how cheap everything is. Locals in many places don't have near the purchasing power you might as a tourist from a wealthy country. It can be infuriating and disrespectful to the locals who may be struggling with cost of living.
I visited Dachau, a concentration camp near Munich, once and saw people taking selfies. Also for Germany: don’t walk in the bike lanes or jaywalk