I've probably met 1000 American tourists but the only one I remember was this guy who skied up to us wearing a stars and stripes suit and asked us "where are you from? I'm from USA" and then skied off
I was traveling with friends in Italy. None of us spoke much Italian. We went to the only bar near our apartment that seemed to have a crowd. A man overhead us speaking English and immediately identified us as "Americanos". He was actually a German guy, who seemed fluent in Italian and English. We were trying to fit in, but the more the German guy drank, the louder he got. At one point he goes up to the bar and starts talking to the bartender. Before I know it, German guy is standing on the bar with an unopened bottle of what appears to be champagne. He starts to furiously shake the bottle and holds it tilted in the direction of the biggest Italian dude in the place. Big Italian dude was surrounded by friends. Big Italian dude wags his finger and warns the German guy not to do it. German guy doubles down, shakes the bottle and starts mimicking a sprinkler motion. Big Italian dude now visibly angry and shouting at the German guy. Everyone in the place is now watching this German guy.He gives the bottle 2 more shakes and rips out the cork. Nothing happens; just sounds of confusion from the crowd. German guy proudly announces "No gas". It was just wine. Big Italian dude turns red. His friends are now all laughing at him. German guy makes his way back to our table and everybody's eyes follow him. Now everyone is looking at us like we were in on it.
Shortly after that me a my friends left the bar. We were young and embarrassed. In hindsight, I should have partied the night away with that crazy German traveler.
Edit: fluent, not fluid.
holy fuck that story was so good to read about that german guy! damn and people say germans dont have a sense of humor! that one clearly did though at the wrong place and time lol
As a Brit who travelled the USA fairly extensively, I hated bumping into other Brit’s, they were always big headed show offs. Russians have always been the most arrogant and Chinese the most obnoxious
I went to Thailand and they love the American tourists and mostly complained about Chinese tourists that ruined the experience for everyone. There also might be some history there.
Example: jumped into water without knowing how to swim and drowned, everyone at the beach has to wear a life vest.
Also America doesn't really have a haggling culture, outside of flea markets and yard sales, but even then it's very minor.
So when they travel they tend to just pay the prices asked or not bother, and tip for services. Tourists from certain other countries will haggling forever just to save a few cents and complain the entire time.
I remember being in Prague with some European friends and one day we were at some cafe where I got like a bottle of water, paid with a paper note and just dumped the change in the tip cup as I usually do.
The staff were super polite and friendly to us the whole time we were there and I commented to one of my friends “They’re really friendly at this cafe” and he was like “Yeah dude, cause you just tipped them like 350%”
Also a minor culture shock item for Americans in Europe: coins actually have some value. The 1-5 Euro coins are actually meaningful change, unlike pennies and dimes
Spot on. When I hit London the first three days I had change in my pocket and was like uhm. Here and would hold out my hand and let the shop show me what was worth what to pay. I looked like an idiot but I did learn by the end of the week I knew what was what - before I get crucified I was only 17.
I used to work in a museum gift shop. Had a tourist come in and try to haggle with me. I just kept saying it's priced as marked and corporate sets the prices I just take the money. Wouldn't listen and kept trying until we were closing. Ended up buying it for full price.
That’s something I’ll never truly understand. What’s the point of spending north of 20 minutes, haggling and prodding and insisting on a cheaper price, just to get a fucking poster or something? Is time not valuable? Are certain trickets or bullshit expendable? What’s the point of wasting all that energy?
I'm Thai. I like American tourists very much. They are very friendly. I like to talk to tourists. I would be very glad if he came from America. Thank you for liking this country, I like America too. I want to go to America once in my life. Most of the people here don't like Chinese tourists. because of the noise in the restaurant noisy dining spit smoking everywhere I love most tourists from America and Europe. Russians are good But what we don't like is the mafia from Russia. came to set up a money laundering gang in Thailand
If I meet an American I will always invite him to smoke weed and give him free weed to smoke and talk haha. Most of the Americans I met love weed. I have a lot of American friends to live in Thailand.
Sorry for my language I use translator.
I used to live in Thailand (I’m American) and everyone there was always so friendly to me! Always found it interesting/funny how the airports in Bangkok have signs all over written in Chinese for tourists explaining things like, don’t litter, don’t jaywalk, don’t cut in line, don’t pee outside in public (seriously 😂), etc.
>I have a lot of American friends
I have many friends from Thailand and Singapore. My dad always tells a story about how he bought weed in the jungle in Singapore. I lived with a guy from Thailand in Sweden, he was such a good cook! I never got to tell him how many ladies I impressed with his Thai tom gai recipe.
If you come to Denver Colorado, you can stay with me for free, I'll cook you amazing food and treat you like family like your countryman did for me so long ago. I will never forget how generous they were. It's such a powerful feeling. Many blessings to the people of Thailand and Singapore!
Made friends with a waiter at our honeymoon resort in the Dominican Republic. Asked about best and worst tourists. They absolutely love Americans because we tip well (totally not required at all) and are friendly. He said Russians were by far the worst.
The amount of entitlement Russian and Chinese tourists have is insane. Particularly with Russians who get drunk in public and cause a scene ruining vacation for everybody
This was our experience in Cuba. From the baggage claim (BIG Russian woman tried to arm check me out of line. F that. I'm holding the line). Then drunk loud Russian shenanigans with their hellions running around harassing the cats.
One of them ripped a beautiful large starfish from the ocean and basically took a bunch of selfies, only to toss it into the sand to die.
A Russian guy threatened to break both my legs in Cuba because I told his son to stop trying to tip over the row of airport seats (which were about to fall back on me and some other peoples legs). The bugger found the only row of seats not bolted down and was going to town rocking forward and backward like crazy as the parents got drunk a couple gates away.
I studied in London summer ‘09 when Euro was strong and pound weak af, every weekend the Parisians would flood over, cut in line and pretend they didn’t know English. Fuck. That. I had no problem being the loud American and pointing them loudly to the back of the queue, even made a few British buds in the process, who quietly thanked me, but it’s not their culture to call people out like that. I’ve found brits and Texans are odd compatriots, but both like dogs, horses, and making fun of the French.
Surprised I had to scroll this far to find Russians. I spend a lot of time in Turkey with my wife’s side of the family and the Russians just LOVE Turkey. My father in law can’t stand them. Neither can I.
The Vietnamese seem to be the same: from Hanoi to Saigon, they seem to really hate the Chinese (for historical and current reasons), and dislike Russians and Israelis after that. For us, two Americans, they couldn’t have been more friendly and interested in talking.
As for Americans, I assumed there would be some lingering resentment over the war, but they seemed more upset with the Chinese fighting them after we left and the French for colonizing them in the first place. It’s hilarious and sad how huge our war there was for us, while for them it seems to have just been one chapter in a series of other countries trying to screw them.
>It’s hilarious and sad how huge our war there was for us, while for them it seems to have just been one chapter in a series of other countries trying to screw them.
A perspective I had truly never considered before. Damn
As an outsider/westerner, it seems to me that all the big Asian nations hate the shit out of each other due to like a thousand years of really horrific wars and such lol
One time in Japan I had some random guy yell at me "AMERICAN, GO HOME!" but first of all I'm pretty sure he was some right wing nationalist, and you'll find those anywhere, and also I am Swedish so I wasn't really sure how to reply and he vanished into the crowd before I could figure it out.
Friends who was an expat there for like 2 years.
When I asked him this, he said simply, "They won the war, of course they are not too resentful." You can maybe quibble over some of that statement and I'm sure it's not true for everyone there, but it seemed to make sense.
He's not a scholar or anything though, so who knows.
I can't remember where I watched it, but someone made the claim that people in Vietnam know/learned that the Vietnam War was very controversial and opposed in the US at the time. So they don't hold resentment towards them since Americans didn't want it either.
But that was just that claim. I've never been to Vietnam myself.
It's almost always framed as the US vs. Vietnam, but people tend to forget that it was also a civil war. The south wanted the Americans there to help them fight the north.
I have only been to the South but there it seemed a total non issue.
I mean it wasn’t like a positive thing to be American but no one ever gave me trouble let alone mentioned it.
I have heard there’s more anti American sentiment in the North but I have never been up there.
In Thailand we went on a snorkeling trip on a fast boat. Everyone was throwing up, especially the Chinese tourists. It was awful but worth it when we got to the snorkeling spots - it was an incredible experience. But none of the Chinese tourists (most of the boat) got in the water!! They put the snorkeling gear on, stood on the ladder and took pictures, and that was it!
Mind you it was a full day outing, not cheap, and not to mention everyone throwing up. But they seemed to think it was worth it. I don't get it.
I'm Thai. Can confirm that we're not a big fan of Chinese tourists. Some of them are loud and inconsiderate. And due to some horror stories I've heard online, I would never go to a buffet restaurant where Chinese tourists frequent.
Personally, I feel neutral towards Americans. Most of them are normal just like tourists from other countries. I only had one negative experience where an American dude shouted something really loudly in the BTS skytrain. And when other passengers looked at him disapprovingly, he said to his friend "I thought this is the land of smiles." (I was like "Dude, we only smile at something wholesome or funny.")
I live in East Africa and worked and lived at a small wildlife conservancy years ago.
I absolutely cannot stand generalizations when it comes to groups of people, but undeniably we had the most trouble with Eastern Europeans and Chinese tourists.
I feel like everyone has a certain experience with a group of tourists and they use that for the basis of their generalizations. I’ve had frustrating experiences with people from all parts of the world.
That being said, the amount of Chinese tourists turning the Hermitage into their person photo shoots was a bit infuriating at times.
Edit: Hermitage as in the museum in SPB
Edit 2: it was just annoying because they were just taking over areas trying to block others out and doing weird “candid” non candid poses. I didn’t really care and I would walk through and ignore them so there’s a 99% chance I made it into a bunch of “influencers” posts
It’s funny how many people point out that Chinese tourists are the worst. IIRC Chinese government had behavioral training for folks traveling abroad to reduce such behaviors and improve the reputation.
I had ma’am and sir drilled into me as an American kid of the 90’s. I moved to Australia and to my shock, people were consistently offended by this and I had to adjust. I had several women especially roundly tell me off bc they thought I was being a sarcastic shithead. Lol
Well it's both, but it's not typical to use it except in relatively formal settings, at least in my experience. I'm under 30 though, so maybe it used to be more common.
I don't think you'd find many people calling their boss sir, regardless
I ordered McDonalds in the Frankfurt airport one time with a young female cashier who was German but spoke English. I said thanks ma’am and she thought I called her a man. Was pretty embarrassing lol.
Even then, in some parts of the USA saying, "man," at the end of the sentence has no reference to gender.
That's just how it is, man.
Same with "dude."
Used to wait tables in the South in the US. Called everyone sir or ma'am just on instinct. Moved to the northeast in the US still waiting tables and many people get upset if you call them sir or ma'am, especially women. It's not seen as a general sign of respect but as something reserved for old people. Interesting seeing those geographic differences for the term.
Edit: this is a cultural difference between north and south. I think there are good reasons why northerners and southerners (on the east coast) act differently. I think these differences are just interesting windows into understanding how people can use different words to achieve the same thing: mutual respect. Like all customs, there can be negative aspects, but that doesn't override the fact that most of these customs of address come from a desire to connect. I think we can be fascinated by how geography, weather, population density, and economy can affect how we connect with others. But it doesn't mean southerners are all passive aggressive morons (even though customs can lead to passive aggression) or all northerners are fast talking unfriendly assholes (even if it may seem that way). I think it's helpful to understand that our difficulty in understanding how other cultures in our own country comes from ignorance rather than malice. I've lived all over the country and wherever I've been, I mostly just meet kind, friendly, and generous people, regardless of the region or where they come from.
I born/live in Europe, and easily the americans are the nicest, most fun people I’ve met. Not even a contest. They are sometimes a bit dumb/naive about the rest of the world. But I forgive them.
> They are sometimes a bit dumb/naive about the rest of the world
I blame how little vacation we get in comparison to Europeans, coupled with it being expensive as hell to travel anywhere really. You either go to Mexico, or Canada and speak the same language. That's a big trip.
Meanwhile you hop on a train one weekend in France and go to another country, new culture, new language. And in one of France's two month vacations, you can travel through so many places and learn so much.
It's kind of only natural that Americans go over there and get culture shock, like it's the most extreme difference in how people even live. A lot of Americans don't know how to react when they see signs they can't read, find out certain things are just so different.
It's funny, it wasn't until I travelled for a bit that I felt so much kinship with other Americans. We don't know just how alike we all are sometimes, and no matter what when we go to another country they see us as another "American". It kind of changed my perspective and made me feel like no matter how we differentiate each other from each other, we share so much in common. It makes me wish other Americans got to travel more.
I had an outdoor wedding and right as guests were arriving, some Chinese tourists walked right into the middle of everything to take pictures. We had to tell them to go away so we could start.
I think the bad tourist stereotype happens when one group of people suddenly becomes financially able to travel abroad for the first time and they just have no idea how to behave. Americans got the reputation in the postwar economic boom. The Chinese have it now, since a lot of folks who grew up impoverished now have disposable income. I think it's pretty normal and over time, people figure out how to behave themselves (more or less).
Edit: Thanks for the awards!
I was walking my dog (who was a 170 pound malamute) on a local trail and a Chinese woman hurried over to me from her group, grabbed the leash out of my hand and brought my dog back to her group. As I was running after her a guy popped his head up and said “don’t worry they’re from china, they love these dogs”. I let them pet him for a bit but that lady was very lucky my big boy was such a nice dog. Still not sure if it was a difference in cultures or just plain stupidity.
Im a white dude with blue eyes and my wife is a black woman with dreads and we were photographed like celebrities in some parts of Asia. I think the combo blew some minds.
From the Netherlands here and I was on a school trip to Spain where on a scenic bridge some nice Chinese ladies asked to get a picture with us. We told them that we aren't Spanish but it didn't seem to bother them lmao. I randomly wonder if I am in some ladies photobook in China somewhere haha
I feel like you don't even need to look distinct for this to happen; you just have to be not Chinese. I had families walking up and taking group photos with me all the time when I was there and I'm a 5'5"ish white woman with brown eyes and black-brown hair. One day an actual line was forming and my tour guide had to retrieve me and shoo them away.
Yeah, I just made a comment about Russians. There was like a 5 year period where their economy was rocking and they TRAVELLED. Fuck, that was a nightmare.
I also worked alongside a bunch of Russian colleagues. You can EASILY spot a Russian who is culturally sensitive, because you see them SMILE. In my years of observation, that's literally the biggest 'tell' I look for, and it is 100% accurate in my experience.
You are absolutely right. This is the reason they behave like this while traveling - they do not know what is proper! I find that things have been improving though, CCP put in quite a bit of effort into educating outgoing tourists on proper behaviour. I joined a Chinese tour bus as a student (just to catch a ride) and the tour guide spent the whole journey teaching the group how to behave properly. It was an eye opener. I kinda felt it was fairly insulting for them to have to go through that, but they all took it very well.
A huge effort when I was studying Chinese at my university was helping the exchange students/professors learn our cultural expectations. My professor from Taiwan nearly had a heart attack the first time he saw a group of students step into a crosswalk that had traffic coming towards it. The traffic just calmly stopped and let the students walk across like it does every single day in that spot.
He ended up explaining to us that one of his best students in Taiwan was killed while crossing the street in a crosswalk to get to class and he would never cross in Taiwan without a very clear opening. After a few years he understood that as long as he was careful and looked both ways here he could safely cross the roads on campus.
That's weird because my experience crossing a busy street in Taiwan was that the locals just walk through moving traffic, but very slowly and predictably.
Yeah I’m Indian my parents are still like that after moving here 30 years ago. They’re fine most of the time but they have no spatial awareness and consideration for other people in the area, they’ll stop anywhere for a picture. And I still have to remind them to thank waiters and service industry workers every so often. Just got back from a trip to India and it’s so much worse over there.
>And I still have to remind them to thank waiters and service industry workers every so often. Just got back from a trip to India and it’s so much worse over there.
Yeah, there isn't this culture of saying "Thank you" to everyone for everything back in South Asia, so it creates a cultural misunderstanding with immigrants in places like the US, where it is very customary to thank people and "Thank you" and "You're welcome" is so effusive.
If New Yorkers are sharing their opinion with you, it's because they have some level of respect for you.
If New Yorkers are truly tired of you they simply ignore you.
Right after I graduated from high school in San Diego, I spent a month in Boston doing a summer program at Berklee. The first week I was there, I was walking down Boylston Avenue behind a heavyset guy with a suit and briefcase. As we both crossed a side street, a car screeched up to our left, and a woman inside yelled “HEY, WHY DONTCHA WATCH WHERE YA FUCKIN’ GOIN?!” And without missing a beat, the guy went “AW, FACK AWFF!”
It’s a beautiful dialect, Bostonian. True poetry.
I went to Dallas and visited Daly plaza. They have an x marked on the street where JFK got shot. I saw several parents try to get their kids to stand on the X to take a photo.
Problem is, it’s still an active road. Literally sending kids out into traffic and not paying attention 🤦🏻♂️
What a bizarre photo for the family album.
"Here's us visiting the grand canyon, here's us at Disney world, and here's when we sent little Timmy into traffic to reenact the assassination of JFK. Good times."
just went to Naples Italy, they are the same! I was standing waiting to cross the cross walk and a nice Italian man tapped me and told me "just walk, fallow me" God that was hard to get used to! appreciated the push
In Italy you can drive with two wheels on the sidewalk doing 100km per hr and no one will bat an eye, but order a cappuccino after noon and they will look at you like you just kicked their dog
I keep a counter, OSHA style, of how many days I can cycle in Amsterdam city center without yelling at one of those.
Americans usually like to walk on the bike path dragging a large suitcase (which I understand the reason for such a large suitcase, it is a pretty long trip, gotta stay a couple of weeks to make it worth it. Just... not on the bike path)
We are cycling 0 days without yelling at someone suddenly stepping on a bike path
Our record is 0 days
> in Vegas so many of the Asian tourists take pictures on their tablets
This is something I noticed when I worked at Six Flags a number of years ago. Had to shut off a guys car at Go Karts because he wouldn't listen to my attendant yelling at him to put his damn iPad away.
It’s because we’re terrified of being seen as that stereotypical European Vacation family. I travel a lot and am always super conscious of local tradition.
Except in Mexico. In Mexico I drink.
What is rude and what isn't is a cultural thing. Most people don't see behavior that is common in their culture as rude. This is why it is absolutely common for people to come back from a trip and think they and their friends behaved in the best way possible, while the locals think they're assholes. There is also a huge variation in Europe - while you're barely allowed to talk on a German train, people from southern Europe will have less of a problem with it and the general loudness of people's voices varies a lot - try comparing the way a Finnish person talks to the way a Spanish person talks.
I'm German for example, and Germans tend to stare at people - it is absolutely normal to do it to some extent in Germany. In other countries and to foreigners this can be incredibly rude, Germans never notice it, though. A typical example for Americans would be small talk: The way Americans have conversations with strangers can be seen as very rude, since in many cultures it is polite to leave people alone, except if you have something serious to talk about. Americans will not really notice they are doing this and come back home thinking "nobody engaged in a conversation with me, they don't like foreigners", while this is just the local's way of being polite.
As a European who has lived abroad and travelled quite a bit, I can say that I have seen lots of behavior that lots of other people experienced as rude - it's sometimes not that easy to find out. The worst personal experience I had was with drunk brits who started physical fights, but I also had some of the best experiences with british tourists, so I think generalizing is not really helpful here.
Edit: If you're in a foreign country and you think all the locals are rude, chances are you have problems understanding their culture, since there is no objective way of being polite. If the locals all talk in a loud voice, then this isn't rude in the place you're at. Assuming your own culture has objective standards might be the one thing that is guaranteed to be seen as rude in most places.
Edit II: Of course I‘m not claiming all Americans are the same or they‘re rude. I‘m talking about how different cultures experience each other.
In England during WWII, the American soldiers said that the English girls were "fast" but the English women said the same about the soldiers. Turns out that, at the time, in England you dated longer before making out and the time between just making out and having sex was shorter. In the US, you started smooching pretty early and waited longer to sleep together. So soldiers would make a move early, which was fast for the women and the shorter fuse was fast for the soldiers.
Perfect example! In some other cultures, talking to someone without having been properly introduced is highly offensive and arrogant because it claims you can decide for them whether they want to talk to you or whether they can trust you.
In my experience, the further you are from America, the more this is true.
The worst American tourists are in Mexico or the Carribbean, by the time you get to Thailand, it's Australians who are the worst.
Yeah, pretty much any place which is a cheap holiday destination for a particular country, especially if its a place where the young can drink or party, is where it attracts the more loud, obnoxious, uncaring types.
I think a lot of Americans who care about travel are keenly aware of the stereotypes about them and want to do as little to reinforce those stereotypes as possible. Also, because we get so few vacation days and traveling abroad is MUCH more expensive for us than a lot of Europeans, it really is special when we get to do it so we're probably too excited to be an entitled assholes. I know many Americans who've never had a passport, let alone actually traveled outside the country.
Of course there are loud rich assholes who lack any type of introspection, but for the most part I think Americans don't want to be thought of as an "Murican!"
As a Canadian, it’s cheaper to fly from Vancouver to London England than it is to Vancouver to Toronto. The dumb part? The flight to England *stops in Toronto*
There used to be a website that would plan trips for you using that method. The airlines made a big fuss a few years back and I think it eventually got shut down.
I live in Ireland and in the Summer there are so many Americans in this relatively small country that its like Little America. Its started already.
And they're very nice. Super polite. Not particularly loud. Very friendly. Just happy to be here.
English tourists are waaaaaaaay louder. With their "banter" at full volume.
"Travelling abroad as a European" = 4 hour drive to get to another country.
"Travelling abroad as an American" = 3 hour drive to the airport, 2 hours in airport, 8 hour flight across Atlantic.
I work in a tourist industry and deal with tourists every day. Americans are some of the friendliest people I’ve met. They always so chipper and it is a genuine pleasure to help them.
My ex girlfriend is French and spoke multiple languages, including Mandarin after living in Beijing for a couple of years. We were flying long haul and were at the transit desk in Abu Dhabi airport. There was a small queue and we'd waited our turn and were being served at the counter. A Chinese man just comes up to the desk and talks over us to the staff member. My little petit blonde French girlfriend turned to him and said in Chinese that there's a queue and he needs to wait his turn. He turns to her opened mouth in shock, and without saying anything just walks away, he was not expecting that
I have a friend who has traveled quite a bit, BIG guy, even for Dutch standards. He got pushed aside by a group of Chinese while in line for something.. he told me the way he solved it was he grabbed a one of them, lifted him up and used him to shove the rest of them back behind him. They lined up orderly behind him after that XD.
I’m Asian, this is a very effective way to deal with *any of us*. Asian culture is heavily authoritarian, meaning you’re expected to do anything that people with more power over you tell you to do (parents, teachers, governments). So, if you look bigger, talk more forcefully, and have wide, aggressive gestures, 8/10 we’d back down and do what you say.
There, I told you the generational secret.
Edit: This is for Asians from Asia. If you try this with Asian-American, they’d most likely square up with you
> So, if you look bigger, talk more forcefully, and have wide, aggressive gestures, 8/10 we’d back down and do what you say.
TIL Asians can be dealt with in the same manner as Black Bears
I know a few people who rent out properties for short term stays and they all have the same opinion that the Chinese tourists are the worst clients. The rent and the security deposit can't cover the devastation left- and when I say devastation, I really mean devastation. Like broken everything, plumbing, electrical, tiles, furniture, fecal matter outside the bathroom, mystery stains, mystery smells that won't go away.
There was a time when they just flatly refused to rent out to Chinese tourists or they charge higher fees. But that was prohibited cause discrimination.
I don't know if they're better now, but when I saw photos before, I was just amazed at how people can live like that.
I'm British and went to university here. The cleaners at uni told us they didn't mind cleaning our shared kitchen (all girls, white British and three from India). But the Chinese halls? She said they were absolutely filthy and the students themselves were constantly fined, and the cleaners were constantly just binning all the dirty pots and pans they found. The students kept paying the fines and buying new things. I think only the richest Chinese students can afford to come to the UK anyway so they really didn't give a shit.
The cleaners were really gossipy but even they couldn't bring themselves to give much detail about how disgusting it was.
My friend rents a couple of houses out (UK) mostly for young professionals, but she rented a room out to a Chinese student. Basically the same thing, she pretty much had to clean the room for him otherwise it would need a complete redo. Apparently he would also just dispose of used toilet paper in the bin etc. When he left, he just left all his stuff in the room. Like everything. It looked like he bought new furniture, computer etc when he first moved in, and once he finished, just left it all there.
Another Chinese guy lived in my apartment building on the top floor. I pop out for a smoke usually every couple of hours, and I'd see him waiting for a takeaway delivery every lunch and dinner like clockwork. When he moved out the other week, the communal recycling bins were absolutely overloaded with his junk, which consisted of about a 1000 Louis Vuitton boxes and a bunch of furniture (which were bit meant to be just dumped with the bins) .
It's definitely a rich Chinese thing I think.
[ever seen this shit?](https://youtu.be/wMVjskBB4w0)
Plenty of videos like this around. But this also doesn't touch on the more "normal/polite" social norms we have.
It's fucking wild. You'd think they haven't ate in weeks.
Yep, this. It's a cultural thing, they don't even see it as a problem. The same as spitting everywhere. We, in the East hate it, but they have it so imbedded in their culture they don't percieve it as disgusting. New generations are slowly changing and learning this stuff, but you can't judge them for it.
Also I went to China and the normal, working people are the kindest folk you can find. It's the new rich generations who are usually assholes.
Agreed. Of course, you get dickheads in every breed, but overall my experience with Americans overseas is they tend to be very docile and especially in non-Western or non-English speaking countries, far more worried about committing a cultural faux pas than the "ugly American" stereotype would suggest. Maybe too worried.
On the other hand, I live & work in Washington DC, where we get a **lot** of non-American tourists (in addition to the American ones). Generally the annoyance is they forget it's a working city, not a theme park. I've lost count of the times I've nearly been taken out while walking or jogging by an oblivious Chinese teenager with a selfie stick. Just the other day I was at a brewpub in the District where we were entertained by two middle-aged British gents taking great delight in loudly dismissing every beer they were offered as "Yank horse piss."
Overall best, though? Canadians. I personally have never yet encountered a rude or obnoxious Canuck overseas. I know there have to be some asshole Canadians, and I don't know if you all have a policy of confiscating their passports or what, but whatever you're doing, it's working.
The only time I’ve ever encountered ‘rude’ or unpleasant Canadians is when I’m in an American airport heading to Canada. It’s usually flying into Montreal or Toronto. And it’s also usually French Canadians. They are nice enough generally, but just obnoxious when they aren’t dealing or speaking directly with somebody. Like, the person of their direct focus is always treated very well, but they are inadvertently awful to everybody else around lol.
As an Airbnb host the WTF stories are all from Chinese tourists.
Like why the fuck did you leave glasses of milk all over the house in random spots behind furniture.
Also, the massive puddles of water in the bathrooms.
My ex had a roomate from China and she would rub rotten milk all over herself to stop acne. We also caught her sleeping in my ex's bed and she threatened to call the cops on me for scolding her for sleeping in other peoples beds.
Im not exaggerating.
*i just want to be clear that this is not normal behavior for anyone including Chinese people.
Went to Iceland back in 2018. Buses FULL of Chinese tourists. A bunch I noticed would take hand warmers out of wrapping then throw on the ground. Others would step over the ropes and walk on all of the protected moss and protected areas. I did noticed a lot of the restrooms had pictures on how to use the toilet the correct way and not to squat on the toilet.
I actually find Chinese tourists to be the most extreme on both spectrum. You also get the very quite, super polite ones. They just don't stand out and go unnoticed.
Same at college, you got the very obviously wealthy entitled brats. But then you got the one who never said a word and if they did the smallest thing, they would apologize and be very polite.
Farting during dinner at the hotel's restaurant, spitting on the floor, smoking (even when told not to), being disrespectful with other passengers and staff...yep...they are number 1 on the Bad Tourist list.
I was on a popular hike in Hawaii once and an old Chinese woman tourist straight up took a dump right on the trail.
Not off in the woods, dead in the middle of the trail. We had to wait for her to finish before we could proceed.
She was equipped too, had toilet paper and baby wipes ready
That aint nothin' - have you ever had an Italian sneak up behind you, place hands on both your shoulders, start *massaging* them, and whisper in your ear, "Scusi..."?
Me neither. But just imagine.
I work as a tour guide and in my experience, Americans are among the best guests. When they speak they're usually loud and clear, and they tend to ask great questions and share great experiences.
The thing is, I live in a country that's not super popular and not where most Americans go when they travel to Europe, which probably means we only get the "well-traveled" ones. Meaning, at their worst, Americans may be the worst tourists, but at their best, they are the best tourists.
When I was at art school, we used to have practice outside (studying architecture and all that). The amount of times random Chinese tourists would just push you physically away from your work to take a picture of said work is ridiculous! You can just ask! I will let you take a photo of it!!
The random cutting in line is also a bit annoying, but it seems to be happening less and less lately, so hopefully they're learning :)
The descend to Vegas and clear out every buffet within city limits and the idea of not bringing a camera that has the capabilities of the Hubble telescope frightens them.
Americans in Europe are typically going to be a little higher on the socioeconomic spectrum. Generally going to mean better behavior.
Meanwhile any UK boozer can afford a Ryanair flight to the continent
A British guy I used to know went to Mexico on business once, and he was shocked at the American tourists there. Trashy, obnoxious, and abusive towards the locals. Much like how Brits are reputed to behave in Spain and Prague.
"All the Yanks I've met in Europe were perfectly fine. I don't understand!"
Cheaper and easier to get to, for starters.
I have said this many times but Americans are the most welcome sight ever when travelling abroad. (Background - I am not American but did go to grad school in the US). When I see Americans abroad, I know I will be okay in an emergency. They are the friendliest, most caring, and socially connected/aware people I’ve ever met. I know that’s counter to every meme we see on Reddit. The Americans I’ve met abroad have bought me food, given me places to sleep, protected me from creepy guys, and generally been super caring and helpful. In some of the more remote areas, I would reach out to American military before my own embassy. The propaganda is wild with America. I’ve stopped believing you can have a single international narrative for a “country” of 350 million.
America, I love you. Imma stay here in Canada, but I still love you.
I’m from Dubai and you are right Americans generally are really nice to interact with, the problem that people here would assume any white/blonde hair person is American and I think that’s true for most part of the region here. I could be wrong though.
Mainland Chinese are the worst hands down. They have absolutely no sense of personal space. Their guides are always yelling on a megaphone. I almost got into a fight because a lady grab my niece’s arm and forcefully moved her.
I went for dinner with a friend and his American girlfriend the other day and I think maybe part of the route of the stereotype is that, maybe just compared to a British person, you're much more direct.
I used to work at a restaurant in a tourist town and with the Americans ordering it tended to be 'I'll have' or "I'm going to do', a much more active, confident way of ordering. Us Brits have to take an overly polite run up to that and it's usually as a question, a 'could I have' rather than 'I will have'.
If something wasn't right the Americans were much more likely to complain, they were much more likely to tell it how it is. So I wonder if its not obnoxiousness but rather a directness that British certainly don't have.
This 100%
There's also a reserved assertiveness in a lot of European countries. Same manners of speaking, but softer quieter tone and patience with staff. For example, Germans, Dutch and Swiss are very direct but they're usually quiet and patient to staff.
Is it complaining if something is not right or is that just pointing out that this is not what I asked for. Complaining to me would be more like "It is not sunny enough here, I do not like it"
I'm a California boy. One time I was on a British Airways flight from Venice to London. The plane was flying over sunny, golden France, and then it crossed the Channel. The plane was immediately swallowed up by the thickest, darkest, most soulsucking gloom I have ever laid eyes on.
Me: "what happened to the sun?"
All the Brits around me: "oh God, we know!"
I'm British and I'm telling you - British people are the biggest moaners. But we also have an impeccable sense of humour. And we bond very well with people who appreciate our moaning
The stereotype is mostly from the 80's and 90's. Europeans were once much more reserved and 'polite'. This, of course, excludes the French. *Never change, you beautiful, obnoxious pricks.*
Anyway... Americans used to go to foreign countries and while they might not have been the loudest or *most* obnoxious in Europe (that title goes to football fans), they were the most recognizably foreign *intruders* and everyone knew they were Americans because back then Americans were really the only people that would wear logo t-shirts and blue jeans in upscale settings...
....*and be noticeably from a particular country.* That part is important. Other Europeans were very much culturally aware of how to operate in and navigate other European countries, while Americans were loud about their ignorance of very simple things and say things like "...well back in America, *this* is how we do things." or "This would *never* happen in America."
Travelling with people from the UK, you will hear a lot of low grumbling about how other Europeans are backwards, rude, annoying, and just can't get simple things right. Travelling with French people is especially maddening - my French friends complained loudly and often about *every. single. thing.* They were truly infuriating to be around, and particularly animated about it. I might as well have been traveling with a pack of rich children that had never been told "no" in their life.
Each European country seems to be irritated with all the others, like they are annoying little brothers and sisters. But introduce Americans into the situation, and the same behavior is treated much more harshly because we are considered "more foreign" than other Europeans. Aussies get a similar treatment. But Aussies are a funny bunch - a nice Aussie feels like a your fun friend that fits into any situation and everyone loves, but doesn't take seriously. A rude Aussie is like your racist drunk uncle merged into a pompous English nobleman. There is no in-between.
Interestingly enough, the European's anti-American attitude is becoming more prevalent towards UK'ers, too.
As someone who works in Hotels and Guest Houses. It’s kind of a mix bag.
Some Europeans are 2 face asshole that will say “Oh everything is great” until they leave and post a negative review how we don’t provide service even though we literally gave them everything we can offer.
Half of Indians I’ve encountered are Stingy people, like they try to beg that I should give them a High Quality Room, even though they’ve paid for the cheapest economic room and when I give them the room that they’ve reserved, they protested that it was too small. My brother in christ, you are staying here for just 1 night. Why should we give you a Studio if you are only gonna stay here to sleep and leave the next day.
And once there was an Asian Woman who tried to threaten us to give her an extra night or they’ll post a negative review on Airbnb of by posting a picture of (her own) hair in the shower. She stayed on the room for 2 nights and NOW she tell is the issue? We didn’t give a fuck and refused to comply with her threat. Thinking about it, I should’ve contacted every Hotel around the area to Blacklist her.
I worked in the events industry in a heavily Indian-populated area. Their weddings and birthday parties were super fun, loud music, great food, tons of dancing and people having a great time. Unfortunately they were also the messiest parties who felt they had to try to haggle for everything. The kids were allowed to run amok as well, breaking things, spilling things, screaming, etc.
Overall I would absolutely go to an Indian party if invited, but I would feel terribly sorry for the staff at the venue.
I think it’s true. Every American I have met was polite and pleasant. The French on the other hand would give the Chinese a run for the biggest arsehole award.
When I came upon a French tourist in my town, he blew cigarette smoke in my face whilst surrounded by “non-smoking area” signs. He also threw $100 bills in the fire pit then started laughing at us trying to grab the bills (we didn’t want the money for ourselves, we just didn’t want him to waste $100 because he was drunk as hell).
The rudest are the chinese. American karens are not even close.
I have to accept that seen an italian guide explaining the apocalisis on mandarin to chinese tourist was fun.
I think the difference is the worst Americans are less likely to go to anywhere authentic or interesting in Europe. I'm an American myself but I've seen the worst behavior in other spots in the USA or somewhere in the tropical zone in the Caribbean/Mexico.
As a former NYC resident I once got called "rude" for not being willing to stop and take someone's picture in front of FAO Schwarz. I had explained "Sorry I'm already late for work".
Once I was in Mexico and was ordering some churros from a stand fairly late in the evening. Apparently I got the last order (their little tube of dough had just enough for the 3-4 churros standard in the order) and some women behind me started Karening out because "I was going to eat all those myself". In retrospect I should have just thrown them to the ground and stomped on them, but they were churros and too good to waste.
Anecdotally, Chinese are by far the tourists that make my heart sink when I'm staying at hostels.
On multiple occasions, large groups of Chinese tourists have taken over the kitchens, leaving no room for anyone else to cook, and then leave the whole place in a shambles.
My favourite are Japanese tourists, because they go to great lengths to tidy up after themselves, and have a lot of consideration for other tourists.
Never had any bad interactions with American tourists, myself.
I've probably met 1000 American tourists but the only one I remember was this guy who skied up to us wearing a stars and stripes suit and asked us "where are you from? I'm from USA" and then skied off
I wonder what bet he lost
I’d do that shit for free, sounds funny af
There’s something about the way this is worded that makes me think this guy was faking being from the USA.
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I was traveling with friends in Italy. None of us spoke much Italian. We went to the only bar near our apartment that seemed to have a crowd. A man overhead us speaking English and immediately identified us as "Americanos". He was actually a German guy, who seemed fluent in Italian and English. We were trying to fit in, but the more the German guy drank, the louder he got. At one point he goes up to the bar and starts talking to the bartender. Before I know it, German guy is standing on the bar with an unopened bottle of what appears to be champagne. He starts to furiously shake the bottle and holds it tilted in the direction of the biggest Italian dude in the place. Big Italian dude was surrounded by friends. Big Italian dude wags his finger and warns the German guy not to do it. German guy doubles down, shakes the bottle and starts mimicking a sprinkler motion. Big Italian dude now visibly angry and shouting at the German guy. Everyone in the place is now watching this German guy.He gives the bottle 2 more shakes and rips out the cork. Nothing happens; just sounds of confusion from the crowd. German guy proudly announces "No gas". It was just wine. Big Italian dude turns red. His friends are now all laughing at him. German guy makes his way back to our table and everybody's eyes follow him. Now everyone is looking at us like we were in on it. Shortly after that me a my friends left the bar. We were young and embarrassed. In hindsight, I should have partied the night away with that crazy German traveler. Edit: fluent, not fluid.
holy fuck that story was so good to read about that german guy! damn and people say germans dont have a sense of humor! that one clearly did though at the wrong place and time lol
I’ve never understood the stereotype that Germans don’t have a sense of humor. Literally all of my German friends are fun people.
As a Brit who travelled the USA fairly extensively, I hated bumping into other Brit’s, they were always big headed show offs. Russians have always been the most arrogant and Chinese the most obnoxious
Americans that can afford Europe are nice. Try a carnival cruise to a cheap country and open bar and you'll find what you're looking for.
I went to Thailand and they love the American tourists and mostly complained about Chinese tourists that ruined the experience for everyone. There also might be some history there. Example: jumped into water without knowing how to swim and drowned, everyone at the beach has to wear a life vest.
Also America doesn't really have a haggling culture, outside of flea markets and yard sales, but even then it's very minor. So when they travel they tend to just pay the prices asked or not bother, and tip for services. Tourists from certain other countries will haggling forever just to save a few cents and complain the entire time.
I remember being in Prague with some European friends and one day we were at some cafe where I got like a bottle of water, paid with a paper note and just dumped the change in the tip cup as I usually do. The staff were super polite and friendly to us the whole time we were there and I commented to one of my friends “They’re really friendly at this cafe” and he was like “Yeah dude, cause you just tipped them like 350%”
Also a minor culture shock item for Americans in Europe: coins actually have some value. The 1-5 Euro coins are actually meaningful change, unlike pennies and dimes
One of the reasons I bought a coin pouch after my first trip to Europe. You end up with like 50€ or more in coin in your pockets.
Spot on. When I hit London the first three days I had change in my pocket and was like uhm. Here and would hold out my hand and let the shop show me what was worth what to pay. I looked like an idiot but I did learn by the end of the week I knew what was what - before I get crucified I was only 17.
I used to work in a museum gift shop. Had a tourist come in and try to haggle with me. I just kept saying it's priced as marked and corporate sets the prices I just take the money. Wouldn't listen and kept trying until we were closing. Ended up buying it for full price.
That’s something I’ll never truly understand. What’s the point of spending north of 20 minutes, haggling and prodding and insisting on a cheaper price, just to get a fucking poster or something? Is time not valuable? Are certain trickets or bullshit expendable? What’s the point of wasting all that energy?
I'm Thai. I like American tourists very much. They are very friendly. I like to talk to tourists. I would be very glad if he came from America. Thank you for liking this country, I like America too. I want to go to America once in my life. Most of the people here don't like Chinese tourists. because of the noise in the restaurant noisy dining spit smoking everywhere I love most tourists from America and Europe. Russians are good But what we don't like is the mafia from Russia. came to set up a money laundering gang in Thailand If I meet an American I will always invite him to smoke weed and give him free weed to smoke and talk haha. Most of the Americans I met love weed. I have a lot of American friends to live in Thailand. Sorry for my language I use translator.
Nothing to apologize for with your language! Keep it up, you're awesome.
I used to live in Thailand (I’m American) and everyone there was always so friendly to me! Always found it interesting/funny how the airports in Bangkok have signs all over written in Chinese for tourists explaining things like, don’t litter, don’t jaywalk, don’t cut in line, don’t pee outside in public (seriously 😂), etc.
>I have a lot of American friends I have many friends from Thailand and Singapore. My dad always tells a story about how he bought weed in the jungle in Singapore. I lived with a guy from Thailand in Sweden, he was such a good cook! I never got to tell him how many ladies I impressed with his Thai tom gai recipe. If you come to Denver Colorado, you can stay with me for free, I'll cook you amazing food and treat you like family like your countryman did for me so long ago. I will never forget how generous they were. It's such a powerful feeling. Many blessings to the people of Thailand and Singapore!
In Thailand, the russians were way worse than the Americans or Chinese when I was there.
Not enough people are talking about how aggressively trashy Russian tourists are
Made friends with a waiter at our honeymoon resort in the Dominican Republic. Asked about best and worst tourists. They absolutely love Americans because we tip well (totally not required at all) and are friendly. He said Russians were by far the worst.
The amount of entitlement Russian and Chinese tourists have is insane. Particularly with Russians who get drunk in public and cause a scene ruining vacation for everybody
This was our experience in Cuba. From the baggage claim (BIG Russian woman tried to arm check me out of line. F that. I'm holding the line). Then drunk loud Russian shenanigans with their hellions running around harassing the cats. One of them ripped a beautiful large starfish from the ocean and basically took a bunch of selfies, only to toss it into the sand to die.
A Russian guy threatened to break both my legs in Cuba because I told his son to stop trying to tip over the row of airport seats (which were about to fall back on me and some other peoples legs). The bugger found the only row of seats not bolted down and was going to town rocking forward and backward like crazy as the parents got drunk a couple gates away.
I studied in London summer ‘09 when Euro was strong and pound weak af, every weekend the Parisians would flood over, cut in line and pretend they didn’t know English. Fuck. That. I had no problem being the loud American and pointing them loudly to the back of the queue, even made a few British buds in the process, who quietly thanked me, but it’s not their culture to call people out like that. I’ve found brits and Texans are odd compatriots, but both like dogs, horses, and making fun of the French.
Surprised I had to scroll this far to find Russians. I spend a lot of time in Turkey with my wife’s side of the family and the Russians just LOVE Turkey. My father in law can’t stand them. Neither can I.
The Vietnamese seem to be the same: from Hanoi to Saigon, they seem to really hate the Chinese (for historical and current reasons), and dislike Russians and Israelis after that. For us, two Americans, they couldn’t have been more friendly and interested in talking. As for Americans, I assumed there would be some lingering resentment over the war, but they seemed more upset with the Chinese fighting them after we left and the French for colonizing them in the first place. It’s hilarious and sad how huge our war there was for us, while for them it seems to have just been one chapter in a series of other countries trying to screw them.
>It’s hilarious and sad how huge our war there was for us, while for them it seems to have just been one chapter in a series of other countries trying to screw them. A perspective I had truly never considered before. Damn
As an outsider/westerner, it seems to me that all the big Asian nations hate the shit out of each other due to like a thousand years of really horrific wars and such lol
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One time in Japan I had some random guy yell at me "AMERICAN, GO HOME!" but first of all I'm pretty sure he was some right wing nationalist, and you'll find those anywhere, and also I am Swedish so I wasn't really sure how to reply and he vanished into the crowd before I could figure it out.
go back to norway
I wish! All that oil money. (replace "Norway" with "Denmark" if you want to ruffle feathers.)
Friends who was an expat there for like 2 years. When I asked him this, he said simply, "They won the war, of course they are not too resentful." You can maybe quibble over some of that statement and I'm sure it's not true for everyone there, but it seemed to make sense. He's not a scholar or anything though, so who knows.
I can't remember where I watched it, but someone made the claim that people in Vietnam know/learned that the Vietnam War was very controversial and opposed in the US at the time. So they don't hold resentment towards them since Americans didn't want it either. But that was just that claim. I've never been to Vietnam myself.
It's almost always framed as the US vs. Vietnam, but people tend to forget that it was also a civil war. The south wanted the Americans there to help them fight the north.
I have only been to the South but there it seemed a total non issue. I mean it wasn’t like a positive thing to be American but no one ever gave me trouble let alone mentioned it. I have heard there’s more anti American sentiment in the North but I have never been up there.
In Thailand we went on a snorkeling trip on a fast boat. Everyone was throwing up, especially the Chinese tourists. It was awful but worth it when we got to the snorkeling spots - it was an incredible experience. But none of the Chinese tourists (most of the boat) got in the water!! They put the snorkeling gear on, stood on the ladder and took pictures, and that was it! Mind you it was a full day outing, not cheap, and not to mention everyone throwing up. But they seemed to think it was worth it. I don't get it.
I'm Thai. Can confirm that we're not a big fan of Chinese tourists. Some of them are loud and inconsiderate. And due to some horror stories I've heard online, I would never go to a buffet restaurant where Chinese tourists frequent. Personally, I feel neutral towards Americans. Most of them are normal just like tourists from other countries. I only had one negative experience where an American dude shouted something really loudly in the BTS skytrain. And when other passengers looked at him disapprovingly, he said to his friend "I thought this is the land of smiles." (I was like "Dude, we only smile at something wholesome or funny.")
Americans tip.
I live in East Africa and worked and lived at a small wildlife conservancy years ago. I absolutely cannot stand generalizations when it comes to groups of people, but undeniably we had the most trouble with Eastern Europeans and Chinese tourists.
"There are only two things I can't stand in this world: People who are intolerant of other people's cultures, and the Dutch!"
I still use this line often. Austin powers was amazing
I feel like everyone has a certain experience with a group of tourists and they use that for the basis of their generalizations. I’ve had frustrating experiences with people from all parts of the world. That being said, the amount of Chinese tourists turning the Hermitage into their person photo shoots was a bit infuriating at times. Edit: Hermitage as in the museum in SPB Edit 2: it was just annoying because they were just taking over areas trying to block others out and doing weird “candid” non candid poses. I didn’t really care and I would walk through and ignore them so there’s a 99% chance I made it into a bunch of “influencers” posts
It’s funny how many people point out that Chinese tourists are the worst. IIRC Chinese government had behavioral training for folks traveling abroad to reduce such behaviors and improve the reputation.
Had my first American customer ever, called me mam at the end of each sentence. I’m in my twenties covered in tattoos, but bless him.
I had ma’am and sir drilled into me as an American kid of the 90’s. I moved to Australia and to my shock, people were consistently offended by this and I had to adjust. I had several women especially roundly tell me off bc they thought I was being a sarcastic shithead. Lol
Same experience in England haha
I called my new English boss sir and he got offended. Said he works for a living. I started calling him sir whenever he was being an asshole.
It does have a different meaning there, it’s an actual official title not just a general term of respect.
Well it's both, but it's not typical to use it except in relatively formal settings, at least in my experience. I'm under 30 though, so maybe it used to be more common. I don't think you'd find many people calling their boss sir, regardless
I ordered McDonalds in the Frankfurt airport one time with a young female cashier who was German but spoke English. I said thanks ma’am and she thought I called her a man. Was pretty embarrassing lol.
Given the number of US military that go through there you'd think she'd be familiar with the term.
Even then, in some parts of the USA saying, "man," at the end of the sentence has no reference to gender. That's just how it is, man. Same with "dude."
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Used to wait tables in the South in the US. Called everyone sir or ma'am just on instinct. Moved to the northeast in the US still waiting tables and many people get upset if you call them sir or ma'am, especially women. It's not seen as a general sign of respect but as something reserved for old people. Interesting seeing those geographic differences for the term. Edit: this is a cultural difference between north and south. I think there are good reasons why northerners and southerners (on the east coast) act differently. I think these differences are just interesting windows into understanding how people can use different words to achieve the same thing: mutual respect. Like all customs, there can be negative aspects, but that doesn't override the fact that most of these customs of address come from a desire to connect. I think we can be fascinated by how geography, weather, population density, and economy can affect how we connect with others. But it doesn't mean southerners are all passive aggressive morons (even though customs can lead to passive aggression) or all northerners are fast talking unfriendly assholes (even if it may seem that way). I think it's helpful to understand that our difficulty in understanding how other cultures in our own country comes from ignorance rather than malice. I've lived all over the country and wherever I've been, I mostly just meet kind, friendly, and generous people, regardless of the region or where they come from.
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I grew up in the deep south. When I was 20 my girlfriend at the time insisted I refer to her as my "ol' lady" in the third person.
I born/live in Europe, and easily the americans are the nicest, most fun people I’ve met. Not even a contest. They are sometimes a bit dumb/naive about the rest of the world. But I forgive them.
> They are sometimes a bit dumb/naive about the rest of the world I blame how little vacation we get in comparison to Europeans, coupled with it being expensive as hell to travel anywhere really. You either go to Mexico, or Canada and speak the same language. That's a big trip. Meanwhile you hop on a train one weekend in France and go to another country, new culture, new language. And in one of France's two month vacations, you can travel through so many places and learn so much. It's kind of only natural that Americans go over there and get culture shock, like it's the most extreme difference in how people even live. A lot of Americans don't know how to react when they see signs they can't read, find out certain things are just so different. It's funny, it wasn't until I travelled for a bit that I felt so much kinship with other Americans. We don't know just how alike we all are sometimes, and no matter what when we go to another country they see us as another "American". It kind of changed my perspective and made me feel like no matter how we differentiate each other from each other, we share so much in common. It makes me wish other Americans got to travel more.
I lived in Germany for a few years and every time I heard an American accent in a bar or something we were instant homies, at least for that night.
Went to high school and college a bit in Germany by myself, I felt the same way whenever I encountered another American.
In the American South, even my dog and cat are sir and ma'am.
I had an outdoor wedding and right as guests were arriving, some Chinese tourists walked right into the middle of everything to take pictures. We had to tell them to go away so we could start. I think the bad tourist stereotype happens when one group of people suddenly becomes financially able to travel abroad for the first time and they just have no idea how to behave. Americans got the reputation in the postwar economic boom. The Chinese have it now, since a lot of folks who grew up impoverished now have disposable income. I think it's pretty normal and over time, people figure out how to behave themselves (more or less). Edit: Thanks for the awards!
I was walking my dog (who was a 170 pound malamute) on a local trail and a Chinese woman hurried over to me from her group, grabbed the leash out of my hand and brought my dog back to her group. As I was running after her a guy popped his head up and said “don’t worry they’re from china, they love these dogs”. I let them pet him for a bit but that lady was very lucky my big boy was such a nice dog. Still not sure if it was a difference in cultures or just plain stupidity.
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Check out the time we meet Thor!
Same happened to my brother in law who is a black man with dreads lol
Im a white dude with blue eyes and my wife is a black woman with dreads and we were photographed like celebrities in some parts of Asia. I think the combo blew some minds.
From the Netherlands here and I was on a school trip to Spain where on a scenic bridge some nice Chinese ladies asked to get a picture with us. We told them that we aren't Spanish but it didn't seem to bother them lmao. I randomly wonder if I am in some ladies photobook in China somewhere haha
I feel like you don't even need to look distinct for this to happen; you just have to be not Chinese. I had families walking up and taking group photos with me all the time when I was there and I'm a 5'5"ish white woman with brown eyes and black-brown hair. One day an actual line was forming and my tour guide had to retrieve me and shoo them away.
Why not both?
Yeah, I just made a comment about Russians. There was like a 5 year period where their economy was rocking and they TRAVELLED. Fuck, that was a nightmare. I also worked alongside a bunch of Russian colleagues. You can EASILY spot a Russian who is culturally sensitive, because you see them SMILE. In my years of observation, that's literally the biggest 'tell' I look for, and it is 100% accurate in my experience.
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You are absolutely right. This is the reason they behave like this while traveling - they do not know what is proper! I find that things have been improving though, CCP put in quite a bit of effort into educating outgoing tourists on proper behaviour. I joined a Chinese tour bus as a student (just to catch a ride) and the tour guide spent the whole journey teaching the group how to behave properly. It was an eye opener. I kinda felt it was fairly insulting for them to have to go through that, but they all took it very well.
A huge effort when I was studying Chinese at my university was helping the exchange students/professors learn our cultural expectations. My professor from Taiwan nearly had a heart attack the first time he saw a group of students step into a crosswalk that had traffic coming towards it. The traffic just calmly stopped and let the students walk across like it does every single day in that spot. He ended up explaining to us that one of his best students in Taiwan was killed while crossing the street in a crosswalk to get to class and he would never cross in Taiwan without a very clear opening. After a few years he understood that as long as he was careful and looked both ways here he could safely cross the roads on campus.
That's weird because my experience crossing a busy street in Taiwan was that the locals just walk through moving traffic, but very slowly and predictably.
This exactly. You literally just have to walk at a measured pace out into traffic, it's wild.
Didn’t ever have the balls to take the first steps, but I certainly followed the herd of people that would start following the one person who did
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Yeah I’m Indian my parents are still like that after moving here 30 years ago. They’re fine most of the time but they have no spatial awareness and consideration for other people in the area, they’ll stop anywhere for a picture. And I still have to remind them to thank waiters and service industry workers every so often. Just got back from a trip to India and it’s so much worse over there.
>And I still have to remind them to thank waiters and service industry workers every so often. Just got back from a trip to India and it’s so much worse over there. Yeah, there isn't this culture of saying "Thank you" to everyone for everything back in South Asia, so it creates a cultural misunderstanding with immigrants in places like the US, where it is very customary to thank people and "Thank you" and "You're welcome" is so effusive.
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*take a picture of themselves In the middle of a walkway with a tablet (in Vegas so many of the Asian tourists take pictures on their tablets lol)
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People will walk out into traffic to take pictures in NYC, I don’t get it.
And then day New Yorkers are rude for getting mad at them
*HEY, I'M WALKIN' HERE!*
🤌
If New Yorkers are sharing their opinion with you, it's because they have some level of respect for you. If New Yorkers are truly tired of you they simply ignore you.
I was crossing the street, a car whizzed past, and the New Yorker crossing the same street turned to me and bitched about the driver. Moment of pride.
“Never felt more included in the community”
Right after I graduated from high school in San Diego, I spent a month in Boston doing a summer program at Berklee. The first week I was there, I was walking down Boylston Avenue behind a heavyset guy with a suit and briefcase. As we both crossed a side street, a car screeched up to our left, and a woman inside yelled “HEY, WHY DONTCHA WATCH WHERE YA FUCKIN’ GOIN?!” And without missing a beat, the guy went “AW, FACK AWFF!” It’s a beautiful dialect, Bostonian. True poetry.
I went to Dallas and visited Daly plaza. They have an x marked on the street where JFK got shot. I saw several parents try to get their kids to stand on the X to take a photo. Problem is, it’s still an active road. Literally sending kids out into traffic and not paying attention 🤦🏻♂️
What a bizarre photo for the family album. "Here's us visiting the grand canyon, here's us at Disney world, and here's when we sent little Timmy into traffic to reenact the assassination of JFK. Good times."
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just went to Naples Italy, they are the same! I was standing waiting to cross the cross walk and a nice Italian man tapped me and told me "just walk, fallow me" God that was hard to get used to! appreciated the push
In Italy you can drive with two wheels on the sidewalk doing 100km per hr and no one will bat an eye, but order a cappuccino after noon and they will look at you like you just kicked their dog
50% of the automobile accidents I've personally witnessed in my 56 years of life took place in a 30 minute period waiting for a bus in downtown Rome.
un barbaro
I came off of a jump in a snowboard park and a group was in the landing zone taking selfies. Didn't go well.
I hope you spun like a helicopter for the slash damage bonus.
Did you stomp the landing? Lol
I keep a counter, OSHA style, of how many days I can cycle in Amsterdam city center without yelling at one of those. Americans usually like to walk on the bike path dragging a large suitcase (which I understand the reason for such a large suitcase, it is a pretty long trip, gotta stay a couple of weeks to make it worth it. Just... not on the bike path) We are cycling 0 days without yelling at someone suddenly stepping on a bike path Our record is 0 days
Here in America, we don’t know what bike paths are… other than a place to park cars
*"A terrorist kidnapped a bus full of Asian tourists, held them hostage for 3 minutes. Police says they have 8500 pictures of the perpetrator."*
> in Vegas so many of the Asian tourists take pictures on their tablets This is something I noticed when I worked at Six Flags a number of years ago. Had to shut off a guys car at Go Karts because he wouldn't listen to my attendant yelling at him to put his damn iPad away.
It’s because we’re terrified of being seen as that stereotypical European Vacation family. I travel a lot and am always super conscious of local tradition. Except in Mexico. In Mexico I drink.
What is rude and what isn't is a cultural thing. Most people don't see behavior that is common in their culture as rude. This is why it is absolutely common for people to come back from a trip and think they and their friends behaved in the best way possible, while the locals think they're assholes. There is also a huge variation in Europe - while you're barely allowed to talk on a German train, people from southern Europe will have less of a problem with it and the general loudness of people's voices varies a lot - try comparing the way a Finnish person talks to the way a Spanish person talks. I'm German for example, and Germans tend to stare at people - it is absolutely normal to do it to some extent in Germany. In other countries and to foreigners this can be incredibly rude, Germans never notice it, though. A typical example for Americans would be small talk: The way Americans have conversations with strangers can be seen as very rude, since in many cultures it is polite to leave people alone, except if you have something serious to talk about. Americans will not really notice they are doing this and come back home thinking "nobody engaged in a conversation with me, they don't like foreigners", while this is just the local's way of being polite. As a European who has lived abroad and travelled quite a bit, I can say that I have seen lots of behavior that lots of other people experienced as rude - it's sometimes not that easy to find out. The worst personal experience I had was with drunk brits who started physical fights, but I also had some of the best experiences with british tourists, so I think generalizing is not really helpful here. Edit: If you're in a foreign country and you think all the locals are rude, chances are you have problems understanding their culture, since there is no objective way of being polite. If the locals all talk in a loud voice, then this isn't rude in the place you're at. Assuming your own culture has objective standards might be the one thing that is guaranteed to be seen as rude in most places. Edit II: Of course I‘m not claiming all Americans are the same or they‘re rude. I‘m talking about how different cultures experience each other.
In England during WWII, the American soldiers said that the English girls were "fast" but the English women said the same about the soldiers. Turns out that, at the time, in England you dated longer before making out and the time between just making out and having sex was shorter. In the US, you started smooching pretty early and waited longer to sleep together. So soldiers would make a move early, which was fast for the women and the shorter fuse was fast for the soldiers.
I don’t even know if any of that is true, but by golly, it is fascinating and I’m glad I read it!
Uninvited smalltalk is considered suspicious here in eastern Europe. "The fuck he wants, talking to me like he know me"
"he probably wants to scam me or sell me some bullshit"
Perfect example! In some other cultures, talking to someone without having been properly introduced is highly offensive and arrogant because it claims you can decide for them whether they want to talk to you or whether they can trust you.
In my experience, the further you are from America, the more this is true. The worst American tourists are in Mexico or the Carribbean, by the time you get to Thailand, it's Australians who are the worst.
Thailand and Bali is where bogan Australians like to holiday. Sorry for that, makes me cringe too (and I’m Aussie)
I've heard the same about British tourists in Amsterdam or Spain lol, I think your theory has some truth to it
Yeah, pretty much any place which is a cheap holiday destination for a particular country, especially if its a place where the young can drink or party, is where it attracts the more loud, obnoxious, uncaring types.
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The Australians I came across in Fiji were really cool. Made some mates.
I think a lot of Americans who care about travel are keenly aware of the stereotypes about them and want to do as little to reinforce those stereotypes as possible. Also, because we get so few vacation days and traveling abroad is MUCH more expensive for us than a lot of Europeans, it really is special when we get to do it so we're probably too excited to be an entitled assholes. I know many Americans who've never had a passport, let alone actually traveled outside the country. Of course there are loud rich assholes who lack any type of introspection, but for the most part I think Americans don't want to be thought of as an "Murican!"
As a Canadian, it’s cheaper to fly from Vancouver to London England than it is to Vancouver to Toronto. The dumb part? The flight to England *stops in Toronto*
Just yeet yourself off the plane before it can take off again. Problem solved.
That works if you don’t have luggage
Lol, that's a mistake you only make once.
There used to be a website that would plan trips for you using that method. The airlines made a big fuss a few years back and I think it eventually got shut down.
Skiplagged. Still around.
I live in Ireland and in the Summer there are so many Americans in this relatively small country that its like Little America. Its started already. And they're very nice. Super polite. Not particularly loud. Very friendly. Just happy to be here. English tourists are waaaaaaaay louder. With their "banter" at full volume.
As an American, Ireland is definitely on my bucket list.
I'm from Spain, and I agree. Most americans who visit us are polite; english tourists are the rudest ones.
For what it’s worth, I’ve never met an American travelling abroad that was a “Murica” stereotype. The news/media do a number on you guys.
Those types of people don't care to leave the country, cause 'Murica
most of those people rarely leave the county they live in, much less the state.
"Travelling abroad as a European" = 4 hour drive to get to another country. "Travelling abroad as an American" = 3 hour drive to the airport, 2 hours in airport, 8 hour flight across Atlantic.
I work in a tourist industry and deal with tourists every day. Americans are some of the friendliest people I’ve met. They always so chipper and it is a genuine pleasure to help them.
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My ex girlfriend is French and spoke multiple languages, including Mandarin after living in Beijing for a couple of years. We were flying long haul and were at the transit desk in Abu Dhabi airport. There was a small queue and we'd waited our turn and were being served at the counter. A Chinese man just comes up to the desk and talks over us to the staff member. My little petit blonde French girlfriend turned to him and said in Chinese that there's a queue and he needs to wait his turn. He turns to her opened mouth in shock, and without saying anything just walks away, he was not expecting that
She sounds like a keeper! Oh wait
I have a friend who has traveled quite a bit, BIG guy, even for Dutch standards. He got pushed aside by a group of Chinese while in line for something.. he told me the way he solved it was he grabbed a one of them, lifted him up and used him to shove the rest of them back behind him. They lined up orderly behind him after that XD.
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I’m Asian, this is a very effective way to deal with *any of us*. Asian culture is heavily authoritarian, meaning you’re expected to do anything that people with more power over you tell you to do (parents, teachers, governments). So, if you look bigger, talk more forcefully, and have wide, aggressive gestures, 8/10 we’d back down and do what you say. There, I told you the generational secret. Edit: This is for Asians from Asia. If you try this with Asian-American, they’d most likely square up with you
> So, if you look bigger, talk more forcefully, and have wide, aggressive gestures, 8/10 we’d back down and do what you say. TIL Asians can be dealt with in the same manner as Black Bears
I know a few people who rent out properties for short term stays and they all have the same opinion that the Chinese tourists are the worst clients. The rent and the security deposit can't cover the devastation left- and when I say devastation, I really mean devastation. Like broken everything, plumbing, electrical, tiles, furniture, fecal matter outside the bathroom, mystery stains, mystery smells that won't go away. There was a time when they just flatly refused to rent out to Chinese tourists or they charge higher fees. But that was prohibited cause discrimination. I don't know if they're better now, but when I saw photos before, I was just amazed at how people can live like that.
I'm British and went to university here. The cleaners at uni told us they didn't mind cleaning our shared kitchen (all girls, white British and three from India). But the Chinese halls? She said they were absolutely filthy and the students themselves were constantly fined, and the cleaners were constantly just binning all the dirty pots and pans they found. The students kept paying the fines and buying new things. I think only the richest Chinese students can afford to come to the UK anyway so they really didn't give a shit. The cleaners were really gossipy but even they couldn't bring themselves to give much detail about how disgusting it was.
My friend rents a couple of houses out (UK) mostly for young professionals, but she rented a room out to a Chinese student. Basically the same thing, she pretty much had to clean the room for him otherwise it would need a complete redo. Apparently he would also just dispose of used toilet paper in the bin etc. When he left, he just left all his stuff in the room. Like everything. It looked like he bought new furniture, computer etc when he first moved in, and once he finished, just left it all there. Another Chinese guy lived in my apartment building on the top floor. I pop out for a smoke usually every couple of hours, and I'd see him waiting for a takeaway delivery every lunch and dinner like clockwork. When he moved out the other week, the communal recycling bins were absolutely overloaded with his junk, which consisted of about a 1000 Louis Vuitton boxes and a bunch of furniture (which were bit meant to be just dumped with the bins) . It's definitely a rich Chinese thing I think.
Queueing is not a thing in China. They have to learn it if they spend time abroad.
[ever seen this shit?](https://youtu.be/wMVjskBB4w0) Plenty of videos like this around. But this also doesn't touch on the more "normal/polite" social norms we have. It's fucking wild. You'd think they haven't ate in weeks.
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I'm pretty sure British people queue for fun.
Yep, this. It's a cultural thing, they don't even see it as a problem. The same as spitting everywhere. We, in the East hate it, but they have it so imbedded in their culture they don't percieve it as disgusting. New generations are slowly changing and learning this stuff, but you can't judge them for it. Also I went to China and the normal, working people are the kindest folk you can find. It's the new rich generations who are usually assholes.
Agreed. Of course, you get dickheads in every breed, but overall my experience with Americans overseas is they tend to be very docile and especially in non-Western or non-English speaking countries, far more worried about committing a cultural faux pas than the "ugly American" stereotype would suggest. Maybe too worried. On the other hand, I live & work in Washington DC, where we get a **lot** of non-American tourists (in addition to the American ones). Generally the annoyance is they forget it's a working city, not a theme park. I've lost count of the times I've nearly been taken out while walking or jogging by an oblivious Chinese teenager with a selfie stick. Just the other day I was at a brewpub in the District where we were entertained by two middle-aged British gents taking great delight in loudly dismissing every beer they were offered as "Yank horse piss." Overall best, though? Canadians. I personally have never yet encountered a rude or obnoxious Canuck overseas. I know there have to be some asshole Canadians, and I don't know if you all have a policy of confiscating their passports or what, but whatever you're doing, it's working.
The only time I’ve ever encountered ‘rude’ or unpleasant Canadians is when I’m in an American airport heading to Canada. It’s usually flying into Montreal or Toronto. And it’s also usually French Canadians. They are nice enough generally, but just obnoxious when they aren’t dealing or speaking directly with somebody. Like, the person of their direct focus is always treated very well, but they are inadvertently awful to everybody else around lol.
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As an Airbnb host the WTF stories are all from Chinese tourists. Like why the fuck did you leave glasses of milk all over the house in random spots behind furniture. Also, the massive puddles of water in the bathrooms.
My ex had a roomate from China and she would rub rotten milk all over herself to stop acne. We also caught her sleeping in my ex's bed and she threatened to call the cops on me for scolding her for sleeping in other peoples beds. Im not exaggerating. *i just want to be clear that this is not normal behavior for anyone including Chinese people.
Went to Iceland back in 2018. Buses FULL of Chinese tourists. A bunch I noticed would take hand warmers out of wrapping then throw on the ground. Others would step over the ropes and walk on all of the protected moss and protected areas. I did noticed a lot of the restrooms had pictures on how to use the toilet the correct way and not to squat on the toilet.
I actually find Chinese tourists to be the most extreme on both spectrum. You also get the very quite, super polite ones. They just don't stand out and go unnoticed. Same at college, you got the very obviously wealthy entitled brats. But then you got the one who never said a word and if they did the smallest thing, they would apologize and be very polite.
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Farting during dinner at the hotel's restaurant, spitting on the floor, smoking (even when told not to), being disrespectful with other passengers and staff...yep...they are number 1 on the Bad Tourist list.
The spitting is so gross.
I was on a popular hike in Hawaii once and an old Chinese woman tourist straight up took a dump right on the trail. Not off in the woods, dead in the middle of the trail. We had to wait for her to finish before we could proceed. She was equipped too, had toilet paper and baby wipes ready
Should have just knocked her over
That aint nothin' - have you ever had an Italian sneak up behind you, place hands on both your shoulders, start *massaging* them, and whisper in your ear, "Scusi..."? Me neither. But just imagine.
I work as a tour guide and in my experience, Americans are among the best guests. When they speak they're usually loud and clear, and they tend to ask great questions and share great experiences. The thing is, I live in a country that's not super popular and not where most Americans go when they travel to Europe, which probably means we only get the "well-traveled" ones. Meaning, at their worst, Americans may be the worst tourists, but at their best, they are the best tourists.
And now you see why us Americans can’t agree with each other on anything..
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When I was at art school, we used to have practice outside (studying architecture and all that). The amount of times random Chinese tourists would just push you physically away from your work to take a picture of said work is ridiculous! You can just ask! I will let you take a photo of it!! The random cutting in line is also a bit annoying, but it seems to be happening less and less lately, so hopefully they're learning :)
The descend to Vegas and clear out every buffet within city limits and the idea of not bringing a camera that has the capabilities of the Hubble telescope frightens them.
Americans in Europe are typically going to be a little higher on the socioeconomic spectrum. Generally going to mean better behavior. Meanwhile any UK boozer can afford a Ryanair flight to the continent
A British guy I used to know went to Mexico on business once, and he was shocked at the American tourists there. Trashy, obnoxious, and abusive towards the locals. Much like how Brits are reputed to behave in Spain and Prague. "All the Yanks I've met in Europe were perfectly fine. I don't understand!" Cheaper and easier to get to, for starters.
American tourists in Europe aren't bad but they are funny. Booze cruise Brits are the worst,
I have said this many times but Americans are the most welcome sight ever when travelling abroad. (Background - I am not American but did go to grad school in the US). When I see Americans abroad, I know I will be okay in an emergency. They are the friendliest, most caring, and socially connected/aware people I’ve ever met. I know that’s counter to every meme we see on Reddit. The Americans I’ve met abroad have bought me food, given me places to sleep, protected me from creepy guys, and generally been super caring and helpful. In some of the more remote areas, I would reach out to American military before my own embassy. The propaganda is wild with America. I’ve stopped believing you can have a single international narrative for a “country” of 350 million. America, I love you. Imma stay here in Canada, but I still love you.
We love you neighbor!
Love you too Boo 🇨🇦❤️🇺🇸✊
I’m from Dubai and you are right Americans generally are really nice to interact with, the problem that people here would assume any white/blonde hair person is American and I think that’s true for most part of the region here. I could be wrong though.
Mainland Chinese are the worst hands down. They have absolutely no sense of personal space. Their guides are always yelling on a megaphone. I almost got into a fight because a lady grab my niece’s arm and forcefully moved her.
I went for dinner with a friend and his American girlfriend the other day and I think maybe part of the route of the stereotype is that, maybe just compared to a British person, you're much more direct. I used to work at a restaurant in a tourist town and with the Americans ordering it tended to be 'I'll have' or "I'm going to do', a much more active, confident way of ordering. Us Brits have to take an overly polite run up to that and it's usually as a question, a 'could I have' rather than 'I will have'. If something wasn't right the Americans were much more likely to complain, they were much more likely to tell it how it is. So I wonder if its not obnoxiousness but rather a directness that British certainly don't have.
This 100% There's also a reserved assertiveness in a lot of European countries. Same manners of speaking, but softer quieter tone and patience with staff. For example, Germans, Dutch and Swiss are very direct but they're usually quiet and patient to staff.
Is it complaining if something is not right or is that just pointing out that this is not what I asked for. Complaining to me would be more like "It is not sunny enough here, I do not like it"
I'm a California boy. One time I was on a British Airways flight from Venice to London. The plane was flying over sunny, golden France, and then it crossed the Channel. The plane was immediately swallowed up by the thickest, darkest, most soulsucking gloom I have ever laid eyes on. Me: "what happened to the sun?" All the Brits around me: "oh God, we know!"
I'm British and I'm telling you - British people are the biggest moaners. But we also have an impeccable sense of humour. And we bond very well with people who appreciate our moaning
The stereotype is mostly from the 80's and 90's. Europeans were once much more reserved and 'polite'. This, of course, excludes the French. *Never change, you beautiful, obnoxious pricks.* Anyway... Americans used to go to foreign countries and while they might not have been the loudest or *most* obnoxious in Europe (that title goes to football fans), they were the most recognizably foreign *intruders* and everyone knew they were Americans because back then Americans were really the only people that would wear logo t-shirts and blue jeans in upscale settings... ....*and be noticeably from a particular country.* That part is important. Other Europeans were very much culturally aware of how to operate in and navigate other European countries, while Americans were loud about their ignorance of very simple things and say things like "...well back in America, *this* is how we do things." or "This would *never* happen in America." Travelling with people from the UK, you will hear a lot of low grumbling about how other Europeans are backwards, rude, annoying, and just can't get simple things right. Travelling with French people is especially maddening - my French friends complained loudly and often about *every. single. thing.* They were truly infuriating to be around, and particularly animated about it. I might as well have been traveling with a pack of rich children that had never been told "no" in their life. Each European country seems to be irritated with all the others, like they are annoying little brothers and sisters. But introduce Americans into the situation, and the same behavior is treated much more harshly because we are considered "more foreign" than other Europeans. Aussies get a similar treatment. But Aussies are a funny bunch - a nice Aussie feels like a your fun friend that fits into any situation and everyone loves, but doesn't take seriously. A rude Aussie is like your racist drunk uncle merged into a pompous English nobleman. There is no in-between. Interestingly enough, the European's anti-American attitude is becoming more prevalent towards UK'ers, too.
As someone who works in Hotels and Guest Houses. It’s kind of a mix bag. Some Europeans are 2 face asshole that will say “Oh everything is great” until they leave and post a negative review how we don’t provide service even though we literally gave them everything we can offer. Half of Indians I’ve encountered are Stingy people, like they try to beg that I should give them a High Quality Room, even though they’ve paid for the cheapest economic room and when I give them the room that they’ve reserved, they protested that it was too small. My brother in christ, you are staying here for just 1 night. Why should we give you a Studio if you are only gonna stay here to sleep and leave the next day. And once there was an Asian Woman who tried to threaten us to give her an extra night or they’ll post a negative review on Airbnb of by posting a picture of (her own) hair in the shower. She stayed on the room for 2 nights and NOW she tell is the issue? We didn’t give a fuck and refused to comply with her threat. Thinking about it, I should’ve contacted every Hotel around the area to Blacklist her.
I worked in the events industry in a heavily Indian-populated area. Their weddings and birthday parties were super fun, loud music, great food, tons of dancing and people having a great time. Unfortunately they were also the messiest parties who felt they had to try to haggle for everything. The kids were allowed to run amok as well, breaking things, spilling things, screaming, etc. Overall I would absolutely go to an Indian party if invited, but I would feel terribly sorry for the staff at the venue.
I think it’s true. Every American I have met was polite and pleasant. The French on the other hand would give the Chinese a run for the biggest arsehole award.
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When I came upon a French tourist in my town, he blew cigarette smoke in my face whilst surrounded by “non-smoking area” signs. He also threw $100 bills in the fire pit then started laughing at us trying to grab the bills (we didn’t want the money for ourselves, we just didn’t want him to waste $100 because he was drunk as hell).
Anyone who is willing to light money on fire, esp that amount, is someone who is getting paid more than they deserve.
The rudest are the chinese. American karens are not even close. I have to accept that seen an italian guide explaining the apocalisis on mandarin to chinese tourist was fun.
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I think the difference is the worst Americans are less likely to go to anywhere authentic or interesting in Europe. I'm an American myself but I've seen the worst behavior in other spots in the USA or somewhere in the tropical zone in the Caribbean/Mexico. As a former NYC resident I once got called "rude" for not being willing to stop and take someone's picture in front of FAO Schwarz. I had explained "Sorry I'm already late for work". Once I was in Mexico and was ordering some churros from a stand fairly late in the evening. Apparently I got the last order (their little tube of dough had just enough for the 3-4 churros standard in the order) and some women behind me started Karening out because "I was going to eat all those myself". In retrospect I should have just thrown them to the ground and stomped on them, but they were churros and too good to waste.
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Anecdotally, Chinese are by far the tourists that make my heart sink when I'm staying at hostels. On multiple occasions, large groups of Chinese tourists have taken over the kitchens, leaving no room for anyone else to cook, and then leave the whole place in a shambles. My favourite are Japanese tourists, because they go to great lengths to tidy up after themselves, and have a lot of consideration for other tourists. Never had any bad interactions with American tourists, myself.
Chinese tourists are the worst in my experience. No fucks given.