Are American the world's worst tourists?
http://www.foxnews.com/travel/2012/03/06/americans-are-worlds-worst-tourists-says-new-survey/?intcmp=sem_outloud
i'm sure none of "US" were included in this.
Elaine
Columbia, SC 11/30/12
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Americans will lose that distinction just as soon as we're not a superpower. Stay tuned.
I read the article. It was primarily Americans rating Americans. What it really demonstrates is that we aren't smart enough to know when we don't have the context required to answer a poll.
Elaine,
Interesting article but I'm not sure it's fair to categorize residents of any country as having the "world's worst tourists". I've seen rude and arrogant behaviour by tourists from many countries, including my fellow Canadians.
One factor which may have skewed that poll is that perhaps there are just more Americans travelling, so they're more prominent and noticeable? The U.S. has a population ten times larger than Canada, so proportionally more Americans than Canadians may be travelling.
In speaking with shop keepers, hotel owners and others in Europe, I've heard complaints about other ethnic groups besides Americans and Canadians, but of course they tend to "grin & bear it" and tolerate the bad behaviour as they want the income.
I should also add that many of the people I've travelled with on RS tours have been American and they've been polite and respectful tourists (as I also try to be).
Cheers!
Hi,
I used to think so based on what I observed since the early the '70s and '80s. Now that distinction of being the "world's worst tourists" can be applied to a couple of other nationalities I have in mind which I have witnessed within the last decade and who seem to be vying for that label.
Most Italians love American tourists, especially in Tuscany. Of course they smile at their tackiness when they see them wearing their gym clothes straight out of the hamper when they visit the tourist sites, but most Italians think Americans are the nicest people on Earth.
I wouldn't read much into it - these surveys seem to come along pretty frequently don't they? I just googled "worst tourist" and found this report on a 2009 survey:
'Rude' French are worst tourists
Or if you prefer, exactly the same survey headlined as:
Britons are worst tourists in Europe
Of, for variety, a different survey one month later:
Russians top worst tourist poll
The tone in the last one is notable.
This article also came from Fox "News". Fear mongering is now placed in the travel realm. People now won't travel because they won't want other nations to think they are rude or the worst travelers;)
Since Kelly feels the need to push her political agenda because she can't tell the difference between a news outlet and a news source...
http://travel.usatoday.com/destinations/dispatches/post/2012/03/the-worlds-worst-tourists-you-might-be-surprised-and-a-little-ticked-off/637651/1
Oh James, I was just being a little silly. I've never voted for a president who has won, so I really have no agenda, politically.
Wow, I didn't see any polictal agenda in Kellys post at all???
Everyone knows Fox news is....
I don't think I have ever seen an American behaving rudely in Europe ,
in fact the only time I really witnessed rude behaviour it was from a Brit, and that was an isolated incident, the guy was a twit but his wife seemed fine, I don't think there is such a thing as any nationality being the "worst tourists",, but do have some personal opinions on large tour groups ( like 50 people) who proceed through museums etc , following their guide ( who is holding up some umbrella or banner) and move a giant "glump" , blocking others from passing them( Versailles nightmare,stuck behind such a group)
Don't people realize that when they take things from hotel rooms the owners have to pay to replace them - so the prices have to go up?
Are these the same people who are also identified in both copies of this article?
Speaking as someone who owns an hotel in France, I can tell you that Americans are not in the "top" five, as far as I'm concerned!
"You perceive I generalize with intrepidity from single instances. It is the tourist's custom."
-- Mark Twain
Doesn't a post like this show up about once a year? Some people complain about the behavior of their fellow countrymen, others say people from such-and-such a country are worse, some people proclaim how culturally sensitive they are and would never display the behavior being debated, etc. The debate gets quite fierce, then gradually dies down, with nothing really settled, until the thread gradually disappears into the archives.
Oh well, off to get a Brautwurst and some Glühwein.
I think Americans are the worst tourists to an extent. That is of course a huge generalization, and the type of tourist who watches Rick's shows and use his guidebooks are not typical of the average American tourist. Rather, they are "good", open-minded, respectful, courteous, and intelligent tourists. Rick is a good influence, and intelligent, open minded people are drawn to his shows! The average American tourist often does not respect or appreciate diversity and foreign culture, and I often wonder why they didn't just stay home. However, when it comes to tipping, Americans are the best tourists. When I worked in the service industry the foreign tourists often didn't tipped or tipped much smaller amounts than their American counterparts here in the States.
Some American tourists are pretty horrible - regarding inappropriate clothes, rudeness, loudness, arrogance - but not everyone. Probably not a big enough percentage to call us the world's worst.
Heather, yes, as you say that is a huge generalization, on one hand you say Americans are the worst, on another you say they're the best. Just curious where you get your belief that the typical American does not not respect or appreciate diversity and foreign culture, they may not understand it but then again many people that visit the U.S. don't understand our culture and diversity. As others have posted it doesn't take anything in particular such as nationality to be considered the worst. After reading this board at times I feel that many who follow the RS philosophy are lemmings, they're seen at the same restaurants and want to stay at the same hotels, I wouldn't consider that diversity.
As a group the worst are Bit Stag parties. As individuals that are worst are those who behave the worst no matter where they come from
The worst tourist are just people who are rude and obnoxious no matter where they come from! We have encountered people from many other countries who were rude but because some of them were rude, would not judge their whole country based on their actions.
Actually James has a point, the worst tourists are Brit "hen" and "stag" parties, while in Spain we saw "No Stag/Hen Parties" signs in a few places.. they are just rowdy.. I don't think its because they are Brits mind you, its just so convenient for larger groups of younger folks to jump from UK to various places in Europe on those cheapo airlines for 2-3 days then it would be for Americans, Canadains, or Australians..
The worst type of tourists are those who think they are better than the others.
I agree Tom, but those who puke outside the cafe rate pretty high in my book too.
on my trips if you are loud and poorly dressed you are an american! probably includes me.
Tourist rating if you puke inside a cafe?
I absolutely do not believe that Americans are the worst tourists, in fact, here in Italy they are very curious and fascinated by a different culture. It seems to me that some years ago a survey of Italian hoteliers had classified the Americans as the most welcome tourists along with the Germans, while the last places English and French.
many who follow the RS philosophy are lemmings, they're seen at the same restaurants and want to stay at the same hotels
Those who follow only his guidebooks can be lemmings like that, but one part of his philosophy is to find your own back doors. In general, I follow his philosophy, and when I do end up in a place he recommends, it's coincidental. I found it on my own.
BTW, the worst case of "ugly American" I ever saw was an Italian, who spoke perfect English because he had lived in NYC, who threw a fit in a schnitzel house because he couldn't get a beefsteak.
of course, the worst American tourist was an Italian.
If the respndents of the survey were Italians, or Germans, or any other national group (large enough that its presence is easily noticeable for conationals abroad), opinions would probably fell on the same line. British people love to loath fellow British tourists and there is a cadre of them bragging about how they avoid places with "too many Brits" like Costa del Sol or Malta...
Up to an extent, it is positive people can make self-criticism. It is also the case that, being abroad, you will have your attention captured when, say, you are in a train and suddenly hears some other group of people speaking English.
If one American sees someone that is most likely not an American (language, dress etc), while travelling abroad, chances are you will just put that to the other wealth of information your brain is absorbing. But if you recognize (English accent etc) a fellow group of Americans, you will likely project your own expectations over them and judge them accordingly. We all do that.
This being said, the 3 most populated countries in the World are China, India and United States. Being much richer, on a per capita basis, than the other two means Americans are often the largest foreign group in any major touristic destination.
Things become intersting when some people conceive vacations as getting far not only from America but from Americans, only to be let down stumbling upon dozens of then on the quaint streets of Vernazza.
Different countries have different rude behaviors depending on where you are and what you are doing. If you were at a beach resort, you would be so angry at the Germans getting up 1st thing in the morning and reserving every single lounge chair at the beach or pool with their towels. They are also known for being very rude and demanding in hotels, restaurants and stores.
If Andre' would come hang out at a major tourist attraction for a while, he would see how many Chinese are traveling in Europe. Zillions of them. All on buses, with guides using loudspeakers, and very, very pushy. Not fun.
Those who work in restaurants and hotels in popular tourist cities will give you their own take on the rudest tourists and Americans, nor Brits, nor Aussies are anywhere near the top. Russians seem to top the list here in Germany. Middle Eastern men can be quite rude too, as well as the Chinese.
In this survey, Americans are too hard on themselves.
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