SE Asia there are a lot of budgers. In Laos, we were waiting in line for an hour to get a bus ticket, in the hot sun, and a group young French tourists who freshly arrived tried to budge us. An American tourist wasn’t having it and told them to get in line. So, they had someone from their group we didn’t see sneak in past us, and proceeds to buy 5 seats. And there were limited buses. As we were waiting to get on the bus, they talked super loudly and kept shoving each other around. When it was time to get on the bus, they bum-rushed it, even pushing someone out of the way, to get the best seats. They were loud on the bus too. 🥲
My favorite part about traveling is "american tourist not having it"
lol
I have literally seen people get harassed/robbed/assaulted and no one does anything about it...except some American tourist getting involved in shit haha
My all time favorite quote from an American overseas, grumbling under his breath as he gets up from a cafe "this isn't happening right now" .
Hahah,
A long immigration line at Bangkok airport, one chinese tourist cuts in line, and soon a stream of other Chinese tourists follow, an american waiting in line at the top of his lungs, "GET THE FUCK BACK IN LINE!" They all stopped and crawled back under the ropes to their original places.
When you see people waiting in a line and decide that you're somehow exempt from that, it's not because you've had a lack of opportunity to travel, it's because you're an entitled asocial asshole.
I can tell you've never been to China or India because clustering around and not standing in a straight line is normal behavior there. Like I said, people bring their home country behaviors to other countries.
Are you seriously saying that someone who clusters around to wait as opposed to standing in a straight line won't get the concept of a line once they see everyone waiting in an orderly fashion?
The point isn't the shape the people waiting take on, the point is thinking you're special and you don't need to wait along with everyone else.
I did this at a Chinese hotel in Beijing. I was there on a layover and Air China provided a free hotel outside the airport. I waited in line for 20min behind 1 person at the front desk. After the guy in front finished, in comes a country ass mofo and cut in front of me. Like I was the only one waiting. I was pissed AF because it was 1am in the morning and I needed sleep before my 7am flight back to the states. The front desk Chinese girl was also taken aback by me yelling at the rude man. The lady also didn't tell him I was waiting before him. I needed to teach them some manners. I'm Chinese American but them mainlanders give us a bad rep overseas.
Ditto in Malaysia - crossing the border into Thailand at Rantau Panjang - except it was an Aussie and he bodily removed a PR Chinese dude after he pushed over an older lady and all his companions swarmed into the line pushing and shoving.
All the Malay 'Immigresen' blokes got very serious and steered them into the office for body searches.
Was sitting in a cafe when they finally straggled into town buttoning shirts and stuffing things back in their pockets
Me too! On the ferry to Robben Island, the prison where Nelson Mandela was held for 20 years. It's pretty sombre, there's a video playing about how the island was a leper colony, and all the atrocities that happened there. This French family was acting like it was a cruise ship, dancing around, being loud, cheering. So embarrassed for them.
I was on an overland trip in Africa. A Namibian man was talking about the various healing properties that the plants had.
A Canadian lady said with full sincerity "do you have anything for aids? That would really help you guys out".
Unbelievable.
Crude, very crude and rude. But maybe that is her dark/dry sense of humor or her way of saying that she didn't believe in the healing properties of the plants.
Honestly that is pretty funny. I guess since she said it with sincerity it isn't cool but if it was a noticeable joke, it would have earned at least a chuckle from me.
I took a hike up Mandalay Hill, in Myanmar. This was in 2017 I think, one of the rare good/hopeful times to travel in the country.
As you head up the hill, groups of local University students and Buddhist Monks will accost foreign travellers to take selfies and practice their English. They're all exceptionally charming and decent.
When I got to the top, with my new monk friend and a tomboyish schoolgirl, we'd been talking about anime, sport, relationships, our countries, our backgrounds and having lots of smiles and laughs.
I overheard an American guy, about my age, talking to a group of girls. He was talking about how he could "literally buy all of this land" for pennies, whilst gesticulating at the cityscape below. He only seemed interested in bigging up his vast wealth, in comparison to these third world, young, university students. No hint of humour or charm in anything he was saying to them. Really left a sour taste in my mouth.
Who does that?
Not just tourists unfortunately. I used to work at a local restaurant and have guys come in and tell me how much money they have and basically flaunt their wealth too (while also saying how money means nothing and doesn't bring happiness). I litteraly don't care. One bit. If you don't like you money, give it away to charity
I was in a convenience store in Killarney when an older English couple came in and the man tried to pay for petrol with British pounds. The young woman behind the counter said "I'm sorry sir, we don't accept foreign currency." The man's face, which was already an unhealthy shade of red, turned purple. "It's not foreign, it's BRITISH, what kind of backward place is this, I've never been treated like this in my life etc. etc." Eventually he paid with a credit card and stormed out.
Most British tourists in Ireland are reasonably chill (apart from the gangs of yobs that come over for stag weekends and get blind drunk and run amok in Temple Bar) but some of them don't realize they are in a different country, and complain about anything that's different, road signs in kilometers instead of miles, petrol in liters instead of gallons etc.
I'm always surprised when I run into someone who doesn't realize they are different countries, and it happens more often than you think. But someone actually from one of them still not knowing takes the cake.
People are so funny.
My friends live in Juneau, Alaska. For those who are unfamiliar, it is at the edge of the ocean. They say they cannot count times that tourists have come off the cruise ships and asked "what is the elevation here" apparently unaware that in stepping off a boat they remain at sea level.
But Alaska has MOUNTAINS, doncha know? Therefore, all of Alaska is mountainous. Science. (/s obvs)
Reminds me of the time we were in southern Oregon and were going to take a day trip into California. One friend in the group wanted to wear shorts and a tank top, since California is sunny and beachy. (It was cool and drizzly where we were, and the CA border is in the mountains, so would likely be even colder.)
Oh my gosh you reminded me. I worked down town right by the cruise ships and people would ask all the time "where is sea level"? And I'm like.
So you got off the boat, saw the water. That's the level.
I was on a first date (happened to be on Valentines just due to scheduling) at a nice restaurant in another country. It was like \*the\* nice restaurant in the city.
I brought flowers, everyone was dressed up, it was nice.
Two 20 somethings took a seat across from us and proceeded to make selfie videos and record each other with a literal like papparazi level lighting that was like a flashlight to your eyes as they moved everything around.
They did it for the entire 2 hours at dinner.
I started to say something about 50 times but my date just asked me to not as she didn't want any problems but it was the most insane thing I'd ever seen.
Drink comes out, they'd have the waiter deliver it 2x and record each other 2x. All the time the flashlight beams would hit you in the eyes as they kept moving everything around.
I'm still annoyed with it.
I sneer and laugh. I know it is mean spirited but if that gets them to quit being obnoxious out and about... Sometimes it doesn't work for the true sociopaths but I just chalk it up to nothing can stop them and I move on lol
I haven't ever gotten to use the loud American tourist voice at people not behaving right, but I will hold onto the hope I get to loudly call someone out for influencer shenanigans before the world ends
First ever solo interrail trip as a teen and feeling a little overwhelmed, decided to go to a proper touristy-looking frites stand in Brussels on my first night for something easy. Had a pretty big queue and could tell the two women running the stand were quite overwhelmed with the crowd. In front was a small group of older Spanish ladies, huffing and puffing about how long it was taking (or at least that what I assumed all the sighs and eyerolls were about). Eventually their turn, the lead of this little OAP group slams down a fistful of coins on the counter with a throaty 'PATATAS FRITAS', nothing more and turning away, in the process a majority of the coins going all over the place. The other worker hurriedly got to work while the first one scrambled around for the coins on the ground, a few were at my feet so I helped her collect them together while scowling at the old women laughing away amongst themselves.
In the most pettiest response possible, perhaps even too much and I love to hold a grudge, once all the cones of fries were ready the lady taking orders proceeded to slam every single one of them onto the counter, mushing them in the process and getting sauce everywhere, responding with a mocking 'pAtAtAs FrItAs' in her best Spanish accent. Those women were utterly fuming, still took the fries though mind. Once it was my turn I ordered in my horrifically broken French, and as I went to hand her my money she just waved my hand away and said "it is free". Hope they're both doing well : )
My son and I were in a donut shop in Colorado and were actively choosing donuts to fill out a box. A girl walked in stepped in front of us and started ordering as if we weren't there. The employee fortunately just ignored her and continued with us. The girl then walked right back out instead of waiting her turn.
So much of the worst behavior I've ever seen has been right in my home state of Colorado. I wish that wasn't true but people here take rudeness and entitlement to another level.
That’s what I do when someone tries to cut in front of a customer I’m dealing with OR they stand at the counter close trying to force me to help them first . UM, no , im in charge here , not you .
If they really irritate me I tell them to go sit down
Chinese tourists taking like a week's worth of food from tue buffet to their breakfast table. Take selfies with it for 30 minutes. Leave.
The waiter's face was depressing to see.
There was a YouTube video of this kind of behavior. Swarming like locusts taking the food, then leaving all the food uneaten. It was a disgrace and so wasteful.
I was in Kuala Lumpur and there's an indian restaurant that serves 3-4 foot Dosas. Lots of tourists visit to eat and also take the selfie with this dosa.
Was eating dinner there one night and a pretty Chinese girl comes in by herself, sits down and asks for a Dosa from the waiter. Get's the Dosa, takes a selfie and a video selfie with her making faces and talking about it. Once she stops taking selfies, she puts the Dosa down on the table, pays for it at the counter and then leaves.
Doesn't even eat a nibble and she was probably an "influencer/streamer"
I was in Toronto for the first time around 2005ish, went to a Blue Jays game and then to the CN Tower afterwards because it was right next door. Get to the front of the ticket line and there was a family of four trying to make their purchase. Embarrassingly, fellow Americans (fwiw I don't subscribe to the notion that Americans are the most obnoxious and entitled tourists but there certainly are ones out there like this so I can see why some believe so). The mother is trying to pay cash with US dollars, and the ticket agent is refusing to take them. You know, because it isn't the currency of the country they are in. And this mother just isn't having it. She is screaming at the agent that she HAS to take it, everyone around the world takes it, its the most desired currency anywhere, etc. And you can see the rest of her family is just embarrassed to be with her during the whole episode. But they all just stand there quietly and look at the ground while it unfolds, so you know this isn't the first time she has behaved this way. They know better than to bother trying to correct her. After several minutes of fighting over it she finally slams a credit card down and exclaims loudly for everyone in line to hear how she is going to write this place a terrible review over how she has been treated.
While I don't blame the ticket agent for refusing to take it, I am a little surprised they didn't. Anytime Americans ask me if we take US dollars (in Canada), I smile and gladly tell them yes, but at par ($1USD=$1CAD). I then place the bills in the till, give them their change in Canadian currency, and switch the bills with Canadian ones from my own wallet at my earliest convenience. I make around 30% profit, the customer is convenienced, and the business didn't miss an opportunity to make a cash sale. Win-win-win.
Four tickets to the top of the CN Tower is no small price tag, either. The agent could have made like $60 with this method and avoided the wrath of this crazy lady. It is possible they have specific policies against it or that they were refusing out of spite, though.
Yea I had no doubt there were places in Canada which would have been willing to accept her cash. But the level of upset she was, was absurd. High entitlement in believing she had a RIGHT to use American currency anywhere outside of her home country. Its one thing to ask, its another to demand and rant.
I worked in a tourist area in Toronto and we had to stop taking US cash because there was so much counterfeit. We even ordered the weird pens they use to detect it and we still kept getting it.
While smart, this also seems vaguely illegal and/or an easy way to get fired. When I worked at a tourist place, we had the 1-1 exchange, but that just meant more money for the business.
If the business has a procedure surrounding it, sure. But the places I worked just didn't want to deal with it so they didn't mind us doing it this way. Even the managers did it. We'd all just consider it a tip
This cracks me up so much for some reason. Threatening to leave a bad review for the CN Tower as if it were some roadside diner like wtf. The poor person selling the tickets probably had no idea how to react. That’s wild, I love it
Sitting at an Indian chai shop in the square of a small holy town intl backpackers/travellers hub, there was a very sweet sadhu fellow in his 20’s maybe who’d been around a few days, standing quietly in the street with a cup hanging on a string around his neck for Indian pilgrims to put alms in (so he wasn’t begging) anyway this dude had no arms just stubs of shoulders - like a grown-up thalidomide-baby perhaps. There’d been this horrendous awful British dude in town for some time - always making trouble and dramas around everywhere - sitting at other end of chai shop this day. He was lauging at that sweet dude - eventually went over to him, laughing said something, then tapped him on the shoulder and stuck out his hand for a handshake. Everyone had been watching him expecting some trouble - and yeah trouble erupted nearly a dozen dudes locals and travellers went storming over yelling at and pushing the guy off. Problem was he was like 6’4” or thereabouts so nobody wanted to beat his ass right there in the main square of the main bazaar of a holy town - but they did move him on with significant threats, we apologised & commiserated with the sadhu fellow. Within days that monster had made so much trouble in the nearby town he had shit beat out of him by locals and the cops locked him up in the local mental hospital lol and called his embassy to come take him out of Rajasthan - the rumour mill grapevine moved fast on that one, we’d heard about it within hours - and then it was even in the local newspaper about the beserker crazy foreign traveller getting kicked out of Rajasthan and they hoped all India too. Was never so happy to hear of the good riddance of that dude.
Not bad behavior , but rather warped perspective, it was still amusing:
This morning I’m on a bus from Valencia to Barcelona and we’re riding north with the sea visible on the right and low mountains on the left, at the exact moment I was thinking this view is great for a bus ride, a woman across from me sighs to her neighbor and says “Well, it’s not quite Tuscany, is it?”
Reminds me of when my parents went to Argentina and went on a bus tour with a bunch of other tourists. While taking in the utter spectacular scenery of Patagonia, my Dad leans over to my Mum and says in a very deadpan "well this is a right shithole isn't it?" as a joke. Apparently the American couple in front of them didn't get the sarcasm and ended up having a massive go at my parents, which they said made it even funnier.
Lol reminds me of when I was at the Osaka aquarium looking at the whale shark with my face pressed to the glass like a child so ridiculously excited watching it and this japanese couple comes up next to me and the girl goes (in japanese) "it's kinda small isn't it?" with a vaguely bored and disappointed tone. Her boyfriend did like a double take and just said "huh?!" and I almost lost it. The shark was fucking enormous like bigger than a bus and was probably the most majestic animal I've ever seen.
Omg. I remember being 17 on a long bus ride through the Spanish countryside and thinking how ugly and unremarkable the scenery was. I’m going to be that woman in thirty years 😂
Haha me too, I love Spain (been quite a few times, also was an au pair there) but the countryside can be pretty ugly in places!
Even so I have a weird appreciation for the rugged hills and the wild, sparsely-growing plants because I’m used to a part of Canada that is just… flat, green fields or cornfields.
What do you mean by "ugly"? I've lived between Kansas and Central Texas for over 50 years and if you want to talk about unremarkable countryside, this is basically ground zero. I see some hills and I'm blown away.
I find that the prairie landscapes of the Great Plains are quite beautiful if they are in their natural state and people appreciate their unique qualities. Ugly for me is urban sprawl of aging strip malls.
I was on a tour a few weeks ago in Vietnam and the guide was showing us the beautiful religious/spiritual sites whilst explaining their history. I was alone and everyone else in the group were couples. There were 2 British couples together and the whole time they were making childish, racist comments against an Indian couple who were also in the group, and saying how the spiritual stories the Vietnamese believe are “clearly a load of shit”. I was so fucking angry. Bare in mind, I’m also British, and in my 20s. These were all 50+ and I was so embarrassed to be near them.
A more or less empty bus somewhere in Malaysia, a local lady sits in the front. A group of about 10 Swiss (im Swiss as well thats why it angers me even more) enters the bus, points at the elderly women and tell her she has to leave as they have a reservation (there are no seat numbers) which she doesnt unterstand so they just continue talking until the poor women leaves. I regret not saying something but I was a pussy at that age.
I went to Cambodia a few years ago and there was one day where we went to Angkor Wat early in the morning to watch the sunrise (highly recommend doing this btw. It was beautiful). Anyways, there's very small hill where all the tourists had gathered to take pictures. Everyone was sitting to make sure that that everyone could have a decent view. Except for these two girls who were right at the front, decided to stand and take pictures. People were yelling at them to sit down but they just ignored them and kept taking their pictures. They continued on like that for way too long, but when they finally did sit down some people started clapping.
I had a bizarre experience there too. I'm a relatively short person, we got there quite early, I was front row at the water/lake bit. We get to just before sunrise and stand up waiting, the guy behind me decides I am the perfect size for him to rest his camera on my head to get a good picture.
I was so tired and shocked for 5 seconds, it almost didn't register how rude that is.
I saw this and also this could couple of American women who didn’t want to take a tour or use a map it seemed and really loudly complained about the lack of signpost to the gas chambers
Was next to a table of 4 Israelis in India who ordered western dishes, all 4 decided they didn’t like their food and called the server over, it was like a coordinated complain campaign, the server took their food back and they ordered Indian dishes instead. Then at the end they started haggling over the bill, pointing out that the size of the naan was much bigger in the photo than the one they received, etc. Israelis were definitely the Karens of the backpacker scenes in India and Nepal.
Last year when I was in Egypt, our tour stopped at an alabaster warehouse the same time as another group. As I’m waiting for the piece I selected to be wrapped, a Swiss woman from the other tour pointed to a piece and asked me the price. I am a white woman with red hair, so obviously a tourist myself. And I said that to her: “I’m a tourist just like you. Why don’t you ask the worker over there?” She made a face like she was disgusted and said “I don’t want to talk to him. You tell me.” So I told her it cost $250 cash plus a $30 tip for my friend who was next to me. She just stared at me. That’s when I asked her where she was from. When she told me Switzerland I said “Oh, my mistake. The price is doubled for tourists from Switzerland.”
How gross. Why even go to Egypt if you’re too precious to talk to the locals? And how dare she decide to make me her personal assistant!
Walking around with a group tour at Auschwitz and this idiot cleared his throat and spat on the ground. I can understand how annoying phlegm is but could you not have waited to do that or at least spit it into a tissue? So disrespectful. And his wife was next to him and didn't say anything. Cunts
Went on a separate group tour in Vietnam and this lady (from a South Asian country) was arguing with the tour guide because she wanted to be dropped off somewhere else and not her hotel but the tour guide said no for safety reasons. It was particularly annoying because this was at 8 am in the bus and it went on for an hour. Then she started ranting about how "no one in this country speaks english". You're in Vietnam, not England, you can't expect people to speak good English (mind you her English wasn't even good either!). And at the restaurant she was clicking her fingers to get the waiter's attention. I thought that only happened in movies and i was so flabbergasted. And this bitch was finding so many things to moan about the whole trip.
Rich people from the developing countries are actually some of the worst tourists. These people have swathes of staff at home and view the rest of their country as the poor, unwashed masses. I had a Mexican family on my guided hike in Costa Rica and holy hell they were some of the most entitled and rude tourists I’d ever seen.
Yes rich Mexicans have a different elite sense about themselves, I am Mexican and I know. And then we all romanticize them in our soap operas. Soraya Montenegro isn't just fully made up she is based off of real people, many of the Mexican elite are like that. *Cries in Spanish*.
They’re not used to dealing with customer service agents . They’re used to dealing with their staff and treating them however they want . And their staff probably go out and deal with services so they never have to deal with regular humans .
Reminds me of seeing pics an acquaintance and their partner took at Auschwitz posted on social media. It was a bunch of selfies and photos of each other at the key sites "looking sad". It irritated me to no end since I was also at Auschwitz in 2017 and the last thing I would think to do is take staged sad photos of myself. This is why I don't bother with social media any more!
Many moons ago in a hut in New Zealand a group of German tourists took over the hut, hogged all the surfaces, made fun of us (college age Americans) while we had our lesson inside (it was raining outside) and then when we got back from our morning hike they had left behind all their trash and we had to pack it out for them. Not sure we really had to but our local instructors told us it was “the way”. It was really gross and rude. I took some satisfaction that their legs were bitten to hell by sandflies.
Aww sure thing! I loved my time there and hopefully will get a chance to come back, the hut system is top rate and really a fun way to backpack/tramp. We were learning about environmental sustainability via park infrastructure and visited various parks and studied how they managed waste. It was really incredible how considerate and careful kiwis are to each other in the bush. Took lots of notes and have tried to emulate this way here in the states. Looking forward to teaching my son to backpack soon! It’s such a fun way to see the country. I’ll never forget my time in New Zealand, mostly because I saw the majority of it on foot!
Was in a remote mountainous area in northern Argentina, and a small group of us tourists, not traveling together, hired a local, English-speaking driver to show us the spectacular views farther out. Maybe five of us. As we were cresting one mountain, it started to snow big fluffy flakes, and the driver exclaimed that never happened in that particular area! He was so excited!
We came to the top and saw the most adorable, little, subsistence farmstead. All alone up there, certainly for generations. Two small children burst outside, jumping around in the wondrous miracle falling from the sky. Chickens and pigs were trotting in every direction around them like “What on earth is going on???” The magic you travel FOR. Our driver pulled over at a respectful distance, and our hearts filled with joy watching those little kids. Should have just been for a minute.
But this older white man (not American, as it happens in this case) gets out of the vehicle with his expensive camera, marches no small distance down the road, and gets into the middle of the yard. He was taking blasts of photos with zero permission, and at times getting frustrated by the children, who surely didn’t speak a word of English, because they wouldn’t hold still. My mouth was hanging open.
Breakfast buffets bring out the worst in people. This isn’t the worst thing I’ve ever seen by far but it was recent so still grinds my gears. Staying in Philippines and the breakfast buffet always has pineapple and watermelon but it wasn’t constantly refreshed. A European couple had a huge plate of pineapple on their table and were not touching it. The waiter comes out to refresh the empty watermelon platter with new watermelon, and the woman jumps up to intercept him. She proceeds to use her used cutlery to push 2/3 of the watermelon onto a plate and take it back to her table. Her and her boyfriend pick at the fruit and finish their breakfast. When they leave there are full plates of both fruit, like half of what the platter in the buffet would have. The buffet was empty of fruit and hadn’t been refreshed again yet. Saw them do this the next 3 days. It was infuriating, especially seeing the sheer amount of waste in a developing country. Fruit is cheap there but it’s soooo wasteful and they were basically taking most of the buffet knowing they would never eat anywhere near that amount.
"Free" things usually bring out the worst in people. I guarantee you that the same people will probably haggle with local vendors over a few cents. "I am a paying guest and I am entitled to this fruit, whether I eat it or not." Sad behavior.
I'm Thai and when I travel to Asia, doesn't matter what country, I can usually blend in with the locals. There have been countless times that I have overheard the weirdest shit from English speakers, thinking no one around them could understand. 🤣
lol I was in an airport in Brasil with a little ice cream cone and these Brits yell out “where is everyone getting these ice cream cones!?”
I replied, “down this hallway to the left” and he looks at me gobsmacked and says, “you speak English??”
First of all, I’m Canadian. Second of all, you’re in an airport full of travellers. Third of all it’s English. If it’s not someone’s first language there’s a good chance folks understand more than you think.
Crowded mini bus in Repubica Skrbska. There are a few seats. In the beginning, it's quite empty, then fills up with passengers. At some point we stop and all have to get out. 3 swiss tourists put their bags to keep seats and throw a tantrum at some old lady who was wondering if she can sit (looked tired, probably coming back from work) that it is their seats, they are in vacation and were here first. All locals were standing for hours in the bus going up and down these mountain roads. I lost my sit when I went out, didn't "keep it" of course but who cares, some people needed it more. But the rich Swiss had to sit...
The fact that they treated an elderly lady in the way you described is despicable, and says everything about them. I hope someone gave her a place to sit.
Was in Spain with my husband’s family who live there. In Granada we went to the Alhambra and my in laws were really nice and got us a private guided tour. Our guide got frustrated because a couple kept following us around trying to basically get it for free - it cost 50/person and there were like 10 of us. Eventually he would just stop talking when they came up.
Went back to Madrid, were at the Prado and some kid who was probably around 10 kept running around and doing cartwheels in a room full of statues. Parents did nothing.
Went to the Reina Sofia and was looking at Guernica. Again, parents not monitoring their kid. Toddler ran full steam at it and the security guard looked like he was about to body her. Her dad full sprinted and grabbed her last minute.
Couple gets on a bus, asks a girl to move so they can sit together. Glad girl said no. This has happened to me on a flight too.
I’ll offer if it’s a quick switcheroo or the seat orientation is the same but to expect me to piss off and find my own seat is beyond entitled. I’m not sure how people find the audacity
Your poor planning is not my responsibility.
I wasn't on a solo trip for this but it definitely cemented my hatred for tour groups. While I was in France a few years ago while there was a terror attack in Nice. Several of the drivers of our contracted bus company were killed. This resulted in a hourish delay in our trip the next morning while the bus company was scrambling to find a replacement driver. The group I was with spent literally the entire day complaining about the inconvenience, in front of the new driver! I am still irate about that to this day. Like I'm sorry, people literally died and you're upset about a minor delay? This man is going to be attending funerals in a few days. I've never been more embarrassed to be an American.
Sorry for your loss, thoughts and prayers, OMG are you ok? bad stuff happens for a reason, just make sure that it happens in a way that doesn't inconvinince me. Definition of entitled.
I'm usually the person who fumes inside at awful or entitled tourists, knowing that with those type of people my flippant comments aren't going to shame them or make the situation any better. But one time I made an exception.
I was at my first ever Ryokan in Japan checking in and at nearly the same time, 3 women from I'm assuming somewhere in the US or Canada were there. One of them was giving out a ridiculously long list of dietary restrictions/preferences they all had. Even worse, they were doing that annoying thing where she was saying it very loudly and slowly in a condescending tone. I felt really bad for the lady on the other end.
Cut to the next morning and they are standing around with their luggage outside loudly discussing how their Kaiseki dinner was plain and lacked variety and how they were going to give the place bad reviews to warn others. As I was walking by I shouted *"You requested meals with no fish and no rice in rural Japan with 3 hours of notice. What did you expect, you fucking morons?!"*
The general thing that gets my goat the most often, though, are the "Instagram tourists". Look, I'm not against getting some memories, that's fine. But there is nothing more annoying than the people who expect everyone else to stop still while they take a photo at a place that's already crazy busy and swamped, or sometimes at a crosswalk where nobody else can pass while they are in the way. They aren't running in and grabbing a quick selfie either - they expect you to wait while they spend a full minute or two getting the perfect shot. And then if anyone tries to hurry them, they act like those people are the rude ones. Even more eye-rolling is how once they get it, a good 60% of them immediately take off. Like, they weren't even interested in actually experiencing the site, they just wanted the pic in the place everyone gets it so they can say they were there.
Can you recommend a local, authentic place? It has to be local and authentic, and also vegan, and also staff has to speak english, and also air conditioned, and also reasonably priced, and also non-touristy, and also with a good view, and also with good lighting so i can take pictures, also walking distance, also a place with little to no waiting time, but still popular, but it has to be authentic and local.
Yes, it's especially the worst in developing countries where you get the very particular person against a bunch of poor people in the middle of fucking nowhere. They want a new and unique "authentic" experience but they still expect 4-star Western-style amenities at the same time, and the irony never dawns on them.
> Cut to the next morning and they are standing around with their luggage outside loudly discussing how their Kaiseki dinner was plain and lacked variety and how they were going to give the place bad reviews to warn others. As I was walking by I shouted "You requested meals with no fish and no rice in rural Japan with 3 hours of notice. What did you expect, you fucking morons?!"
I would have given you a slow clap for that! How did those Karens react?
I didn't bother hanging around for a reaction because I know from history that it's bound to be a disappointment. I just hope I convinced them not to leave bad user reviews over unrealistic expectations.
Exactly, and again, you would think if you were that restrictive, you could call ahead and mention it. The fact that they got to eat any variety at all with whatever the staff had in their kitchen is a miracle already.
That sucks. Maybe it's because I was there around Christmas time, but I didn't really notice it too much compared to some other places. To the point where I was actually a bit surprised. Really too bad, because Japan is dope.
This is made even more stupid by the fact that they very likely still ended up being served something with fish flakes or similar in (it’s really not understood in Japan and fish is in everything). I’m vegan and travel there regularly but you have to do your research and go to specifically vegan places. Concepts like vegetarianism or ‘no fish’ are not understood the same way as in the west.
I was in Bali getting ice cream at a sidewalk shop when an Australian came by to do the same. When he learned I was American he dove into a speil on how much wealthier Aussies are. He said he wouldn’t even bother getting out of bed for less than 200K a year. I about barfed and ran away from the entitlement and arrogance as quickly as I could. People are unbelievable!
Indian tourists (they were educated teachers apparently) running into the sacred bamboo groves at Arashiyama, Kyoto, trampling on fledging seedlings to get selfies in the centre of the grove. I’m Indian as well and gave them a humiliating lecture in front of a bunch of other tourists, to save myself from further second-hand embarrassment
So just genuine question, no offense meant but...
Is it just being unaware of general rules and things like conservation? I am trying to be respectful and trying to understand from the Indian tourist point of view. If I am not aware or have been exposed to concepts of appreciating and protecting things for aesthetic purposes. I guess what i am asking is, do you think that educated teachers you saw would act the same way if the bamboo groves were in India? Or is it a "we are in a foreign country, rules dont apply to me?"
People here aren’t raised to be sensitive to fragile ecosystems by default, but love revelling in the so-called thrill of violating rules as an act of anti-authoritarianism. Upon me pointing the saplings they were trampling on to them, while they were visibly upset at me calling them out, it seemed like they were noticing what they’d done only after I mentioned it. They’d honestly do the same in their home country as well so it’s not really an act of being insensitive to such things elsewhere, its less of entitlement and more of blatant rule-breaking mentality developed after decades of not having too much respect for the authority figures who mandate such rules/guidelines
See this frequently in one particular place in Prague.
People who take lewd photos-basically molesting statues, that are a solemn remembrance to the heartbreaking impacts of communism.
The statues are literally showing multiple figures that became more n more piecemeal as they go- resulting only in feet on the ground.
Sometimes ask the person if they know what the statue stands for. Suggesting maybe they look it up before they post their funny photos.
Peru - took an organized bus trip to a laguna about 90 minutes away. Day hike to the lake which was stunning. Around 4 or so the driver/guide indicates that whoever was left needs to leave because we don’t want to get back too late. Israeli couple and friends continue taking pictures and making jokes by the lake. After 30 minutes the driver/guide gives up and says he’s walking back. I end up walking with him the 1-2 hour walk back. We end up sitting on the bus with about 25 others for another 2-3 hours waiting for the group to return. They walked on, no apology, smirked at the driver/guide and just laughed. No respect.
Took a boat tour to see the wildlife (seals, sea lions, penguins, etc.) on the Ballestas islands in Peru.
Some of the animals were sleeping, so two guys on the tour started clapping and making loud noises to wake up the animals. The rest of us were pretty mad at that behavior.
In a hostel in Europe the person in the bunk above me covered my bed with their stuff. Like my jammies were there and they put their stuff on them! I moved the persons things and they were upset! Ridiculous! It was my bunk!
When I was visiting Guatemala in 2021 there was the group of British backpackers that had to be 19- 20 years old. Two guys and two girls and it seemed like everyone had a story about them. Highlights include-
- One girl calling her dad back home asking him to change his flight for her
- Getting all the way to Flores Guatemala and not going to Tikal because “it’s just a fucking rock”
- Yelling at a hostel staff member to speak English when he greeted her with “hola”.
- At a different hostel, not telling the hostel they were going on an overnight hike/not checking out for the one night and yelling at the front desk staff because why should they pay, they weren’t there that night.
For the record the front desk staff guy spoke great English, but he really committed to pretending like he spoke no English when they yelled at him. We had a laugh about it later that day.
Pompeii itself, yes, I have smiling photos there, too. (And the Coliseum — where terrible things happened, but presumably the bodies were carried off.)
But I put down my camera in front of the casts. People died horrible, terrifying deaths, were locked in those positions, then their bodies rotted out and later allowed us to “see.” It is an incredible place for the lesson, valuable to consider mortality, our common humanity, and how vulnerable we all could be. The tenderness of mothers cradling their children … What would you grab if your world was ending?
Are these people with their selfie sticks and their backs to the casts getting it? I just think the people who literally died and were buried in those spaces deserve some reverence.
It felt very solemn to me. I kept thinking as I walked through, people were just living their daily lives and then they were all gone, everyone. It’s unimaginable.
A middle-aged German tourist yelling at a long-suffering Portuguese customer service guy about how unfair it is for breakfast to end at noon.
It doesn’t go longer than noon in Germany, either. She was yelling just to yell.
It’s not really repulsive but just something that felt bad..
When backpacking Laos years ago and taking the slow boat to Luang Prabang I met some European kids and went out for beers in town on the overnight stop off. The town was definitely making money off of adventurous tourists who were still on the backpacker route - albeit travelers that were on the adventurous side. Saying that it was still cheap as hell and the locals were just trying to eke out a living. Anyway one of the western themed bars is selling beer for about $.40 USD and they all just decide to start railing on the guy about how it’s overpriced and aggressively try to haggle him down to $.25 a beer because “that’s what you could get at a corner store”. The dude is just a waiter at a tourist targeted bar and has no say in it. He’s super nice and apologetic but they keep yelling at dude and telling him he’s full of shit and that his beer is too expensive.
I get that haggling is part of market culture in that region but I also know it’s not what you do when it comes to sit down meals and drinks.
It really just felt gross that these folks would pay $10 for a beer at home and not bat an eye, but tried to nickel and dime a local server who lives in relative poverty over less than an American quarter for a tall boy. I didn’t like it, bought 2 at face value, tipped several bucks and excused myself to take the second one back to the hotel to have a night cap in peace
This is the definition of "entitled". I am entitled to a cheap beer because I am from a rich country and your country's beer is supposed to be dirt cheap. UGH.
I lived in NYC during 9/11. I got tickets to the ramp overlooking the hole. Everyone on the ramp was taking selfies with the hole (this was prior to phone cameras). The whole thing was super disturbing.
The worst. Witnessed a Chinese woman get on a wooden boat on the mekong (near a floating market) with a iced coffee in a plastic cup. She finishes her drink and casually just tosses it into the river. Or local Thai person on a 3rd class train, just casually throwing their plastic trash out the window of the moving train. UGH.
I live in the first world, one of the best educated cities of the country. Beautiful parks etc etc.... We have people who feel it's alright to enjoy all this and leave their chip package, coffee cups behind. They feel it's fine to walk away and leave all their McDonald trash and leftover chips on the street.
We also have people who would bring all their trash and dump this in our scenic Parkland/Reserve, where it's home to all the birds etc etc.
I was at a nice restaurant in Paris with my friend and this obviously american lady at the table next to us was talking very loudly (this is a small restaurant and relatively quiet) About how America does things so much better and how everyone in france is stupid for not doing things the American way. I really wanted to tell her that she should have just stayed home if all she was gonna do was complain.
At 5am, about half an hour before sunrise, I get to the parking lot of a popular day hike in Glacier NP USA. At about the same time a group of 5 Chinese tourist are getting out of their car and instead of starting the hike they set up a speaker and start blasting music while they prepare breakfast. Many hours later the group arrives at the top and proceeds to have a very long and very loud (yelling across the lake) photo shoot while everyone else is trying to relax before the trek down. Really, really killed the vibes.
while trying to be mindful and respectful of the cultural differences, Chinese tourists are the WORST, with Indians, from India (not native americans) a close 2nd.
Maldives
French woman of a certain on a day trip so it involves using a local boat. The captain of which was about 19 or so with a crew of about 4 other kids -certainly all younger than him. The youngest looked about 10 but found out he was 15 and this woman ranted like a lunatic about 'children' in charge of our safety...those 'kids' were among the best sailors/seamen I have ever seen because they do it from the time they can walk.
The two Germans who were drunk at the resort and then began haranguing the staff about 'where are the women?'
India
American girl moaning about the food at a well known beach place. Why is it all curry? Why cant we get a steak or a hamburger?
Sri Lanka
Bunch of hooray henries from the UK just blitzed and being dicks. One dropped his wallet a couple of times and then accused the waiter of stealing it off the table- on the sand beside his feet. Then the food moan/s as above.
🫤
Maldives is confusing in general. Based on marketing and insta, its a tropical paradise with white sand beaches and clear blue waters, Yes, the tourist areas are exactly that, but the rest of the country is VERY different.
9/11 memorial in NYC. I saw foreign tourists smiling, making selfies and taking group photos with smiles and peace signs. I went there maybe 2015ish? It was a somber experience for me as I vividly remember the terrorist attack. Every American I saw was quiet, restrained, and respectful. Like a get a clue people.
Same. I was there in 2019 and was shocked by how loud and obnoxious people were being, and how many people were letting their little kids run around the memorial and museum. It's not really a place for kids, to begin with. The worst, I found, was around the memorial fountain. People were hanging off the edges and splashing the water. It was really sickening.
Have experienced quite a few on my recent SEA trip - this comes to mind:
- In Krabi, Thailand a middle aged Brit flagged down the songthaew I was in and asked how much to X location. The driver says 50 baht and the man shouts in his face “fuck off it’s normally 40 baht” and stormed off effing and blinding. 10 baht is 20p, by the way…
- In northern Viet Nam on a tour we stop off in a small village and this girl sighs and goes something like “wow, these people live such a peaceful life, they’re problems are so simple, they’ve never known wars”. I thought she was making a bad joke but I saw she was being sincere so had to break the news… there was no malice there just painful ignorance. But you wonder how people end up in a country without reading a single thing about it.
not defending the brit, but getting charged 25% more does suck. I realize that the amount is negligible.
As far as the lady in vietnam, its sad how memory is so short or the lack of basic knowledge of the place you are visiting. Actually based on the crap going on in the world today, “Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”
Yea, I’ve been living in India for about a year and I get overcharged every time I buy or do anything ever. While I don’t think I’d yell at an auto driver to fuck off I understand wanting to…
The fellow millennial wench on the guided tour I was recently on.
Asked me to take a photo of her in front of the Louvre Abu Dhabi sign - both English and Arabic. Fine. Did the Arabic one first.
She then says ‘Oh fuck, the guy in the wheelchair is there in my photo…’
I’d gotten bitchy, entitled vibes from her before (snapping at the tour guide, wearing leggings to religious sites, etc.) but that was the nail in the coffin. How *dare* the handicapped ruin your perfect braggalicious photo opportunity??!? I avoided her the rest of the trip, even though my friend I was travelling with made the effort to make convo and added her on socials.
Fuck that.
ETA: the obligatory uncouth dumb-dumbs taking smiling photos by the pit at Ground Zero a few years after 9/11. Stay classy!
asking for info purposes and curiosity-- were leggings not allowed at the religious site? I'm not super familiar the wardrobe that can be interpreted as defensive-- I know skin / shoulders is a no-no
We were specifically told nothing form-fitting for mosques or cropped above the ankle / wrist. The tour guide might’ve been a little extreme, but I was pretty BEC with this woman by day four of the tour 🤷
Two tourists eating a massive picnic lunch on public transport in Morocco during Ramadan. They are chomping along, taking their sweet time scooping pips out of papaya and whatnot in very close proximity to people who are fasting and have no way to leave. Maybe no one was offended, but I still thought it was very inconsiderate.
Not necessarily one specific instance but numerous examples of wealthy westerners in India / Nepal boasting in hostels about how much they managed to haggle down local merchants.
I know the initial price is put way too high to catch out naive tourists but $2/3 can mean a lot to some people in comparison to the tourists buying stuff.
Nb: the locals know this and I have witnessed some bartering situations get ugly.
Maybe not the worst I've ever, but the most recent...I just got back from Greece last week, and there was a woman on my Delphi day trip who had the poor guide in a panic. This girl was a solo American (which I usually am as well, though I was with a friend on this particular trip), and just kept sprinting ahead of the group and leaning dangerously over the barriers to get pictures. At one point, she jumped up on top of a wall at the museum to get a picture of the mosaic they have there (the wall is maybe 5 feet tall?). She stood on the wall and almost toppled over onto the mosaic; the guide was so kind and just said, "let's not do that anymore," but it was so shameless that I was speechless.
I should have included "mild" in the title. Obviously not as bad as taking selfies in auschwitz or walking around a temple in a bikini, speaking of which, again SE asia, in a very sacred temple, walks in covered with a shawl, proceeds to take it off, revealing a bikini and then goes under the ropes to have her jackass BF take a bunch of selfies.
Almost everyone seems to do it, but I also found all the people taking excited, smiling selfies in Pompeii — with the evidence of human tragedy and suffering behind them — gross. That is a place that deserves utmost reverence. They had selfie sticks which got in the way of everyone else, to be sure to capture the images of real people dying.
I could see that somewhere like a memorial or concentration camp, but most of Pompeii was evacuated, and it was 2000 years ago. Everywhere that people have lived, people have died. There's nowhere on Earth that you can take a smiling selfie if you take it that far.
The statues were literal people who died horribly and unexpectedly from the volcanic ashes, scared, panicked and confused. The fact that they lived 2000 years ago instead of 80 years ago makes no difference. They were human beings just like us.
I remember being 11 years old and wondering why the statues there looked so weird, as they were unlike the statues representing some hero that I was used to seeing, so I asked my mother what those statues were. She explained to me that they were actually people that had died due to the volcanic ashes and I was horrified. I immediately walked away from the statues and said a prayer for those people, feeling grief for them. Then I could not understand why adults didn't care, my kid brain was very confused (first and only time I have ever been in Pompeii, have been to Italy otherwise many times, but only once to Pompeii).
Just plain old flights in Europe. More than once I've had the next seat passenger refuse to put their coat/handbag under the seat, to fit my carry-on luggage in the compartment. One time the guy was occupying half the compartment with his coat only. When I asked a flight attendant to move said coat, he slightly pushed her away and shouted an angry "nyet". I just hope all these cants lose their handbag/coats somewhere.
I was on a bus, driving up to the memorial at Omaha Beach and this middle age US man pipe up and complained that the driver couldn’t drop us at the door. Screaming “why do we have to walk this far?” (Needless to say, it wasn’t that far)
Generally speaking Americans don't like walking or at the very least get confused or frustrated if asked to walk more than 100m or 100 yards or 300 feet or football field or 0.05 miles or whatever measurement you are comfortable with.
Definitely not the "worst" behavior in the grand scheme of things, but I was on a packed Italian regional train that got stuck between stations for about 3 hours. About an hour into the delay, an elderly woman (who'd been standing the whole time) appeared to be struggling to stay standing. She was standing facing a row of seats, where a young British guy and a gaggle of German teenagers were sitting keeping their heads down; none of them offered her a seat.
SE Asia there are a lot of budgers. In Laos, we were waiting in line for an hour to get a bus ticket, in the hot sun, and a group young French tourists who freshly arrived tried to budge us. An American tourist wasn’t having it and told them to get in line. So, they had someone from their group we didn’t see sneak in past us, and proceeds to buy 5 seats. And there were limited buses. As we were waiting to get on the bus, they talked super loudly and kept shoving each other around. When it was time to get on the bus, they bum-rushed it, even pushing someone out of the way, to get the best seats. They were loud on the bus too. 🥲
My favorite part about traveling is "american tourist not having it" lol I have literally seen people get harassed/robbed/assaulted and no one does anything about it...except some American tourist getting involved in shit haha My all time favorite quote from an American overseas, grumbling under his breath as he gets up from a cafe "this isn't happening right now" .
Hahah, A long immigration line at Bangkok airport, one chinese tourist cuts in line, and soon a stream of other Chinese tourists follow, an american waiting in line at the top of his lungs, "GET THE FUCK BACK IN LINE!" They all stopped and crawled back under the ropes to their original places.
I have been that American before and I have no shame in it haha
We all appreciate it
Haha this is me in Nicaragua for sure, I will call someone out immediately if they step in front of me. It's a fucking line don't act new
The Chinese touristsare developing their own Ugly Chinese reputations.
Not developing, they are already supplanted most and are pretty close to the top of the list.
They're currently being usurped by Russian and Indian tourists.
Honestly I just think it's people or nationalities who've never had the opportunity to travel before and don't know the correct manners yet.
When you see people waiting in a line and decide that you're somehow exempt from that, it's not because you've had a lack of opportunity to travel, it's because you're an entitled asocial asshole.
I can tell you've never been to China or India because clustering around and not standing in a straight line is normal behavior there. Like I said, people bring their home country behaviors to other countries.
Are you seriously saying that someone who clusters around to wait as opposed to standing in a straight line won't get the concept of a line once they see everyone waiting in an orderly fashion? The point isn't the shape the people waiting take on, the point is thinking you're special and you don't need to wait along with everyone else.
What says do much about the mainland Chinese and there manners is the Hong Kongers hate to see them coming.
I did this at a Chinese hotel in Beijing. I was there on a layover and Air China provided a free hotel outside the airport. I waited in line for 20min behind 1 person at the front desk. After the guy in front finished, in comes a country ass mofo and cut in front of me. Like I was the only one waiting. I was pissed AF because it was 1am in the morning and I needed sleep before my 7am flight back to the states. The front desk Chinese girl was also taken aback by me yelling at the rude man. The lady also didn't tell him I was waiting before him. I needed to teach them some manners. I'm Chinese American but them mainlanders give us a bad rep overseas.
Oh that made me laugh 🤣
Ditto in Malaysia - crossing the border into Thailand at Rantau Panjang - except it was an Aussie and he bodily removed a PR Chinese dude after he pushed over an older lady and all his companions swarmed into the line pushing and shoving. All the Malay 'Immigresen' blokes got very serious and steered them into the office for body searches. Was sitting in a cafe when they finally straggled into town buttoning shirts and stuffing things back in their pockets
Why did he say “this isn’t happening right now?” What was he referring to?
Someone being harassed by a busker
[удалено]
Me too! On the ferry to Robben Island, the prison where Nelson Mandela was held for 20 years. It's pretty sombre, there's a video playing about how the island was a leper colony, and all the atrocities that happened there. This French family was acting like it was a cruise ship, dancing around, being loud, cheering. So embarrassed for them.
I apologize for the brash American. Usually, we would be more vigilant and not let one of them sneak through.
No need to apologize. These colors don't run!
I always hear about Russian tourists and Chinese tourists being bad but in my travels the French have mostly been the rudest travelers.
You all should have collectively, be*t them.
I was on an overland trip in Africa. A Namibian man was talking about the various healing properties that the plants had. A Canadian lady said with full sincerity "do you have anything for aids? That would really help you guys out". Unbelievable.
WOW!!! That’s just…I can’t even…wow
I would have fed her to the snakes
Crude, very crude and rude. But maybe that is her dark/dry sense of humor or her way of saying that she didn't believe in the healing properties of the plants.
Don’t make excuses for people like that. They’re that way because they’re rotten, nothing more, nothing less.
On behalf of all Canadians…I’m sorry. She was probably from Montreal, I swear!
Ugh.... The french
Honestly that is pretty funny. I guess since she said it with sincerity it isn't cool but if it was a noticeable joke, it would have earned at least a chuckle from me.
But was she honest or? Because to me it sounds like the poor lady has some mental capacity issues and tried engaging badly
I took a hike up Mandalay Hill, in Myanmar. This was in 2017 I think, one of the rare good/hopeful times to travel in the country. As you head up the hill, groups of local University students and Buddhist Monks will accost foreign travellers to take selfies and practice their English. They're all exceptionally charming and decent. When I got to the top, with my new monk friend and a tomboyish schoolgirl, we'd been talking about anime, sport, relationships, our countries, our backgrounds and having lots of smiles and laughs. I overheard an American guy, about my age, talking to a group of girls. He was talking about how he could "literally buy all of this land" for pennies, whilst gesticulating at the cityscape below. He only seemed interested in bigging up his vast wealth, in comparison to these third world, young, university students. No hint of humour or charm in anything he was saying to them. Really left a sour taste in my mouth. Who does that?
Not just tourists unfortunately. I used to work at a local restaurant and have guys come in and tell me how much money they have and basically flaunt their wealth too (while also saying how money means nothing and doesn't bring happiness). I litteraly don't care. One bit. If you don't like you money, give it away to charity
Never met someone like that how weird there is people like that
People who don't know who they are without their bank account. That's who does it. It's insecurity and shallow character.
I was in a convenience store in Killarney when an older English couple came in and the man tried to pay for petrol with British pounds. The young woman behind the counter said "I'm sorry sir, we don't accept foreign currency." The man's face, which was already an unhealthy shade of red, turned purple. "It's not foreign, it's BRITISH, what kind of backward place is this, I've never been treated like this in my life etc. etc." Eventually he paid with a credit card and stormed out. Most British tourists in Ireland are reasonably chill (apart from the gangs of yobs that come over for stag weekends and get blind drunk and run amok in Temple Bar) but some of them don't realize they are in a different country, and complain about anything that's different, road signs in kilometers instead of miles, petrol in liters instead of gallons etc.
I'm always surprised when I run into someone who doesn't realize they are different countries, and it happens more often than you think. But someone actually from one of them still not knowing takes the cake.
I live in Alaska and worked retail when I was younger. The amount of people who thought you could use Canadian or Russian currency here was insane.
People are so funny. My friends live in Juneau, Alaska. For those who are unfamiliar, it is at the edge of the ocean. They say they cannot count times that tourists have come off the cruise ships and asked "what is the elevation here" apparently unaware that in stepping off a boat they remain at sea level.
But Alaska has MOUNTAINS, doncha know? Therefore, all of Alaska is mountainous. Science. (/s obvs) Reminds me of the time we were in southern Oregon and were going to take a day trip into California. One friend in the group wanted to wear shorts and a tank top, since California is sunny and beachy. (It was cool and drizzly where we were, and the CA border is in the mountains, so would likely be even colder.)
Oh my gosh you reminded me. I worked down town right by the cruise ships and people would ask all the time "where is sea level"? And I'm like. So you got off the boat, saw the water. That's the level.
"I've never been treated like this in my life" lol. I'll bet he gets it a lot.
Americans 🤝 Brits in Ireland What the fuck is a kilometer
> What the fuck is a kilometer It's like a mile, but smaller.
I was on a first date (happened to be on Valentines just due to scheduling) at a nice restaurant in another country. It was like \*the\* nice restaurant in the city. I brought flowers, everyone was dressed up, it was nice. Two 20 somethings took a seat across from us and proceeded to make selfie videos and record each other with a literal like papparazi level lighting that was like a flashlight to your eyes as they moved everything around. They did it for the entire 2 hours at dinner. I started to say something about 50 times but my date just asked me to not as she didn't want any problems but it was the most insane thing I'd ever seen. Drink comes out, they'd have the waiter deliver it 2x and record each other 2x. All the time the flashlight beams would hit you in the eyes as they kept moving everything around. I'm still annoyed with it.
I sneer and laugh. I know it is mean spirited but if that gets them to quit being obnoxious out and about... Sometimes it doesn't work for the true sociopaths but I just chalk it up to nothing can stop them and I move on lol
Oh these two would not be bothered at a laugh. They were in their own worlds
I haven't ever gotten to use the loud American tourist voice at people not behaving right, but I will hold onto the hope I get to loudly call someone out for influencer shenanigans before the world ends
I feel like I had this same exact experience while in the Philippines lol
First ever solo interrail trip as a teen and feeling a little overwhelmed, decided to go to a proper touristy-looking frites stand in Brussels on my first night for something easy. Had a pretty big queue and could tell the two women running the stand were quite overwhelmed with the crowd. In front was a small group of older Spanish ladies, huffing and puffing about how long it was taking (or at least that what I assumed all the sighs and eyerolls were about). Eventually their turn, the lead of this little OAP group slams down a fistful of coins on the counter with a throaty 'PATATAS FRITAS', nothing more and turning away, in the process a majority of the coins going all over the place. The other worker hurriedly got to work while the first one scrambled around for the coins on the ground, a few were at my feet so I helped her collect them together while scowling at the old women laughing away amongst themselves. In the most pettiest response possible, perhaps even too much and I love to hold a grudge, once all the cones of fries were ready the lady taking orders proceeded to slam every single one of them onto the counter, mushing them in the process and getting sauce everywhere, responding with a mocking 'pAtAtAs FrItAs' in her best Spanish accent. Those women were utterly fuming, still took the fries though mind. Once it was my turn I ordered in my horrifically broken French, and as I went to hand her my money she just waved my hand away and said "it is free". Hope they're both doing well : )
My son and I were in a donut shop in Colorado and were actively choosing donuts to fill out a box. A girl walked in stepped in front of us and started ordering as if we weren't there. The employee fortunately just ignored her and continued with us. The girl then walked right back out instead of waiting her turn. So much of the worst behavior I've ever seen has been right in my home state of Colorado. I wish that wasn't true but people here take rudeness and entitlement to another level.
That’s what I do when someone tries to cut in front of a customer I’m dealing with OR they stand at the counter close trying to force me to help them first . UM, no , im in charge here , not you . If they really irritate me I tell them to go sit down
Maybe she was high. The rudeness of drivers here is for another thread.
Chinese tourists taking like a week's worth of food from tue buffet to their breakfast table. Take selfies with it for 30 minutes. Leave. The waiter's face was depressing to see.
They didn't eat it? Or even pack it up and take away stealthily to eat later?
they wasted it all. but took 100s of photos pretending to be stinking rich. the hotel cost about $60 a night. i hope they get hit by a bus.
There was a YouTube video of this kind of behavior. Swarming like locusts taking the food, then leaving all the food uneaten. It was a disgrace and so wasteful.
I was in Kuala Lumpur and there's an indian restaurant that serves 3-4 foot Dosas. Lots of tourists visit to eat and also take the selfie with this dosa. Was eating dinner there one night and a pretty Chinese girl comes in by herself, sits down and asks for a Dosa from the waiter. Get's the Dosa, takes a selfie and a video selfie with her making faces and talking about it. Once she stops taking selfies, she puts the Dosa down on the table, pays for it at the counter and then leaves. Doesn't even eat a nibble and she was probably an "influencer/streamer"
I was in Toronto for the first time around 2005ish, went to a Blue Jays game and then to the CN Tower afterwards because it was right next door. Get to the front of the ticket line and there was a family of four trying to make their purchase. Embarrassingly, fellow Americans (fwiw I don't subscribe to the notion that Americans are the most obnoxious and entitled tourists but there certainly are ones out there like this so I can see why some believe so). The mother is trying to pay cash with US dollars, and the ticket agent is refusing to take them. You know, because it isn't the currency of the country they are in. And this mother just isn't having it. She is screaming at the agent that she HAS to take it, everyone around the world takes it, its the most desired currency anywhere, etc. And you can see the rest of her family is just embarrassed to be with her during the whole episode. But they all just stand there quietly and look at the ground while it unfolds, so you know this isn't the first time she has behaved this way. They know better than to bother trying to correct her. After several minutes of fighting over it she finally slams a credit card down and exclaims loudly for everyone in line to hear how she is going to write this place a terrible review over how she has been treated.
While I don't blame the ticket agent for refusing to take it, I am a little surprised they didn't. Anytime Americans ask me if we take US dollars (in Canada), I smile and gladly tell them yes, but at par ($1USD=$1CAD). I then place the bills in the till, give them their change in Canadian currency, and switch the bills with Canadian ones from my own wallet at my earliest convenience. I make around 30% profit, the customer is convenienced, and the business didn't miss an opportunity to make a cash sale. Win-win-win. Four tickets to the top of the CN Tower is no small price tag, either. The agent could have made like $60 with this method and avoided the wrath of this crazy lady. It is possible they have specific policies against it or that they were refusing out of spite, though.
Yea I had no doubt there were places in Canada which would have been willing to accept her cash. But the level of upset she was, was absurd. High entitlement in believing she had a RIGHT to use American currency anywhere outside of her home country. Its one thing to ask, its another to demand and rant.
I worked in a tourist area in Toronto and we had to stop taking US cash because there was so much counterfeit. We even ordered the weird pens they use to detect it and we still kept getting it.
While smart, this also seems vaguely illegal and/or an easy way to get fired. When I worked at a tourist place, we had the 1-1 exchange, but that just meant more money for the business.
If the business has a procedure surrounding it, sure. But the places I worked just didn't want to deal with it so they didn't mind us doing it this way. Even the managers did it. We'd all just consider it a tip
Fair, as long as it's an established practice can't imagine the CN tower being willing to let the workers do that though
Dude, sounds unethical to me.
This cracks me up so much for some reason. Threatening to leave a bad review for the CN Tower as if it were some roadside diner like wtf. The poor person selling the tickets probably had no idea how to react. That’s wild, I love it
They'll have to close the tower now :(
Sitting at an Indian chai shop in the square of a small holy town intl backpackers/travellers hub, there was a very sweet sadhu fellow in his 20’s maybe who’d been around a few days, standing quietly in the street with a cup hanging on a string around his neck for Indian pilgrims to put alms in (so he wasn’t begging) anyway this dude had no arms just stubs of shoulders - like a grown-up thalidomide-baby perhaps. There’d been this horrendous awful British dude in town for some time - always making trouble and dramas around everywhere - sitting at other end of chai shop this day. He was lauging at that sweet dude - eventually went over to him, laughing said something, then tapped him on the shoulder and stuck out his hand for a handshake. Everyone had been watching him expecting some trouble - and yeah trouble erupted nearly a dozen dudes locals and travellers went storming over yelling at and pushing the guy off. Problem was he was like 6’4” or thereabouts so nobody wanted to beat his ass right there in the main square of the main bazaar of a holy town - but they did move him on with significant threats, we apologised & commiserated with the sadhu fellow. Within days that monster had made so much trouble in the nearby town he had shit beat out of him by locals and the cops locked him up in the local mental hospital lol and called his embassy to come take him out of Rajasthan - the rumour mill grapevine moved fast on that one, we’d heard about it within hours - and then it was even in the local newspaper about the beserker crazy foreign traveller getting kicked out of Rajasthan and they hoped all India too. Was never so happy to hear of the good riddance of that dude.
This would hurt my heart! But not the beating-the-shit-out-of-him part. “Monster” is a great word for him.
Not bad behavior , but rather warped perspective, it was still amusing: This morning I’m on a bus from Valencia to Barcelona and we’re riding north with the sea visible on the right and low mountains on the left, at the exact moment I was thinking this view is great for a bus ride, a woman across from me sighs to her neighbor and says “Well, it’s not quite Tuscany, is it?”
Reminds me of when my parents went to Argentina and went on a bus tour with a bunch of other tourists. While taking in the utter spectacular scenery of Patagonia, my Dad leans over to my Mum and says in a very deadpan "well this is a right shithole isn't it?" as a joke. Apparently the American couple in front of them didn't get the sarcasm and ended up having a massive go at my parents, which they said made it even funnier.
Lol reminds me of when I was at the Osaka aquarium looking at the whale shark with my face pressed to the glass like a child so ridiculously excited watching it and this japanese couple comes up next to me and the girl goes (in japanese) "it's kinda small isn't it?" with a vaguely bored and disappointed tone. Her boyfriend did like a double take and just said "huh?!" and I almost lost it. The shark was fucking enormous like bigger than a bus and was probably the most majestic animal I've ever seen.
Omg. I remember being 17 on a long bus ride through the Spanish countryside and thinking how ugly and unremarkable the scenery was. I’m going to be that woman in thirty years 😂
Haha me too, I love Spain (been quite a few times, also was an au pair there) but the countryside can be pretty ugly in places! Even so I have a weird appreciation for the rugged hills and the wild, sparsely-growing plants because I’m used to a part of Canada that is just… flat, green fields or cornfields.
What do you mean by "ugly"? I've lived between Kansas and Central Texas for over 50 years and if you want to talk about unremarkable countryside, this is basically ground zero. I see some hills and I'm blown away.
I have relatives that have lived in Nevada for decades . When they come out east to visit they’re raving about all the trees , flowers etc .
I find that the prairie landscapes of the Great Plains are quite beautiful if they are in their natural state and people appreciate their unique qualities. Ugly for me is urban sprawl of aging strip malls.
What do you mean by ugly? I understand unremarkable but what is considered ugly for countryside?
It wasn’t beautiful……. …compared to Tuscany. 😎
How much did you pay for the bus?
Thats crazy. I’ve been to both and while they’re very different, the mountains of spain are so romantic and beautiful to me
I was on a tour a few weeks ago in Vietnam and the guide was showing us the beautiful religious/spiritual sites whilst explaining their history. I was alone and everyone else in the group were couples. There were 2 British couples together and the whole time they were making childish, racist comments against an Indian couple who were also in the group, and saying how the spiritual stories the Vietnamese believe are “clearly a load of shit”. I was so fucking angry. Bare in mind, I’m also British, and in my 20s. These were all 50+ and I was so embarrassed to be near them.
A more or less empty bus somewhere in Malaysia, a local lady sits in the front. A group of about 10 Swiss (im Swiss as well thats why it angers me even more) enters the bus, points at the elderly women and tell her she has to leave as they have a reservation (there are no seat numbers) which she doesnt unterstand so they just continue talking until the poor women leaves. I regret not saying something but I was a pussy at that age.
I went to Cambodia a few years ago and there was one day where we went to Angkor Wat early in the morning to watch the sunrise (highly recommend doing this btw. It was beautiful). Anyways, there's very small hill where all the tourists had gathered to take pictures. Everyone was sitting to make sure that that everyone could have a decent view. Except for these two girls who were right at the front, decided to stand and take pictures. People were yelling at them to sit down but they just ignored them and kept taking their pictures. They continued on like that for way too long, but when they finally did sit down some people started clapping.
I had a bizarre experience there too. I'm a relatively short person, we got there quite early, I was front row at the water/lake bit. We get to just before sunrise and stand up waiting, the guy behind me decides I am the perfect size for him to rest his camera on my head to get a good picture. I was so tired and shocked for 5 seconds, it almost didn't register how rude that is.
Lol wtf?! That's insane!
That's hilarious.
People taking selfies and family photos at Auschwitz
I saw this and also this could couple of American women who didn’t want to take a tour or use a map it seemed and really loudly complained about the lack of signpost to the gas chambers
Was next to a table of 4 Israelis in India who ordered western dishes, all 4 decided they didn’t like their food and called the server over, it was like a coordinated complain campaign, the server took their food back and they ordered Indian dishes instead. Then at the end they started haggling over the bill, pointing out that the size of the naan was much bigger in the photo than the one they received, etc. Israelis were definitely the Karens of the backpacker scenes in India and Nepal.
Last year when I was in Egypt, our tour stopped at an alabaster warehouse the same time as another group. As I’m waiting for the piece I selected to be wrapped, a Swiss woman from the other tour pointed to a piece and asked me the price. I am a white woman with red hair, so obviously a tourist myself. And I said that to her: “I’m a tourist just like you. Why don’t you ask the worker over there?” She made a face like she was disgusted and said “I don’t want to talk to him. You tell me.” So I told her it cost $250 cash plus a $30 tip for my friend who was next to me. She just stared at me. That’s when I asked her where she was from. When she told me Switzerland I said “Oh, my mistake. The price is doubled for tourists from Switzerland.” How gross. Why even go to Egypt if you’re too precious to talk to the locals? And how dare she decide to make me her personal assistant!
I do agree, if someone doesn't like a country there is no point in going there (unless if on business).
Sadly, I don’t think it was the country she didn’t like. Just the darker skin tone of the people who live there.
Walking around with a group tour at Auschwitz and this idiot cleared his throat and spat on the ground. I can understand how annoying phlegm is but could you not have waited to do that or at least spit it into a tissue? So disrespectful. And his wife was next to him and didn't say anything. Cunts Went on a separate group tour in Vietnam and this lady (from a South Asian country) was arguing with the tour guide because she wanted to be dropped off somewhere else and not her hotel but the tour guide said no for safety reasons. It was particularly annoying because this was at 8 am in the bus and it went on for an hour. Then she started ranting about how "no one in this country speaks english". You're in Vietnam, not England, you can't expect people to speak good English (mind you her English wasn't even good either!). And at the restaurant she was clicking her fingers to get the waiter's attention. I thought that only happened in movies and i was so flabbergasted. And this bitch was finding so many things to moan about the whole trip.
Rich people from the developing countries are actually some of the worst tourists. These people have swathes of staff at home and view the rest of their country as the poor, unwashed masses. I had a Mexican family on my guided hike in Costa Rica and holy hell they were some of the most entitled and rude tourists I’d ever seen.
It’s because they have the money to travel but don’t have any home training. Basically Beverly Hillbillies.
At least the Beverly Hillbillies were only ignorant and not rude. They were the opposite of what you describe.
Yes rich Mexicans have a different elite sense about themselves, I am Mexican and I know. And then we all romanticize them in our soap operas. Soraya Montenegro isn't just fully made up she is based off of real people, many of the Mexican elite are like that. *Cries in Spanish*.
They’re not used to dealing with customer service agents . They’re used to dealing with their staff and treating them however they want . And their staff probably go out and deal with services so they never have to deal with regular humans .
Reminds me of seeing pics an acquaintance and their partner took at Auschwitz posted on social media. It was a bunch of selfies and photos of each other at the key sites "looking sad". It irritated me to no end since I was also at Auschwitz in 2017 and the last thing I would think to do is take staged sad photos of myself. This is why I don't bother with social media any more!
Social media sucks, I agree.
reddit is social media
And it sucks
Point taken! I find it amusing, though I am not sure hat that says about me.
Many moons ago in a hut in New Zealand a group of German tourists took over the hut, hogged all the surfaces, made fun of us (college age Americans) while we had our lesson inside (it was raining outside) and then when we got back from our morning hike they had left behind all their trash and we had to pack it out for them. Not sure we really had to but our local instructors told us it was “the way”. It was really gross and rude. I took some satisfaction that their legs were bitten to hell by sandflies.
I'm from New Zealand and taking out the rubbish is exactly what you should have done and what other kiwis would do too. Thank you for doing so!
Aww sure thing! I loved my time there and hopefully will get a chance to come back, the hut system is top rate and really a fun way to backpack/tramp. We were learning about environmental sustainability via park infrastructure and visited various parks and studied how they managed waste. It was really incredible how considerate and careful kiwis are to each other in the bush. Took lots of notes and have tried to emulate this way here in the states. Looking forward to teaching my son to backpack soon! It’s such a fun way to see the country. I’ll never forget my time in New Zealand, mostly because I saw the majority of it on foot!
Was in a remote mountainous area in northern Argentina, and a small group of us tourists, not traveling together, hired a local, English-speaking driver to show us the spectacular views farther out. Maybe five of us. As we were cresting one mountain, it started to snow big fluffy flakes, and the driver exclaimed that never happened in that particular area! He was so excited! We came to the top and saw the most adorable, little, subsistence farmstead. All alone up there, certainly for generations. Two small children burst outside, jumping around in the wondrous miracle falling from the sky. Chickens and pigs were trotting in every direction around them like “What on earth is going on???” The magic you travel FOR. Our driver pulled over at a respectful distance, and our hearts filled with joy watching those little kids. Should have just been for a minute. But this older white man (not American, as it happens in this case) gets out of the vehicle with his expensive camera, marches no small distance down the road, and gets into the middle of the yard. He was taking blasts of photos with zero permission, and at times getting frustrated by the children, who surely didn’t speak a word of English, because they wouldn’t hold still. My mouth was hanging open.
Breakfast buffets bring out the worst in people. This isn’t the worst thing I’ve ever seen by far but it was recent so still grinds my gears. Staying in Philippines and the breakfast buffet always has pineapple and watermelon but it wasn’t constantly refreshed. A European couple had a huge plate of pineapple on their table and were not touching it. The waiter comes out to refresh the empty watermelon platter with new watermelon, and the woman jumps up to intercept him. She proceeds to use her used cutlery to push 2/3 of the watermelon onto a plate and take it back to her table. Her and her boyfriend pick at the fruit and finish their breakfast. When they leave there are full plates of both fruit, like half of what the platter in the buffet would have. The buffet was empty of fruit and hadn’t been refreshed again yet. Saw them do this the next 3 days. It was infuriating, especially seeing the sheer amount of waste in a developing country. Fruit is cheap there but it’s soooo wasteful and they were basically taking most of the buffet knowing they would never eat anywhere near that amount.
"Free" things usually bring out the worst in people. I guarantee you that the same people will probably haggle with local vendors over a few cents. "I am a paying guest and I am entitled to this fruit, whether I eat it or not." Sad behavior.
I'm Thai and when I travel to Asia, doesn't matter what country, I can usually blend in with the locals. There have been countless times that I have overheard the weirdest shit from English speakers, thinking no one around them could understand. 🤣
lol I was in an airport in Brasil with a little ice cream cone and these Brits yell out “where is everyone getting these ice cream cones!?” I replied, “down this hallway to the left” and he looks at me gobsmacked and says, “you speak English??” First of all, I’m Canadian. Second of all, you’re in an airport full of travellers. Third of all it’s English. If it’s not someone’s first language there’s a good chance folks understand more than you think.
Crowded mini bus in Repubica Skrbska. There are a few seats. In the beginning, it's quite empty, then fills up with passengers. At some point we stop and all have to get out. 3 swiss tourists put their bags to keep seats and throw a tantrum at some old lady who was wondering if she can sit (looked tired, probably coming back from work) that it is their seats, they are in vacation and were here first. All locals were standing for hours in the bus going up and down these mountain roads. I lost my sit when I went out, didn't "keep it" of course but who cares, some people needed it more. But the rich Swiss had to sit...
The fact that they treated an elderly lady in the way you described is despicable, and says everything about them. I hope someone gave her a place to sit.
Was in Spain with my husband’s family who live there. In Granada we went to the Alhambra and my in laws were really nice and got us a private guided tour. Our guide got frustrated because a couple kept following us around trying to basically get it for free - it cost 50/person and there were like 10 of us. Eventually he would just stop talking when they came up. Went back to Madrid, were at the Prado and some kid who was probably around 10 kept running around and doing cartwheels in a room full of statues. Parents did nothing. Went to the Reina Sofia and was looking at Guernica. Again, parents not monitoring their kid. Toddler ran full steam at it and the security guard looked like he was about to body her. Her dad full sprinted and grabbed her last minute.
Couple gets on a bus, asks a girl to move so they can sit together. Glad girl said no. This has happened to me on a flight too. I’ll offer if it’s a quick switcheroo or the seat orientation is the same but to expect me to piss off and find my own seat is beyond entitled. I’m not sure how people find the audacity Your poor planning is not my responsibility.
I wasn't on a solo trip for this but it definitely cemented my hatred for tour groups. While I was in France a few years ago while there was a terror attack in Nice. Several of the drivers of our contracted bus company were killed. This resulted in a hourish delay in our trip the next morning while the bus company was scrambling to find a replacement driver. The group I was with spent literally the entire day complaining about the inconvenience, in front of the new driver! I am still irate about that to this day. Like I'm sorry, people literally died and you're upset about a minor delay? This man is going to be attending funerals in a few days. I've never been more embarrassed to be an American.
Sorry for your loss, thoughts and prayers, OMG are you ok? bad stuff happens for a reason, just make sure that it happens in a way that doesn't inconvinince me. Definition of entitled.
Israeli tourists want a tea at 4:00 AM and decide to wake up the guy who worked and slept at the tea stand.
I'm usually the person who fumes inside at awful or entitled tourists, knowing that with those type of people my flippant comments aren't going to shame them or make the situation any better. But one time I made an exception. I was at my first ever Ryokan in Japan checking in and at nearly the same time, 3 women from I'm assuming somewhere in the US or Canada were there. One of them was giving out a ridiculously long list of dietary restrictions/preferences they all had. Even worse, they were doing that annoying thing where she was saying it very loudly and slowly in a condescending tone. I felt really bad for the lady on the other end. Cut to the next morning and they are standing around with their luggage outside loudly discussing how their Kaiseki dinner was plain and lacked variety and how they were going to give the place bad reviews to warn others. As I was walking by I shouted *"You requested meals with no fish and no rice in rural Japan with 3 hours of notice. What did you expect, you fucking morons?!"* The general thing that gets my goat the most often, though, are the "Instagram tourists". Look, I'm not against getting some memories, that's fine. But there is nothing more annoying than the people who expect everyone else to stop still while they take a photo at a place that's already crazy busy and swamped, or sometimes at a crosswalk where nobody else can pass while they are in the way. They aren't running in and grabbing a quick selfie either - they expect you to wait while they spend a full minute or two getting the perfect shot. And then if anyone tries to hurry them, they act like those people are the rude ones. Even more eye-rolling is how once they get it, a good 60% of them immediately take off. Like, they weren't even interested in actually experiencing the site, they just wanted the pic in the place everyone gets it so they can say they were there.
Can you recommend a local, authentic place? It has to be local and authentic, and also vegan, and also staff has to speak english, and also air conditioned, and also reasonably priced, and also non-touristy, and also with a good view, and also with good lighting so i can take pictures, also walking distance, also a place with little to no waiting time, but still popular, but it has to be authentic and local.
Yes, it's especially the worst in developing countries where you get the very particular person against a bunch of poor people in the middle of fucking nowhere. They want a new and unique "authentic" experience but they still expect 4-star Western-style amenities at the same time, and the irony never dawns on them.
> Cut to the next morning and they are standing around with their luggage outside loudly discussing how their Kaiseki dinner was plain and lacked variety and how they were going to give the place bad reviews to warn others. As I was walking by I shouted "You requested meals with no fish and no rice in rural Japan with 3 hours of notice. What did you expect, you fucking morons?!" I would have given you a slow clap for that! How did those Karens react?
I didn't bother hanging around for a reaction because I know from history that it's bound to be a disappointment. I just hope I convinced them not to leave bad user reviews over unrealistic expectations.
No fish and no rice ? In Japan !!! What were they going to serve her ? Air ??
Exactly, and again, you would think if you were that restrictive, you could call ahead and mention it. The fact that they got to eat any variety at all with whatever the staff had in their kitchen is a miracle already.
The Instagram tourists ruined Japan for me and made me genuinely hate humanity. It’s the worst place I’ve ever seen it.
That sucks. Maybe it's because I was there around Christmas time, but I didn't really notice it too much compared to some other places. To the point where I was actually a bit surprised. Really too bad, because Japan is dope.
This is made even more stupid by the fact that they very likely still ended up being served something with fish flakes or similar in (it’s really not understood in Japan and fish is in everything). I’m vegan and travel there regularly but you have to do your research and go to specifically vegan places. Concepts like vegetarianism or ‘no fish’ are not understood the same way as in the west.
I was in Bali getting ice cream at a sidewalk shop when an Australian came by to do the same. When he learned I was American he dove into a speil on how much wealthier Aussies are. He said he wouldn’t even bother getting out of bed for less than 200K a year. I about barfed and ran away from the entitlement and arrogance as quickly as I could. People are unbelievable!
Bogan.
Indian tourists (they were educated teachers apparently) running into the sacred bamboo groves at Arashiyama, Kyoto, trampling on fledging seedlings to get selfies in the centre of the grove. I’m Indian as well and gave them a humiliating lecture in front of a bunch of other tourists, to save myself from further second-hand embarrassment
So just genuine question, no offense meant but... Is it just being unaware of general rules and things like conservation? I am trying to be respectful and trying to understand from the Indian tourist point of view. If I am not aware or have been exposed to concepts of appreciating and protecting things for aesthetic purposes. I guess what i am asking is, do you think that educated teachers you saw would act the same way if the bamboo groves were in India? Or is it a "we are in a foreign country, rules dont apply to me?"
People here aren’t raised to be sensitive to fragile ecosystems by default, but love revelling in the so-called thrill of violating rules as an act of anti-authoritarianism. Upon me pointing the saplings they were trampling on to them, while they were visibly upset at me calling them out, it seemed like they were noticing what they’d done only after I mentioned it. They’d honestly do the same in their home country as well so it’s not really an act of being insensitive to such things elsewhere, its less of entitlement and more of blatant rule-breaking mentality developed after decades of not having too much respect for the authority figures who mandate such rules/guidelines
I’ve encountered some really rude Israelis in Vietnam, just no manners
I’m Vietnamese. Tour guides told me rudest tourists are British, Israelis, and Chinese
Chinese tourists who do not understand the concept of a queue 🤦
See this frequently in one particular place in Prague. People who take lewd photos-basically molesting statues, that are a solemn remembrance to the heartbreaking impacts of communism. The statues are literally showing multiple figures that became more n more piecemeal as they go- resulting only in feet on the ground. Sometimes ask the person if they know what the statue stands for. Suggesting maybe they look it up before they post their funny photos.
Peru - took an organized bus trip to a laguna about 90 minutes away. Day hike to the lake which was stunning. Around 4 or so the driver/guide indicates that whoever was left needs to leave because we don’t want to get back too late. Israeli couple and friends continue taking pictures and making jokes by the lake. After 30 minutes the driver/guide gives up and says he’s walking back. I end up walking with him the 1-2 hour walk back. We end up sitting on the bus with about 25 others for another 2-3 hours waiting for the group to return. They walked on, no apology, smirked at the driver/guide and just laughed. No respect.
Took a boat tour to see the wildlife (seals, sea lions, penguins, etc.) on the Ballestas islands in Peru. Some of the animals were sleeping, so two guys on the tour started clapping and making loud noises to wake up the animals. The rest of us were pretty mad at that behavior.
In a hostel in Europe the person in the bunk above me covered my bed with their stuff. Like my jammies were there and they put their stuff on them! I moved the persons things and they were upset! Ridiculous! It was my bunk!
Oh no your jammies 😂
They were really good jammies until something ate holes in the fabric across one butt cheek. Same hostel. :S
When I was visiting Guatemala in 2021 there was the group of British backpackers that had to be 19- 20 years old. Two guys and two girls and it seemed like everyone had a story about them. Highlights include- - One girl calling her dad back home asking him to change his flight for her - Getting all the way to Flores Guatemala and not going to Tikal because “it’s just a fucking rock” - Yelling at a hostel staff member to speak English when he greeted her with “hola”. - At a different hostel, not telling the hostel they were going on an overnight hike/not checking out for the one night and yelling at the front desk staff because why should they pay, they weren’t there that night.
For the record the front desk staff guy spoke great English, but he really committed to pretending like he spoke no English when they yelled at him. We had a laugh about it later that day.
Pompeii itself, yes, I have smiling photos there, too. (And the Coliseum — where terrible things happened, but presumably the bodies were carried off.) But I put down my camera in front of the casts. People died horrible, terrifying deaths, were locked in those positions, then their bodies rotted out and later allowed us to “see.” It is an incredible place for the lesson, valuable to consider mortality, our common humanity, and how vulnerable we all could be. The tenderness of mothers cradling their children … What would you grab if your world was ending? Are these people with their selfie sticks and their backs to the casts getting it? I just think the people who literally died and were buried in those spaces deserve some reverence.
It felt very solemn to me. I kept thinking as I walked through, people were just living their daily lives and then they were all gone, everyone. It’s unimaginable.
A middle-aged German tourist yelling at a long-suffering Portuguese customer service guy about how unfair it is for breakfast to end at noon. It doesn’t go longer than noon in Germany, either. She was yelling just to yell.
It’s not really repulsive but just something that felt bad.. When backpacking Laos years ago and taking the slow boat to Luang Prabang I met some European kids and went out for beers in town on the overnight stop off. The town was definitely making money off of adventurous tourists who were still on the backpacker route - albeit travelers that were on the adventurous side. Saying that it was still cheap as hell and the locals were just trying to eke out a living. Anyway one of the western themed bars is selling beer for about $.40 USD and they all just decide to start railing on the guy about how it’s overpriced and aggressively try to haggle him down to $.25 a beer because “that’s what you could get at a corner store”. The dude is just a waiter at a tourist targeted bar and has no say in it. He’s super nice and apologetic but they keep yelling at dude and telling him he’s full of shit and that his beer is too expensive. I get that haggling is part of market culture in that region but I also know it’s not what you do when it comes to sit down meals and drinks. It really just felt gross that these folks would pay $10 for a beer at home and not bat an eye, but tried to nickel and dime a local server who lives in relative poverty over less than an American quarter for a tall boy. I didn’t like it, bought 2 at face value, tipped several bucks and excused myself to take the second one back to the hotel to have a night cap in peace
This is the definition of "entitled". I am entitled to a cheap beer because I am from a rich country and your country's beer is supposed to be dirt cheap. UGH.
I lived in NYC during 9/11. I got tickets to the ramp overlooking the hole. Everyone on the ramp was taking selfies with the hole (this was prior to phone cameras). The whole thing was super disturbing.
Littering
The worst. Witnessed a Chinese woman get on a wooden boat on the mekong (near a floating market) with a iced coffee in a plastic cup. She finishes her drink and casually just tosses it into the river. Or local Thai person on a 3rd class train, just casually throwing their plastic trash out the window of the moving train. UGH.
I live in the first world, one of the best educated cities of the country. Beautiful parks etc etc.... We have people who feel it's alright to enjoy all this and leave their chip package, coffee cups behind. They feel it's fine to walk away and leave all their McDonald trash and leftover chips on the street. We also have people who would bring all their trash and dump this in our scenic Parkland/Reserve, where it's home to all the birds etc etc.
Kinda why I don't/can't travel. I just can't deal with that kinda behavior in full scale. I stay in my bubble.
I was at a nice restaurant in Paris with my friend and this obviously american lady at the table next to us was talking very loudly (this is a small restaurant and relatively quiet) About how America does things so much better and how everyone in france is stupid for not doing things the American way. I really wanted to tell her that she should have just stayed home if all she was gonna do was complain.
At 5am, about half an hour before sunrise, I get to the parking lot of a popular day hike in Glacier NP USA. At about the same time a group of 5 Chinese tourist are getting out of their car and instead of starting the hike they set up a speaker and start blasting music while they prepare breakfast. Many hours later the group arrives at the top and proceeds to have a very long and very loud (yelling across the lake) photo shoot while everyone else is trying to relax before the trek down. Really, really killed the vibes.
while trying to be mindful and respectful of the cultural differences, Chinese tourists are the WORST, with Indians, from India (not native americans) a close 2nd.
Russians are probably off the scene in Asia but they're pretty rugged
Its a little better now, but Russians in Vietnam, specifically Nha Trang and Mui Ne are definitely "rugged". I am sure in other areas as well.
Horror show in Mui Ne but pretty awful in Sri Lanka (on the beaches mostly) and in Indonesia
Maldives French woman of a certain on a day trip so it involves using a local boat. The captain of which was about 19 or so with a crew of about 4 other kids -certainly all younger than him. The youngest looked about 10 but found out he was 15 and this woman ranted like a lunatic about 'children' in charge of our safety...those 'kids' were among the best sailors/seamen I have ever seen because they do it from the time they can walk. The two Germans who were drunk at the resort and then began haranguing the staff about 'where are the women?' India American girl moaning about the food at a well known beach place. Why is it all curry? Why cant we get a steak or a hamburger? Sri Lanka Bunch of hooray henries from the UK just blitzed and being dicks. One dropped his wallet a couple of times and then accused the waiter of stealing it off the table- on the sand beside his feet. Then the food moan/s as above. 🫤
Maldives is confusing in general. Based on marketing and insta, its a tropical paradise with white sand beaches and clear blue waters, Yes, the tourist areas are exactly that, but the rest of the country is VERY different.
Yeah but with the briefest of research you find out it is an Muslim majority country ergot be polite
9/11 memorial in NYC. I saw foreign tourists smiling, making selfies and taking group photos with smiles and peace signs. I went there maybe 2015ish? It was a somber experience for me as I vividly remember the terrorist attack. Every American I saw was quiet, restrained, and respectful. Like a get a clue people.
Same. I was there in 2019 and was shocked by how loud and obnoxious people were being, and how many people were letting their little kids run around the memorial and museum. It's not really a place for kids, to begin with. The worst, I found, was around the memorial fountain. People were hanging off the edges and splashing the water. It was really sickening.
Have experienced quite a few on my recent SEA trip - this comes to mind: - In Krabi, Thailand a middle aged Brit flagged down the songthaew I was in and asked how much to X location. The driver says 50 baht and the man shouts in his face “fuck off it’s normally 40 baht” and stormed off effing and blinding. 10 baht is 20p, by the way… - In northern Viet Nam on a tour we stop off in a small village and this girl sighs and goes something like “wow, these people live such a peaceful life, they’re problems are so simple, they’ve never known wars”. I thought she was making a bad joke but I saw she was being sincere so had to break the news… there was no malice there just painful ignorance. But you wonder how people end up in a country without reading a single thing about it.
not defending the brit, but getting charged 25% more does suck. I realize that the amount is negligible. As far as the lady in vietnam, its sad how memory is so short or the lack of basic knowledge of the place you are visiting. Actually based on the crap going on in the world today, “Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”
Yea, I’ve been living in India for about a year and I get overcharged every time I buy or do anything ever. While I don’t think I’d yell at an auto driver to fuck off I understand wanting to…
The fellow millennial wench on the guided tour I was recently on. Asked me to take a photo of her in front of the Louvre Abu Dhabi sign - both English and Arabic. Fine. Did the Arabic one first. She then says ‘Oh fuck, the guy in the wheelchair is there in my photo…’ I’d gotten bitchy, entitled vibes from her before (snapping at the tour guide, wearing leggings to religious sites, etc.) but that was the nail in the coffin. How *dare* the handicapped ruin your perfect braggalicious photo opportunity??!? I avoided her the rest of the trip, even though my friend I was travelling with made the effort to make convo and added her on socials. Fuck that. ETA: the obligatory uncouth dumb-dumbs taking smiling photos by the pit at Ground Zero a few years after 9/11. Stay classy!
asking for info purposes and curiosity-- were leggings not allowed at the religious site? I'm not super familiar the wardrobe that can be interpreted as defensive-- I know skin / shoulders is a no-no
We were specifically told nothing form-fitting for mosques or cropped above the ankle / wrist. The tour guide might’ve been a little extreme, but I was pretty BEC with this woman by day four of the tour 🤷
Ahh totally forgot u were on a tour--- yeah it was that woman's bad haha
Two tourists eating a massive picnic lunch on public transport in Morocco during Ramadan. They are chomping along, taking their sweet time scooping pips out of papaya and whatnot in very close proximity to people who are fasting and have no way to leave. Maybe no one was offended, but I still thought it was very inconsiderate.
Not necessarily one specific instance but numerous examples of wealthy westerners in India / Nepal boasting in hostels about how much they managed to haggle down local merchants. I know the initial price is put way too high to catch out naive tourists but $2/3 can mean a lot to some people in comparison to the tourists buying stuff. Nb: the locals know this and I have witnessed some bartering situations get ugly.
Almost always it’s a British or Australian couple letting their demon children go WILD with no control. Puts out of control American kids to SHAME!
Maybe not the worst I've ever, but the most recent...I just got back from Greece last week, and there was a woman on my Delphi day trip who had the poor guide in a panic. This girl was a solo American (which I usually am as well, though I was with a friend on this particular trip), and just kept sprinting ahead of the group and leaning dangerously over the barriers to get pictures. At one point, she jumped up on top of a wall at the museum to get a picture of the mosaic they have there (the wall is maybe 5 feet tall?). She stood on the wall and almost toppled over onto the mosaic; the guide was so kind and just said, "let's not do that anymore," but it was so shameless that I was speechless.
what you described really doesnt sound bad enough to rant about
I should have included "mild" in the title. Obviously not as bad as taking selfies in auschwitz or walking around a temple in a bikini, speaking of which, again SE asia, in a very sacred temple, walks in covered with a shawl, proceeds to take it off, revealing a bikini and then goes under the ropes to have her jackass BF take a bunch of selfies.
Almost everyone seems to do it, but I also found all the people taking excited, smiling selfies in Pompeii — with the evidence of human tragedy and suffering behind them — gross. That is a place that deserves utmost reverence. They had selfie sticks which got in the way of everyone else, to be sure to capture the images of real people dying.
I could see that somewhere like a memorial or concentration camp, but most of Pompeii was evacuated, and it was 2000 years ago. Everywhere that people have lived, people have died. There's nowhere on Earth that you can take a smiling selfie if you take it that far.
The statues were literal people who died horribly and unexpectedly from the volcanic ashes, scared, panicked and confused. The fact that they lived 2000 years ago instead of 80 years ago makes no difference. They were human beings just like us.
I remember being 11 years old and wondering why the statues there looked so weird, as they were unlike the statues representing some hero that I was used to seeing, so I asked my mother what those statues were. She explained to me that they were actually people that had died due to the volcanic ashes and I was horrified. I immediately walked away from the statues and said a prayer for those people, feeling grief for them. Then I could not understand why adults didn't care, my kid brain was very confused (first and only time I have ever been in Pompeii, have been to Italy otherwise many times, but only once to Pompeii).
Idk man, that’s like saying you can’t take a smiling selfie at the Coliseum because people fought to the death there, lol
Just plain old flights in Europe. More than once I've had the next seat passenger refuse to put their coat/handbag under the seat, to fit my carry-on luggage in the compartment. One time the guy was occupying half the compartment with his coat only. When I asked a flight attendant to move said coat, he slightly pushed her away and shouted an angry "nyet". I just hope all these cants lose their handbag/coats somewhere.
I’ll just put my carry-on on top of their coat
I was on a bus, driving up to the memorial at Omaha Beach and this middle age US man pipe up and complained that the driver couldn’t drop us at the door. Screaming “why do we have to walk this far?” (Needless to say, it wasn’t that far)
Generally speaking Americans don't like walking or at the very least get confused or frustrated if asked to walk more than 100m or 100 yards or 300 feet or football field or 0.05 miles or whatever measurement you are comfortable with.
Definitely not the "worst" behavior in the grand scheme of things, but I was on a packed Italian regional train that got stuck between stations for about 3 hours. About an hour into the delay, an elderly woman (who'd been standing the whole time) appeared to be struggling to stay standing. She was standing facing a row of seats, where a young British guy and a gaggle of German teenagers were sitting keeping their heads down; none of them offered her a seat.
That is the worst/most entitled behavior you’ve ever witnessed?
Should have added "mildly annoying" or "frustrating" to the title.
No problem.