This article led me to wonder…. are Americans the world’s worst tourists? Apparently, a lot of people think so. According to the survey referenced in the article, not only do other nationalities think we’re bad, we aren’t very high on our tourist abilities ourselves. 4,000 of 5,600 respondents were American! Fortunately, the news wasn’t all bad. As it turns out, Americans are pretty worldly, with some 78 percent of us having visited at least one foreign country. I was actually surprised it was that high, but I do wonder how many times that one country might have been Canada or Mexico.
I like to think that I am respectful of other cultures and make it a point to try and study some basic habits of the locals when I’m going to visit a foreign country. My weak spot is foreign languages. I can speak a few basic phrases of Spanish, but that’s about it. My new goal is to not only study the culture of a country I’m planning to visit, but also try and study the language a bit. I’ve seen so many of my fellow countrymen seem almost surprised in foreign locales when they figure out that the primary language isn’t English. I think that might contribute to our poor reputation as tourists around the world. What are your thoughts on this?
I have to agree with most of the sentiments here. I think another issue is that many Americans are interested more in the places than the culture when they do travel. And yes, the assumption that the entire world is (or at least should be) exactly like the small town they came from. We can only hope that as our children grow up with the internet and access to global cultures, that things will improve. As an American my myself, who grew up in a small town in the middle of Ohio, I struggle with many of these things myself.… Read more »
Travelers on bus tours are often the rudest tourists encountered in my experience:-) – especially eastern Europeans and the Spanish in my experience. Asian tourists are often very pushy and disrespectful of personal space. Americans are often loud (without realizing it)and whiny – especially if they encounter “local” food out of their comfort zone. Germans can be pretty obnoxious as well. Of course these are generalizations! I think most cultures have the usual preconceived notions about others – Americans are no different and have an (IMO unfair) bad rep. I am a Canadian (with German ancestry), but everyone automatically assumes… Read more »
“I’ve seen so many of my fellow countrymen seem almost surprised in foreign locales when they figure out that the primary language isn’t English”
Well, this says it all
Define “the worst” which is a bit strong but perhaps it could be more stated as Americans along with Aussies and Brits being the Loudest. Kind regards.
Yes, it’s definitely the decibel level that irks. You don’t need to shout when you’re three feet from each other. My boss is a seppo and is by far the loudest in our office (which is represented by 23 nations).
I agree with the poll results. As an American I try to be respectful as much as possible. However what I can’t get away from is being LOUD. That includes laughing and exclaiming (e.g. OMG!) when talking. While it may be normal decibels in the US it seems to irritate the foreigners.
“Worldly”? My experiences around Europe and the UK travelling with many nationalities gives me a slightly different view of that word. To me, it means embracing, learning about, and respecting the DIFFERENCES in varous cultures and countries. Many Americans that I have observed seem quite put-out when they find that a place, hotel, meal, language, currency, passtime, or custom is not the SAME as they are used to. And, no one – NO ONE shuts up to hear announcements from drivers, guides, or air crew, regardless of where they are from.
Americans and Russians seem to top the lists.
Last year, I visited Italy, Greece, and Turkey. While everyone I interacted with was very nice, I certainly had a different initial response from people when I told them I was American and when I told them I was Russian. People were generally a bit more welcoming when I said I was Russian. It seemed to me, at least, that there are definitely some preconceived notions about Americans during my trip. I am visiting France and Northern Italy this May and will see how it goes this time…
Americans may not be the worst tourists, but they are the worst punctuators. Why would you put an apostrophe in “Americans?”
Oh, I don’t know…perhaps I just goofed. Better yet, I goofed not once or twice, but 3 times. I’d say that’s indicative of a problem, but I think I passed the punctuation class back in the day. I’ll try to do a better job of quality control next time. Thanks for the heads up.
Have lived in Turkey for 5ver yrs, Korea for 1 yr, Japan for over 15 yrs. My personal findings are that people are the same the world over. If you respect them, they will respect you. I also try to learn a few phrases in the language of were I am staying. I can not speak any language fluently (a little Japanese – 15 yrs). Learn a little bit of the history and appreciate their culture as unique, learn a little bit and have fun.