ADVERTISEMENT


When traveling in a new country, it’s important to have a good time and learn or experience something new; but it’s even more important to be respectful of the place and the people you’re visiting.

Failing to do so can, in the best case scenario, make you look foolish, and in the worst one, cause serious injuries or even death – there have been one too many stories in places like Iceland of people underestimating the power of Mother Nature or ignoring the safety signs provided.

Members of Reddit’s ‘Travel’ community recently discussed the biggest “no nos” tourists have ever encountered—or even engaged in themselves—in a thread started by the user ‘danielgmal’. Their question encouraged quite a few netizens to share their stories, so if you’re interested in reading them, wait no longer and scroll down to find them on the list below, where you will also find Bored Panda’s interview with the OP themselves, who agreed to discuss the whats and whys behind the question.

This post may include affiliate links.

#1

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make TW: Holocaust / Concentration Camp

Years ago, I was in Auschwitz KZ.

It's hard to describe how particular this place is. It's not a nice place. Entering the gas chambers where so many people were murdered feels solemn. Seeing clear clawing marks at walls is disturbing.

When you enter, a somewhat simple yet clear information sign is translated in over 25 languages. It's direct: you're about to enter a small space where a ton of people were murdered for who they were. We ask you to respect this place. Do not run around, do not laugh, do not play games and avoid talking.

I took a deep breath and entered. My brain quickly making all sorts of connections with my family history as the hair on my neck perked up from how eerie the place is. How instantly terrible I felt on this desecrated ground. I was immediately physically unwell.

About two hot seconds later a gentleman struts in wielding a selfie stick cell phone on some Skype call with some family members was speaking very loudly, his high pitched voice resonating loudly on the walls as he obnoxiously yapped on in mandarin even throwing in a few laughs about who knows what. He was touching the walls and his partner, also with a selfie stick, was taking selfies with him.

Murder suddenly made a tiny bit of sense in my mind.
I never hated anyone so much in such a short amount of time.

If you visit a KZ. Be respectful.

LameFernweh , SCREEN POST / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
271points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
You May Also Like:
#2

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make If you’re in Hawaii (or really anywhere with coral reefs for that matter) for the love of god, don’t touch the coral! (Also seek out reef safe sunscreen if possible).

Jellyfishjam99 , Francesco Ungaro / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
128points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#3

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make People who get to a scenic viewpoint or landmark with a narrow/small angle for the photo everyone wants, then proceeds to do a full on model shoot with dozens of poses and retakes for the Instagram. Most of the time I don't even want a selfie, just the viewpoint without a teenage girl in it.

XenorVernix , Said / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
119points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu

In a recent interview with Bored Panda, the OP, ‘danielgmal’, revealed that it was their personal experience while traveling that inspired them to ask this particular question. “A couple of years ago—pre-pandemic and pre-Brexit—I was messing around on Skyscanner looking at flights. I loved travel, and thought about it a lot, but I very rarely actually did it,” they recalled.

ADVERTISEMENT

“So when I saw a flight to Faro, Portugal that was cheaper than a coach within my own city, I impulsively booked it. That was the first trip in what ended up being an unbroken three year chain of monthly trips to different countries.”
#4

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make 1. Behaving in a way that would be unacceptable in your home country/culture. For instance, I've seen way too many woman going to temples in Bali, Cambodia & India in bikinis or very scantily clad. You would never go to a church in your hometown dressed that way. And way too many guys behaving obnoxiously with local women when they well know they won't be able to get away with even a fraction of that bad behavior back home.

2. Being more interested in taking selfies or instagram videos than actually seeing and experiencing the place you're in.

3. Disrespecting the local culture.

CraftyOpportunity618 , Mikhail Nilov / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
110points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#5

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make When I was 16 my family went on our first and only Intl holiday, to Hawaii from Australia.

I distinctly remember a Japanese family being kicked out of the Pearl Harbor Memorial because they would NOT stop taking photo's, laughing and joking around loudly.

I still can't f*****g believe that. It's been over two decades and it still is upsetting. Disrespecting a literal war grave, and coming from the nation that literally caused it... It's like a Saudi doing that at Ground Zero, or an American doing the same at the Peace Museum in Hiroshima. It is absolutely beyond f****d up.

Spezticcunt , DoD / wikimedia Report

Final score:
103points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT

The redditor shared that what started as one trip to Portugal turned into an accidental odyssey across Europe, which they continued once the pandemic ended.

“As a result, I've really gotten to know the continent of Europe and I've noticed that you can travel through several countries in a matter of hours and find traditions, cultures, and even laws totally change just in a matter of a few miles across a border.”
#6

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Dudes going to poor countries acting like they're god's gift towards local women. Super cringe :/.

TradeApe , Andres Idda Bianchi / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
93points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#7

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make “WHY DON’T YOU ACCEPT DOLLARS?!” I’ve heard this in Italy, England, and Japan.

behemuthm , Lukas / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
87points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#8

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Taking cheerful selfies in inappropriate places (saw this happening in Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park for instance)

Generally bad camera etiquette (shoving your camera in local people's faces, posing tastelessly in some bad imitation of "local" fashion based more on stereotypes than reality, taking up too much time on a photoshoot and blocking other people's way, etc).

WalkingEars , cottonbro studio / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
85points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

“So that’s why I asked the question,” the OP continued, “I wanted to know about the times people had come across these differences—big and small—because I think it's interesting to put a spotlight on how different customs and expectations are throughout the world.

“I also know there's a lot of anti-tourist sentiment across Europe and elsewhere and I wanted to provoke a conversation about being a responsible and conscientious tourist, mindful of ‘rules’. Often there really are clear social rules, both spoken and unspoken, and this was a chance to emphasize them.”
#9

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Being a loud English speaker in a non-English speaking country assuming/forgetting others can understand you perfectly.

Edit: or just being a loud tourist in general. 🤫.

pomoerotic , Elle Hughes / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
85points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#10

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Europeans: please stop wandering into our deserts and dying from severe lack of preparation and research.

It’s a massive bummer, because we love that you’re fascinated by the American Southwest and we want you to have a safe time. The information is readily available, so please educate yourselves before coming here.

Thank you :).

StakedPlainExplorer , FAICAL Zaramod / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
81points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
#11

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make People in National Parks treating animals like they're theme park attractions. It's wild seeing how many people get out of their cars to take pictures of bears.

Also people who (for some weird reason) think places like Yosemite and Yellowstone are warm weather places. Those places have snow storms in the middle of may. It's kind of humorous seeing tourists show up in summer clothes to find it non stop snowing. Neither of these places (especially Yellowstone) ever get "warm.".

bromosabeach , Juan Felipe Ramírez / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
81points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu

‘Danielgmal’ admitted being quite taken aback by the number of responses their post received and how many differences there are, despite people often saying that there’s generally more that unites us than divides us.

“It’s interesting, for example, to see the American confusion towards how seriously Italians take their food, as they will literally physically stop you from seasoning your food until you've tasted it, whereas Americans will often douse it in sauce and cheese as a reflex. For the Americans the personal liberty seems more important, and for the Italians respecting the work the chef put in takes precedence. Very different takes, but no one is ‘wrong’.”

ADVERTISEMENT
#12

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Don’t take photos of locals without permission ESPECIALLY children. I see it a lot in African countries and it bothers me a lot.

Life_Temporary_1567 , Sami Abdullah / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
81points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#13

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Nepal: tourists filming a funeral procession. It wasn't even a "known" person's funeral, just some regular funeral and tourists were filming the grievers like they were a zoo exhibit. Why would you even want to do that? Go back through your vacation photos to look at a funeral? It's as bizarre as it is utterly tactless.

A_dalo , Wouter de Jong / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
73points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#14

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Expecting waiters in France to check in on you every five minutes during your meal. Restaurants are not like in America. The waiter will come when they see that your plate is empty or if you've stopped touching your food for a while. And waiters let you take your time to order food, so they give you the menu with all the dishes and come back a while after. To signal that you've made your choice, you close the menu and put it on the side of your table.

Tiiarae , Dylan Spangler / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
70points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT

The OP admitted being no stranger to tourist “no nos” themselves, as they have made themselves or others rather uncomfortable with certain poor choices.

“In Southern Africa, it was very clear that I misjudged the mood by appearing in my shorts in front of my employers while walking to the bathroom early in the morning. They thought I was in my underwear and they had to explain that it wasn't, in their view, modest or proper and our relationship never recovered,” the redditor shared, adding that to some extent, they posed the question on the subreddit looking for an alternative way to discover these sort of things instead of having to learn it the hard way.
#15

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Posing and imitating Buddha in temples in Thailand- so offensive and tacky.

anabanane1 , David Bartus / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
63points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#16

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make This isn’t cultural but leave your f*****g drone at home.

Additional_Nose_8144 Report

Final score:
61points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#17

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make I'm from Québec. Mistake #1 from tourists is thinking we don't speak/understand English. lol Number of times I heard idiotic comments about the French accent here is mind-blowing. We do understand talkshitting us. And yes, we speak differently but yes, it is still French.

Another good one. I went to Costa Rica and a bunch of European girls were mad at the beach because everyone stared at them! They decided it was totally okay to go topless on the public beach. Jeeezz READ THE ROOM. If you see no local women topless, don't! And no, they don't stare because they are "all perverts". They stare because they don't understand why you are topless in an area where it is illegal to do so!

Don't assume the social values are the same as in your home country just because foreigners make up the majority of the people around you. This applies to Bali, Dubai and anywhere touristy!

CaptNoNonsense , Armin Rimoldi / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
61points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda

In the netizen’s eyes, part of being a responsible tourist is knowing what is expected of you as a guest in someone else's home country. But it can also be a matter of safety: “If, for example, you went to Morocco and didn't know homosexuality is illegal, you could get in a difficult position. So it's practical too,” they said.

“In Germany, you can be naked in the public parks and many beaches, but I wouldn't recommend trying that in Malta where nudism isn't legal.”
#18

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make If you are visiting French gothic cathedrals, take off your damn baseball hat. Take off any hat in a house of worship. It infuriates the locals when we treat their churches like a tourist trap.

eigenstien , Mathias Reding / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
61points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#19

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Everywhere: watching videos on your phone and talking on the phone with the speaker on.

WanderWorld3 , Çağrı KANMAZ / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
59points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#20

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Taking photos in museums that strictly prohibits them.

Visited Prado Museum last year and it was so nice because there weren’t 100’s of iPhones up in the air taking pictures of a picture…people actually had the time to enjoy the art.

Except a few idiots who kept on trying to sneak photos. Thankfully the museum staff quickly caught them, but they did it like 3-4 times. It was obnoxious.

Anutka25 , Beyzaa Yurtkuran / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
54points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#21

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make (Usually in major cities) walking very slowly while taking up the entire sidewalk, making locals who actually have to get somewhere walk into oncoming traffic just to get by. Same effect when stopping to check a map or guide or to take photos.

Walking on the road, assuming it's pedestrian only because it's cobblestone.

Walking on cycle paths.

cheese_for_life , Salma Smida / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
53points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#22

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Walking around supermarkets with no shirt on or in your swimming stuff. I hate it. So disrespectful.

One_Tart_9320 , Jess Loiterton / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
53points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#23

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make If you're a tourist, don't trash-talk about other people (tourists and locals alike) thinking that no one can understand your language (unless it's Ayapaneco).

I, a non-Hispanic American, was once in Costa Rica. At the cash register of a grocery store, the cashier asked me for my ID. I had been hiking in the rain and had put my U.S. passport inside a ziplock bag. When I took it out, the Spanish tourist behind me made fun of my ziplock trick to her partner. My Spanish is basic but I have a good ear for Spaniard accent (have friends in Valencia).

I didn't say anything back but made sure to chat with the friendly cashier loudly enough for the Spanish woman to hear me. Yeah, Spanish is such an unknown language...

El_Gronkerino , Kampus Production / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
51points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#24

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Being loud, drunk and violent are among the worst things tourists can do.

valpiccola_ , MART PRODUCTION / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
50points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#25

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Saw a group of Italien men try to pick up women while visiting Auschwitz. That was beyond cringe.

5minibill5 , Helena Lopes / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
50points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#26

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Do not touch delicate artwork or ancient artifacts.

I see this happen everywhere. Drives me nuts.

4electricnomad , Simon Berge / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
49points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#27

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Wearing immodest clothing in typically modest countries. Look what the locals of your gender are dressed like, and try to cover the same body parts. I cringe when I see “influencers” posing in front of the pyramids wearing a tiny crop top and shorts. Have a bit of respect for the local customs and culture. What would you think of someone walking naked down your city street? Would it be okay, just because they walk around naked in their own country?

10S_NE1 , Lucas Pezeta / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
45points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#28

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make In Athens, Greece and many other big tourism cities, if someone randomly tries to “give” you something - a blessing, a bracelet, etc. just don’t accept. You’ll end up being surrounded by them and their homies demanding money.

staticagexx , Alexey Demidov / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
44points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#29

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Jaywalking is a shockable offense in Germany. Pedestrians will wait at an empty crosswalk with no cars in sight and wait until the little man tells them they can walk and if you walk across the (empty street) they will stare at you like you just mugged an old lady in front of them.

NArcadia11 , Sami Abdullah / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
41points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu
#30

“Taking Cheerful Selfies In Inappropriate Places”: 30 Major Travel Mistakes Tourists Still Make Those are not garbage cans outside shops in Japan those are for umbrellas. Don't be me A.K.A a dummy.

passengerv , Wenjin G / pexels (not the actual photo) Report

Final score:
37points
Add photo comments
POST
View more commentsArrow down menu

Note: this post originally had 61 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.

ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda

Anyone can write on Bored Panda. Start writing!

Follow Bored Panda on Google News!