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Living in a tourist destination, around the canals of Amsterdam or the old city streets of Florence, may indeed sound very romantic, but turns out this is not always the case. In fact, it rarely is. How come? Well, the answer is in the first part of the title; namely, you get a bunch of super excited and very out-of-context tourists.
And so, unbeknownst to you, you become their guide for directions, their local entertainment, your house is on their must-see list, and you get it. So when someone asked people “who live in holiday destinations, what's your most ridiculous 'damn tourists' moment” on r/AskReddit, it was destined to become a one hell of a read.
From people casually walking inside your home, thinking it’s one of the sightseeing spots, to tourists complimenting your English, these are some of the things that happen when you live in places from the fridge magnets.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
NYC. Post 9/11, walking past the ruins of the World Trade Center and some middle-aged women tourists are chatting and laughing and posing with the ruins of the WTC behind them for a group shot. I worked there and was lucky not to be in the building when it happened. I was just so infuriated that I yelled out "it's not f**king Disney Land" and they lost their smiles. (Have some decorum, tourists).
Serial pacifist 3 years ago
Just like the photos of people posing at Auschwitz to have their best possible pose captured. It just shows a total lack of respect and the worst type of like fishing
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#2
Worked at a ski area in western NC and had a lady from Florida ask me what we did with all the snow in the summertime. Told her we trucked it all into a refrigerated cave and she bought it.
#3
I live in Taos, NM...as well as being a ski destination, there is a really, really old (still-inhabited!) pueblo. Lots of Native American people here.
And being NM, we get lots of Texans in the summer. My (Native) friend is a river rafting guide and shared this gem with me:
She was on a raft with a family...mom, dad, teenage son and daughter. Friend points out a bighorn sheep up ahead, everyone starts freaking out.
Texan Mom: "So since there's game, do you ever see the Indians hunting out here?"
Friend: "Excuse me?"
Texan Mom: "Like, the Indians. They still live out here, right?"
Teenage Daughter: (realizes my friend is Native) "MOM"
Texan Mom: "What, I'm just asking!"
Friend: "Actually, most of us just go to the grocery store."
Texan Mom: "Wow, you're an Indian? Your English is like, almost perfect!"
Teenage Daughter: "MOM!!!!"
To find out more about what it's like to live in a place that many of us have on our fridge magnets, we spoke with Kacie Burns, American actor, dancer and singer who moved to live in Florence, Italy. Kacie is now sharing positivity, travel, cultural differences and the quirks of life abroad with her thousands of social media followers, so you should definitely check her out!
When asked what it's like living in such a hot tourist destination like Florence, Kacie said that she lived in NYC for ten years, so she is used to living in a tourist destination. “There are definite pros—the scenery, the accessibility, the blending of cultures because there are so many people from all over the world that visit. However, at the same time, a big con is that it’s almost always very crowded and busy,” she said.
#4
Canadian Rockies - Tourists who pull over on the side of the road to get close-up pictures of bear cubs. Mama bear is nearby and is ready to re-enact The Revenant with you.
#5
In Australia, for some unknown reason, tourists won't swim in-between the safety flags. It's like they think it's the bunny hill of the beach. It's not, the locals swim between the flags because we don't want to die.
Also, if I offer you sunblock and a hat, take it. This isn't Europe, I've gotten sunburnt in 15mims, you will bake regardless of your skin colour/nationality.
It's always so strange to me that Australia gets a bad wrap for all these things that are "trying to kill you" but I think sometimes tourist are just trying to get killed. Soooo many examples of this!
Foxxy (The Original) 3 years ago (edited)
One of the top causes of tourist deaths (besides natural causes) in Australia is drowning. The flags are there for a reason so pay attention. Other top causes of tourist deaths, are accidents and heat stroke.
#6
Not a specific tourist destination, but I'm always amused by Europeans who can't comprehend how big Canada is.
I'll be in Niagara or Toronto, and they'll ask for directions to Whistler. "You're gonna want to go West for a long time"
"Like an hour? Two hours?"
"Try a week"
However, living in Florence as a local differs from staying there as a tourist. Kacie thinks that it’s because “it becomes your home—you pass the same beautiful buildings and streets every day, so it becomes easy to be desensitized to it all.” On the other hand, “you also begin to build a community here when it’s your home. You get to know the city and the people living in it like the back of your hand. You feel like you belong, which is an awesome feeling,” Kacie said.
It’s hard not to idolize such a beautiful old city with so much culture like Florence, especially when you’re a tourist. But according to Kacie, to a certain extent, everyone does that and she doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with that. “It truly is a beautiful place, and while—like everywhere—there are the not-so-great things about Florence, it’s hard not to idolize or romanticize a city when everywhere you look looks like a fairytale book,” Kacie concluded.
#7
I find it super annoying when I see people parked on the side of the road trying to lure the Bears closer to their cars with food. Even worse when we pull up and warn them not to and their response is "chill out bro, it's only a bear" ........also, when people just decide to run up to baby deer and bother it, its mom is nearby and will go crazy. There's a reason why there are so many warning signs to not bother the wild creatures and to keep your distance. Oh and littering, take your damn food wrapper and put it in a trash can, a**hole. This is not only the animals' home but it's mine too so show some respect.
Foxxy (The Original) 3 years ago
ONLY a bear. It's a big wild animal with claws and teeth not a bloody plush toy filled with stuffing.
#8
Currently live in India / Sri Lanka - white people aka foreigners walking barefoot everywhere... Like Christ, I get you're on your big 'Indian adventure' but put on some shoes. Have you seen how much s**t is on the ground?!
#9
From Ireland. Had more than a few people ask about leprechauns. A friend actually convinced 2 Americans that they live in a commune in Donegal. They went straight out and bought bus tickets.
Julia Atkinson 3 years ago
Actually they live on reservations, like Vikings in Scandinavian countries
#10
When I was a teenager, I worked at an airboat rental dock/alligator park near the Everglades. We'd always get a tour bus full of foreigners and yankees coming in from Miami every couple of days during snowbird season.
Had a f**king guy ask "Hey, are we allowed to swim in the water?" while he was standing in front of a 14 foot stuffed gator flanked by four 6 foot water moccasin skins. We'd also get people who'd complain about the heat and the bugs. Like...holy f**king s**t you just came to the largest wetland in the country, what exactly were you expecting?
My favorite was "can you turn down the fan, my children don't like the noise." Then don't sign up to take a ride on a boat that's propelled by a giant propeller.
#11
We had a Japanese couple put their toddler on the back of a baby black bear that was mulling about on the side of the highway.
Natural selection was unfortunately not invoked in this instance.
#12
used to live in a very popular destination for exotic vacations. The one time that will always remember is the time I went to the local shopping mall and eavesdropped into a conversation with Asians showing safari pictures. They were showing pictures of them holding lion cubs. They were explaining how they saw baby lions without their mother and decided to get out of their car and pick them up for pictures. I cannot believe how stupid some people are.
#13
My older brother lives in Celebration, FL. Back when it was first designed and built, people didn't seem to understand exactly what it was. Was it a tourist attraction? A park? A town?
Some of my brother's friends related a time when they were sitting down for dinner and, having forgotten to lock their front door, were greeted by some tourists who decided to just walk around inside their apartment. The visitors had to be told that, no, this isn't a tourist attraction. It's a real home and real people live here, so please leave.
#14
Live in a ski town adjacent to Yellowstone National Park...
People have asked "At what elevation do the deer turn into elk" "Where do the moguls go in the summer?"
My favorite was when I worked at a lodge right in front of the Tetons during wildfire season...
"Can't you guys turn off the smoke? It's ruining my view and we paid way too much for this vacation and I can't even see the mountains." Yes, lady, it's all one big tv screen in front of our hotel...
#15
Tourism in Iceland has been booming the past few years. There's always something in the news (and I have only lived here for about six months)
Dude just drowned here in Iceland because he climbed onto the rocks and was swept away by a wave.
apparently, tourists jumped on icebergs floating around
last summer there was a huge outrage about people relieving themselves in the wild x
And everyone complains that stuff closes at 10 with a few exceptions (one being where I happened to work) It's f**king Iceland people! 350,000 people on a f**king good day, for f**ks sake, there's no need for anything to be open late.
it's quite entertaining.
#16
I work at a beach, and people always complain about the seaweed that washes up, and they believe me when I say that there's a seaweed filter in the jetty (which is a formation of huge rocks jetting out into the ocean to collect sand on one side) and that it was broken and it, instead of sucking the seaweed in, it's shooting it out and the part that would fix it comes from Japan and it's going to be fixed in 3 weeks. Tourists believe this every time.
#17
When my family was in Scotland we met a family planning to travel to the US for a week. We asked where they were visiting and they planned to start in New York and drive across the country to Los Angeles hitting all the major sites in between. Let me reiterate, they planned to be in the US for a week. We tried and failed to convince them this was not going to work.
Edward Monks 3 years ago
when i was young we did Boulder, Colorado to LA, stopping at all the tourist spots, and it took 3 weeks
#18
When I was 14, I worked for the Parks Commission in Niagara Falls. I've been asked a lot of dumb tourist questions during my time there, but there are two that really take the cake.
"Does the Maid of the Mist ride up the falls?" Asked by a grown man. I could understand a 5 yr old child with no understanding of physics, but seriously no adult should ever ask that question.
"Which falls belongs to what country?" Asked by a large Texan (I could tell by the accent and the huge belt buckle). I told him that the Horseshoe Falls were in Canada and the American and Bridal Veil falls were in the US. "NO!" he shouts back to me. "The larger one belongs to the US because everything in the US is bigger!". "Umm ok" I squeaked out. He must have been looking for a fight.
#19
I grew up in San Francisco which is kind of a tourist destination. I remember getting dinner somewhere touristy once and overhearing tourists complaining about all the hills and one of them hoping that the next earthquake would level the city so it would be easier to get around...
#20
Okay here are a few for Australia:
Don't jump off that into the water - yes locals are doing it, but they've been doing it since they were 10
Wear proper shoes - if you're going for a bushwalk, wear the right footwear
You didn't just become a 4WD expert, maybe don't drive there
If you see a warning sign follow it - saw some people dip their kids into the water at a beach which is notorious for jellyfish, everyone else is wearing a stringer suit, except the 5year olds. Also, don't freaking fish there! There's a no fishing sign near my place, it's not to be a buzz kill. It's because the land near the water was used to produce Agent Orange. Those fish will kill you....slowly.
#21
Another NYC one: Walking to work one day and I hear shouts of "OH MY GOD IS THAT JAY-Z?!?! GET A PICTURE QUICK"
No, midwestern tourists, that is not Jay-Z. That man looks nothing like Jay-Z. He's at least 150 pounds heavier than Jay-Z. Being a black dude in a Lambo doesn't automatically make him Jay-Z.
Patti Vance 3 years ago
what is it with people being obsessed with celebrities? who cares what they are wearing, what they are doing, who they are hooking up with, etc.. they must have boring empty lives if they are concerned with what others are doing. especially the ones with no particular talent or purpose.....looking at you kardashians!
#22
I used to be a street artist in the New Orleans French quarter. One day I'm sitting by my paintings, reading a book and some lady came up and put a dollar in my coffee. I guess she thought I was begging. Her heart was in the right place, but she ruined my coffee.
Julia Atkinson 3 years ago
Many years ago my uncle, a farmer, was standing outside a bank in his scruffy work clothes whilst my aunt was inside. A woman came up to him, pressed a ten shilling note into his hand and walked away
#23
Lived in DC and now in downtown Miami so I've gotten used to tourists and don't really mind them. One incident does still stick in my craw. 8:30 am. Dupont Circle station. I need to put 20 cents on my fare card. An entire troupe of boyscouts are at all of the machines trying to figure them out like it's some sort of complicated puzzle. They were spread out throughout the entire room so that there wasn't a single open machine. I almost killed children that day.
If you go to DC and are going to ride the metro and don't want to piss off locals:
If you have a big group, don't go during rush hour.
If you can't figure out the machines, just use one.
Stand on the goddamn right on the escalator.
Let people off before you get on.
Don't talk to me.
Jods 3 years ago
For the first time in a couple of years I visited the only bookshop in the town. Went back to one of the machines to pay for parking, but no slot for coins! That threw me. And that was the start of my meltdown. So flustered that I couldn’t remember my PIN for my debit card (I didn’t need it - I was contactless!). In the end I admitted defeat and cried. Thankfully there are still a few people round here who will offer to help you instead of laughing like a choking hyena.
#24
I lived in the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland for a while, and on my bus-commute home, I overheard an American woman trying to figure out if it was the correct bus to get her to the village where I lived, but she didn't know Italian and was holding up the line. So, just to be nice, I offered to translate for her and solved her problem. She didn't say thank you and sat down for the ride.
When we arrived, we started walking up the hill from the bus station next to each other, and I asked "so, where are you from, and why are you visiting my tiny village?". She responded "I don't talk to strangers" and sped up.
I just laughed at her and replied, "What, are you a 7-year-old little girl? I just helped you on the bus back there, and now you're being rude to me?" No response.
#25
Amsterdam: any tourist with a bike is a "damn tourist"
Karin Jansen 3 years ago
Haha so true. Cycling is our main form of transportation and we're actually trying to get from A to B as quickly and efficiently as possible. So keep right so I can pass you, don't take up the entire road because you and your whole family want to cycle next to each other and for the love of God: eyes on the road people.
#26
PHILADELPHIA IS NOT SMALL all those landmarks you want to see? The art museum, The liberty bell, The love statue, Market Street, South Street, The Macy store where Wanamaker was, independence hall, pat's and Geno's s**tties cheesesteaks? They have miles in between each other. You will not be able to walk that in a day. Also rocky wasn't real and that was a 20-mile MONTAGE that Sylvester Stallone ran. Good luck.
#27
Coastal Maine checking in - people lose their s**t over lobsters and shell out tons of money for anything with a lobster on it.
Cheap shot glass? Eh. Cheap shot glass with a lobster stuck on it? I'll give you $7.75 for it!
Lollipop? Whatever. Lollipop shaped like a lobster?! Definitely worth $5, better get one for each kid back home.
Normal pullover hoodie? Boring. Hoodie with a motherf**king LOBSTER embroidered on it at $50 a piece?!? Oh my GOD just take my money!!
#28
I work near Times Square (tourist capital). My biggest gripe is escalators. When exiting, FFS don't just stop and stand right at the bottom or top, then look surprised/annoyed when your getting shoved out of the way. If you haven't noticed, there are a lot of people here, some of which also need to exit the escalator.
Dorothy Parker 3 years ago
That happens just about everywhere. Same for exiting elevators. Any change in altitude causes temporary decrease in brain power.
#29
Anyone who comes to Los Angeles, assumes Hollywood and the actual Hollywood neighborhoods are the same. actors rarely hang out in Hollywood. that's where you find the heroin addicts.
Just JoLynn 3 years ago
Yes, you try and tell people it's a s**t hole and they insist on going, get there and everyone always comments on how dirty/scary it is.
#30
I live near Niagara Falls, and it seems like every time I go there are a couple of people attempting to sit on, hang on, or even get past the guard rails for a better photo opportunity. Idk if they just don't realize how fast the water is actually moving or what, but I've had a panic attack for them every time I've seen this
What do you think ?
Helen Haley 3 years ago
Mixed bag. Some of it is tourists being jerks by not paying attention. Some of it was tourists being jerks because they feel entitled to be jerks. And some of it was people being jerks about the tourists just because the tourists didn't understand everything about the local customs and landscape.
Jihana 3 years ago
Ok, some of those tourists are really dumb, but I honestly don't understand those people who complain that tourists exist in their country. Tourists bring a lot of money, most tourist hotspots are really wealthy BECAUSE of those tourists.
Beth L 3 years ago
I can see people in big cities like New York and London that are otherwise self-sustaining being annoyed by tourist misbehavior that interferes with their commute or their private home, but if the major industry of your town is tourism, you kind of need to accept that the ice cream joint closest to the beach is going to be bustling with tourists.
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Kenny Kulbiski 3 years ago
Yeah, I get it, some tourists are jerks. But when you're a tourist destination and advertise for tourists to come that's part of the price you pay. What do you expect? Tourists to stay home and just mail you their money?
Irma 2 years ago
Well there is something in between. Some of these are tourists doing something seriously dangerous. Being a jerk is fine but thinking water or wildlife or whatever is safe while there are one thousand warning signs? Tourists here have died after they got warned. We locals do not see the warnings as a challenge either
Load More Replies... Kickin' Wing 3 years ago
Putting yourself or others in danger is never good. But most of these are just tourists being tourists. Tourism dumps a lot of money into local economies. Lots of places would probably cease to exist without the "annoying" tourists.
Madzdad the bard 3 years ago
Colorado here. Tourists from low altitudes rush immediately to hike to the tops of 14k feet (4000m) peaks and get altitude sickness. Ski areas at 12k feet have an average of six people a year die from a combination of altitude sickness and alcohol and hundreds get ill. But still love hearing (in Denver, the "Mile High City" - "There's no air here!". Yes there is, but take at least a day to acclimate.
Mazer 3 years ago
Yep, heart attacks happen all the time when flatlanders go to Tahoe or anywhere above 3000 feet. Putting tires chains on is apparently a popular way to induce cardiac arrest, as is jumping into Lake Tahoe it Donned Lake, which has water temps from 70 degrees to 40 degrees even on a hot summers day.
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Dasha Slepenkina 3 years ago
I currently live in London and oh my goodness I've never been bothered with tourists before but I am now. Don't get me wrong - I love travel and respect each individual's right to travel, but for some reason the tourists here have an odd habit of lining up their entire group in a single line on the pavement and walking really slowly while blocking pedestrian traffic for everyone else. And it doesn't matter how many times you apologise and try to get past; they just don't care. I think you can always tell who lives in London vs. who is just visiting because those of us who live here and are trying to get someplace are always standing behind a hoard of tourists going: "Excuse me. Excuse me. EXCUSE ME!" before we have to step off the sidewalk to walk around them. I don't think they're trying to be rude, but I wish people were more aware of others when visiting someplace - I've been hit by a vehicle before so I really don't appreciate having to go into the street just to get around.
Anita Rapp 3 years ago
Americans tend to heel to the right, pass on the left. Confusion ensues.
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Lisa Shaw 2 years ago
My best tourist story is, we were in the north of Scotland, standing on a bridge looking at some scottish coos (cows) and an america couple walk up beside me and I hear the wife say to the husband, Ed look at the scottish buffalo, I was like 10 and i couldn't hold in my laughter! I know the cows there are big but they do not look like buffalo and they were grown ups!
GirlFriday 3 years ago
I don't live in a tourist destination per se, but the largest and most famous auto racing event is held here every year. The roughly 1.5 million people that come from all over for that week are RIDICULOUS. I think they believe that because they are on vacation, laws (whether laws by the government or the laws of physics) don't apply to them. They drive slow on our roads and then get really mad when they get a ticket for it or cited for causing car accidents (we warn people to drive fast), fall while trying to climb The Monument (there are signs saying no to do this), they try to buy donuts with a credit or debit card. Their behavior is ridiculous! When someone mentions to me they are coming for the race for the first time, I go over all of the rules with them, sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't.
Honu 3 years ago
If I lived there, I think that would be the week I went on vacation. The Super Bowl (big American football championship event for the non-US pandas) was held here some years ago. We left town for the week. We get some tourism regularly in the region, but not that much all concentrated in one spot near where I live and work.
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Enby.Minecraft.Bee. 3 years ago
The fact that most of these are people not respecting wildlife or the monuments
MikeWheelerFan 3 years ago
Maybe I’m the idiot tourist here but why does gas cost 10 cents more if you use your credit card in North Carolina?!
Anita Rapp 3 years ago
Not unusual when credit cards are accepted. The merchant has to pay a % to the credit card company.
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Sivi 3 years ago
I have mainly met american tourists. One with thinking the ferry was any second going to dive under the fjord. Then after frozen it was question where you could ride reindeers etc. From viking village in Gudvangen I heard horror stories of tourists sneaking in and taking pictures of people sleeping in their tents, jsut cause we try and recreate viking life does not mean we are props. I did see some try and climb the fence after closing time. Miss Gudvangen.
ZAPanda 3 years ago
I'd totally prank them. Tell them it is a viking ritual to do a human sacrifice at a seasonal change (and of course the season is changing now at midnight)... and usually you sacrifice a captive from another country... they can choose: burn on a longship or get a blood eagle.
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Stargazer66 1 year ago
#23: Used to work in DC 30 years ago and took the Metro in every morning. Hated tourist season. Missed many a trains in the summer because of some tourist standing in front of the tracks blocking my way to get onto the train before the doors closed again.
Irma 2 years ago
I live in the Netherlands which seems absolutely harmless. But if the coast guard or something advice you not to go swimming or surfing or go too far into the sea islys not a challenge... they do that when the water is actually dangerous. Everytime i heard that someone drowned near my area its a tourist and probably thought 'its just water'. The water drags you under or gets you tumbling under water so you dont know which way is which and you cant find the surface
Lauren Christie 2 years ago
The Australian ones - we literally created an entire TV show that gets aired internationally just to try and get it into potential tourists heads that THE BEACH IS DANGEROUS DON'T BE A MORON AND DON'T GET IN IF YOU CAN'T SWIM. Also, for the love of all that is holy - you cannot do a multi-day bush hike through a national park in flip flops with a single 750mL water bottle and no sun protection. Nor can you cross the desert in a sports car with no water or GPS. We will be sending our search and rescue out after you, and we will be shaking our heads at your stupidity.
Dana Thurmond 3 years ago
Had a tourist ask my friend (who worked at Disney) when they were "putting the dome up" because it was starting to rain. She actually thought Disney has a giant dome that covers the entire park...
Lobo 3 years ago
You know, that wouldn't be a bad idea. Maybe not a complete enclosure, but a retractable type thing on tracks with supports placed along the outside of the park. And you know Disney could afford to build it..
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Christopher Dunne 3 years ago (edited)
The irony is that none of these places is a "sh*thole" as the comments say. Especially not Athens. But successfultravel demands a little imagination beyond reading what's in a guidebook. Part of that is choosing where to go. If you don't like malls, you don't belong in Bahrain.
Erik Granqvist 3 years ago
Tourists climbing over the fence to caddie with the super cute baby cows. Mama cow does not know you, and she weighs in around half a tonne and can outrun you without even trying. Then said tourists get upset when they has to flee in panic. Well, mama cow has a right to defend her offspring. Just be gratefull she did not kill you. And yes, people get really hurt this way.
Barbara Roberts 3 years ago
I live in Alaska. I've driven to Alaska by way of the Alcan(Alaskan Hwy through Canada). I've had people ask what currency we use in Alaska and be shocked that I could DRIVE here. They wanted to know if there was a bridge. We're part of the US and, no, we're not off the southern coast of California. My favorite saying (actually on a touristy t-shirt) is step off the bus and into the food chain.
Vincent Dacanay 3 years ago
The most common question tourists ask when they're at the beach in Hawaii is, "are there sharks in the water?". No...no sharks in the vast Pacific ocean.
Red 3 years ago
That Canada Being Huge post reminded me of the time I worked as a travel guide. So, Brazil is also huge, as you all know, and we have very different climates, the south being the coldest. Lots of cruise ships port here for a couple days and this one time a lady was SHOCKED Brazil was cold. How? Was she lied to? How? She came on this cruise for the beaches and ended up at the North Pole (yeah... I don't think she knew about the South Pole.)Later on I was explaining how the beach is (it isn't) the largest sand strip in the world, there are some sporting events where people walk or run all the way to Uruguay... Same lady (complaining about the cold, big deal, huge beach but cold as heck...) asked me "how long do they take to walk the whole thing, three, four hours?" Try days lady. It's pretty much inhospitable. A couple lighthouses, there's a hermit that lives somewhere out there if i remember. A man got lost trying to complete the marathon earlier this year. 254km of sand and salt water.
Tonk Terrier 3 years ago
Please do not come to New Zealand and "go for a walk" in the Alps. Or the bushland. Or anywhere without following rules for tramping/hiking. Every year quite a few die/vanish as they failed to check weather, wear shoes, bring jackets etc etc
MyOpinionHasBeenServed 3 years ago
People come to the Canadian prairies from warm climates in the middle of winter and complain how cold it is. There's a reason Winnipeg is known as Winterpeg. And don't just go by the big temperature number. It's the "feels like" temperature that will give you a better indication how cold it is with the windchill. Dress for the weather, not for attention. You may see locals in shorts when it's below 0. Don't copy them. They're either trying to show-off how tough they are or just really acclimated, in which someone from the tropics is not.
Chewie Baron 3 years ago
Used to live in Edinburgh, and one August (which the locals always called Stupid Season), I was walking on George Street. I got stopped by a big American family, who pointed towards Fife (which was easily seen across The Firth of Forth) and asked if that was Norway. Was in a bad mood so I fake smiled, said yes, and at the end of this street you can catch a bus to get there. They duly went that way.
Jasam Nitko 3 years ago
We had a guy that got off the train, in the middle of the night, in the middle of the winter, because he wanted to see the arctic polar circle. See the polar circle. 😖 He was not dressed for arctic conditions but was found alive.
Nikki Sevven 3 years ago
Ok, but don't you take the time to learn something of the culture, geography, etc. of the country you're going to visit BEFORE you get there? Or am I just being unAmerican? ;-)
ZAPanda 3 years ago
Fortunately don't work in the tourism industry BUT have met many tourists here. Mostly they're OK, and the americans are SUPER friendly and chatty but you do periodically get one who asks an ignorant question, or who misjudges the protocol. One thing that DOES serve americans well here is the thing of asking people how they are doing. We like that a lot and in fact most people here expect it. So the brits are perceived as rude because they jump straight to what they want, whereas the americans are like "Hey how are ya doin" etc. Simple advice for peeps coming to Africa: be unobtrusive; do not display valuables; bag in front on your lap always; DO tip, preferably 10 or more %; be super polite; ask people how they are; assume you know nothing and rather ask than pretend to know.
ZAPanda 3 years ago
oh, and africa is huge so don't ask a Nigerian if he knows Mandela, that's like asking a Brazilian if he's met Trump. And don't touch the animals.
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Patti Vance 3 years ago
grew up on an island that was a tourist destination in the summer. we, as teens, hated them because they made the prices go up for the duration as well as swarm areas that had zero interest....like they had never seen a rocky beach or seen people catch salmon off a pier. got to the point that some of us got t shirts with the caption 'move! we're not tourist...we live here.'
ZAPanda 3 years ago
they may have been paying your parents' salaries indirectly.. so yah. You kinda have to put up with them. Imagine if you will, living in a country famous for safaris.
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Two_rolling_black_eyes 3 years ago
I live in Colorado and I can't keep track of how many times someone has asked where my horse is. My favorite WTF one was overhearing a tourist complain that someone must have turned off the oxygen in the unpowered outhouse that's just a hole at 11,800 ft.
Don't Look 3 years ago
wait. I'm not going to go look it up but are horses a colorado thing? I wouldn't have thought so. I've seen more horses on the east coast than anywhere else I've been.
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Becky Samuel 3 years ago
So. What I've learned from the comments on this article is that it's perfectly *fine* to be racist so long as it's against Asians. Because every other nationality or race are just sooooo perfect and never cause problems when travelling. Smh.
Helen Haley 3 years ago
Mixed bag. Some of it is tourists being jerks by not paying attention. Some of it was tourists being jerks because they feel entitled to be jerks. And some of it was people being jerks about the tourists just because the tourists didn't understand everything about the local customs and landscape.
Jihana 3 years ago
Ok, some of those tourists are really dumb, but I honestly don't understand those people who complain that tourists exist in their country. Tourists bring a lot of money, most tourist hotspots are really wealthy BECAUSE of those tourists.
Beth L 3 years ago
I can see people in big cities like New York and London that are otherwise self-sustaining being annoyed by tourist misbehavior that interferes with their commute or their private home, but if the major industry of your town is tourism, you kind of need to accept that the ice cream joint closest to the beach is going to be bustling with tourists.
Load More Replies... Kenny Kulbiski 3 years ago
Yeah, I get it, some tourists are jerks. But when you're a tourist destination and advertise for tourists to come that's part of the price you pay. What do you expect? Tourists to stay home and just mail you their money?
Irma 2 years ago
Well there is something in between. Some of these are tourists doing something seriously dangerous. Being a jerk is fine but thinking water or wildlife or whatever is safe while there are one thousand warning signs? Tourists here have died after they got warned. We locals do not see the warnings as a challenge either
Load More Replies... Kickin' Wing 3 years ago
Putting yourself or others in danger is never good. But most of these are just tourists being tourists. Tourism dumps a lot of money into local economies. Lots of places would probably cease to exist without the "annoying" tourists.
Madzdad the bard 3 years ago
Colorado here. Tourists from low altitudes rush immediately to hike to the tops of 14k feet (4000m) peaks and get altitude sickness. Ski areas at 12k feet have an average of six people a year die from a combination of altitude sickness and alcohol and hundreds get ill. But still love hearing (in Denver, the "Mile High City" - "There's no air here!". Yes there is, but take at least a day to acclimate.
Mazer 3 years ago
Yep, heart attacks happen all the time when flatlanders go to Tahoe or anywhere above 3000 feet. Putting tires chains on is apparently a popular way to induce cardiac arrest, as is jumping into Lake Tahoe it Donned Lake, which has water temps from 70 degrees to 40 degrees even on a hot summers day.
Load More Replies... Dasha Slepenkina 3 years ago
I currently live in London and oh my goodness I've never been bothered with tourists before but I am now. Don't get me wrong - I love travel and respect each individual's right to travel, but for some reason the tourists here have an odd habit of lining up their entire group in a single line on the pavement and walking really slowly while blocking pedestrian traffic for everyone else. And it doesn't matter how many times you apologise and try to get past; they just don't care. I think you can always tell who lives in London vs. who is just visiting because those of us who live here and are trying to get someplace are always standing behind a hoard of tourists going: "Excuse me. Excuse me. EXCUSE ME!" before we have to step off the sidewalk to walk around them. I don't think they're trying to be rude, but I wish people were more aware of others when visiting someplace - I've been hit by a vehicle before so I really don't appreciate having to go into the street just to get around.
Anita Rapp 3 years ago
Americans tend to heel to the right, pass on the left. Confusion ensues.
Load More Replies... Lisa Shaw 2 years ago
My best tourist story is, we were in the north of Scotland, standing on a bridge looking at some scottish coos (cows) and an america couple walk up beside me and I hear the wife say to the husband, Ed look at the scottish buffalo, I was like 10 and i couldn't hold in my laughter! I know the cows there are big but they do not look like buffalo and they were grown ups!
GirlFriday 3 years ago
I don't live in a tourist destination per se, but the largest and most famous auto racing event is held here every year. The roughly 1.5 million people that come from all over for that week are RIDICULOUS. I think they believe that because they are on vacation, laws (whether laws by the government or the laws of physics) don't apply to them. They drive slow on our roads and then get really mad when they get a ticket for it or cited for causing car accidents (we warn people to drive fast), fall while trying to climb The Monument (there are signs saying no to do this), they try to buy donuts with a credit or debit card. Their behavior is ridiculous! When someone mentions to me they are coming for the race for the first time, I go over all of the rules with them, sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't.
Honu 3 years ago
If I lived there, I think that would be the week I went on vacation. The Super Bowl (big American football championship event for the non-US pandas) was held here some years ago. We left town for the week. We get some tourism regularly in the region, but not that much all concentrated in one spot near where I live and work.
Load More Replies... Enby.Minecraft.Bee. 3 years ago
The fact that most of these are people not respecting wildlife or the monuments
MikeWheelerFan 3 years ago
Maybe I’m the idiot tourist here but why does gas cost 10 cents more if you use your credit card in North Carolina?!
Anita Rapp 3 years ago
Not unusual when credit cards are accepted. The merchant has to pay a % to the credit card company.
Load More Replies... Sivi 3 years ago
I have mainly met american tourists. One with thinking the ferry was any second going to dive under the fjord. Then after frozen it was question where you could ride reindeers etc. From viking village in Gudvangen I heard horror stories of tourists sneaking in and taking pictures of people sleeping in their tents, jsut cause we try and recreate viking life does not mean we are props. I did see some try and climb the fence after closing time. Miss Gudvangen.
ZAPanda 3 years ago
I'd totally prank them. Tell them it is a viking ritual to do a human sacrifice at a seasonal change (and of course the season is changing now at midnight)... and usually you sacrifice a captive from another country... they can choose: burn on a longship or get a blood eagle.
Load More Replies... Stargazer66 1 year ago
#23: Used to work in DC 30 years ago and took the Metro in every morning. Hated tourist season. Missed many a trains in the summer because of some tourist standing in front of the tracks blocking my way to get onto the train before the doors closed again.
Irma 2 years ago
I live in the Netherlands which seems absolutely harmless. But if the coast guard or something advice you not to go swimming or surfing or go too far into the sea islys not a challenge... they do that when the water is actually dangerous. Everytime i heard that someone drowned near my area its a tourist and probably thought 'its just water'. The water drags you under or gets you tumbling under water so you dont know which way is which and you cant find the surface
Lauren Christie 2 years ago
The Australian ones - we literally created an entire TV show that gets aired internationally just to try and get it into potential tourists heads that THE BEACH IS DANGEROUS DON'T BE A MORON AND DON'T GET IN IF YOU CAN'T SWIM. Also, for the love of all that is holy - you cannot do a multi-day bush hike through a national park in flip flops with a single 750mL water bottle and no sun protection. Nor can you cross the desert in a sports car with no water or GPS. We will be sending our search and rescue out after you, and we will be shaking our heads at your stupidity.
Dana Thurmond 3 years ago
Had a tourist ask my friend (who worked at Disney) when they were "putting the dome up" because it was starting to rain. She actually thought Disney has a giant dome that covers the entire park...
Lobo 3 years ago
You know, that wouldn't be a bad idea. Maybe not a complete enclosure, but a retractable type thing on tracks with supports placed along the outside of the park. And you know Disney could afford to build it..
Load More Replies... Christopher Dunne 3 years ago (edited)
The irony is that none of these places is a "sh*thole" as the comments say. Especially not Athens. But successfultravel demands a little imagination beyond reading what's in a guidebook. Part of that is choosing where to go. If you don't like malls, you don't belong in Bahrain.
Erik Granqvist 3 years ago
Tourists climbing over the fence to caddie with the super cute baby cows. Mama cow does not know you, and she weighs in around half a tonne and can outrun you without even trying. Then said tourists get upset when they has to flee in panic. Well, mama cow has a right to defend her offspring. Just be gratefull she did not kill you. And yes, people get really hurt this way.
Barbara Roberts 3 years ago
I live in Alaska. I've driven to Alaska by way of the Alcan(Alaskan Hwy through Canada). I've had people ask what currency we use in Alaska and be shocked that I could DRIVE here. They wanted to know if there was a bridge. We're part of the US and, no, we're not off the southern coast of California. My favorite saying (actually on a touristy t-shirt) is step off the bus and into the food chain.
Vincent Dacanay 3 years ago
The most common question tourists ask when they're at the beach in Hawaii is, "are there sharks in the water?". No...no sharks in the vast Pacific ocean.
Red 3 years ago
That Canada Being Huge post reminded me of the time I worked as a travel guide. So, Brazil is also huge, as you all know, and we have very different climates, the south being the coldest. Lots of cruise ships port here for a couple days and this one time a lady was SHOCKED Brazil was cold. How? Was she lied to? How? She came on this cruise for the beaches and ended up at the North Pole (yeah... I don't think she knew about the South Pole.)Later on I was explaining how the beach is (it isn't) the largest sand strip in the world, there are some sporting events where people walk or run all the way to Uruguay... Same lady (complaining about the cold, big deal, huge beach but cold as heck...) asked me "how long do they take to walk the whole thing, three, four hours?" Try days lady. It's pretty much inhospitable. A couple lighthouses, there's a hermit that lives somewhere out there if i remember. A man got lost trying to complete the marathon earlier this year. 254km of sand and salt water.
Tonk Terrier 3 years ago
Please do not come to New Zealand and "go for a walk" in the Alps. Or the bushland. Or anywhere without following rules for tramping/hiking. Every year quite a few die/vanish as they failed to check weather, wear shoes, bring jackets etc etc
MyOpinionHasBeenServed 3 years ago
People come to the Canadian prairies from warm climates in the middle of winter and complain how cold it is. There's a reason Winnipeg is known as Winterpeg. And don't just go by the big temperature number. It's the "feels like" temperature that will give you a better indication how cold it is with the windchill. Dress for the weather, not for attention. You may see locals in shorts when it's below 0. Don't copy them. They're either trying to show-off how tough they are or just really acclimated, in which someone from the tropics is not.
Chewie Baron 3 years ago
Used to live in Edinburgh, and one August (which the locals always called Stupid Season), I was walking on George Street. I got stopped by a big American family, who pointed towards Fife (which was easily seen across The Firth of Forth) and asked if that was Norway. Was in a bad mood so I fake smiled, said yes, and at the end of this street you can catch a bus to get there. They duly went that way.
Jasam Nitko 3 years ago
We had a guy that got off the train, in the middle of the night, in the middle of the winter, because he wanted to see the arctic polar circle. See the polar circle. 😖 He was not dressed for arctic conditions but was found alive.
Nikki Sevven 3 years ago
Ok, but don't you take the time to learn something of the culture, geography, etc. of the country you're going to visit BEFORE you get there? Or am I just being unAmerican? ;-)
ZAPanda 3 years ago
Fortunately don't work in the tourism industry BUT have met many tourists here. Mostly they're OK, and the americans are SUPER friendly and chatty but you do periodically get one who asks an ignorant question, or who misjudges the protocol. One thing that DOES serve americans well here is the thing of asking people how they are doing. We like that a lot and in fact most people here expect it. So the brits are perceived as rude because they jump straight to what they want, whereas the americans are like "Hey how are ya doin" etc. Simple advice for peeps coming to Africa: be unobtrusive; do not display valuables; bag in front on your lap always; DO tip, preferably 10 or more %; be super polite; ask people how they are; assume you know nothing and rather ask than pretend to know.
ZAPanda 3 years ago
oh, and africa is huge so don't ask a Nigerian if he knows Mandela, that's like asking a Brazilian if he's met Trump. And don't touch the animals.
Load More Replies... Patti Vance 3 years ago
grew up on an island that was a tourist destination in the summer. we, as teens, hated them because they made the prices go up for the duration as well as swarm areas that had zero interest....like they had never seen a rocky beach or seen people catch salmon off a pier. got to the point that some of us got t shirts with the caption 'move! we're not tourist...we live here.'
ZAPanda 3 years ago
they may have been paying your parents' salaries indirectly.. so yah. You kinda have to put up with them. Imagine if you will, living in a country famous for safaris.
Load More Replies... Two_rolling_black_eyes 3 years ago
I live in Colorado and I can't keep track of how many times someone has asked where my horse is. My favorite WTF one was overhearing a tourist complain that someone must have turned off the oxygen in the unpowered outhouse that's just a hole at 11,800 ft.
Don't Look 3 years ago
wait. I'm not going to go look it up but are horses a colorado thing? I wouldn't have thought so. I've seen more horses on the east coast than anywhere else I've been.
Load More Replies... Becky Samuel 3 years ago
So. What I've learned from the comments on this article is that it's perfectly *fine* to be racist so long as it's against Asians. Because every other nationality or race are just sooooo perfect and never cause problems when travelling. Smh.
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