ADVERTISEMENT

The United States is full of diverse cultures, histories, and landscapes, creating a rich and complex national tapestry that takes time to truly understand.

So when foreigners come to this unique place of the world, they want to take in as much as possible. However, in their quest for authentic experiences, travelers may end up in awkward and uncomfortable situations.

Interested in how they can protect themselves from this, Reddit user AlainasBoyfriend posted a question on the platform, asking the locals, "What should a foreigner avoid while visiting the United States?" Here are the most popular answers they have received.

#1

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Leave all your stereotypes about America home, it's a hugely diverse country and your experience in one part of the US will be very different to your experience in another. Keep an open mind and have fun.

zerbey , Samson Katt Report

#2

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Don’t be bullheaded when it comes to the weather. If the locals are worried, you should be worried.

TakeThisification , Nikolas Noonan Report

#3

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country You should avoid any sweeping generalizations about the USA. The US is effectively 50 separate countries. It’s an absolutely massive landmass with pretty much every type of terrain, climate and a huge variety of cultures. Anyone that tells you otherwise probably barely travels.

_lippykid , NASA Report

#4

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country If it says no trespassing don't trespass.

Dragonbourn00 , Adam Lowly Report

ADVERTISEMENT
#5

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country If you are visiting a more rural area, like Montana where I live, don't underestimate the rural-ness. You might not be able to get a hotel in a small town and there are plenty ty of places where there aren't any hotels or accommodations. You can take highway and run out of gas because there aren't any gas stations for 70 miles. Also, if it is a dirt road, and there are a lot of them in the rural U.S., don't ever assume that you will have cell/GPS reception or that the dirt road goes anywhere besides 50 miles into the mountains where you can get stuck or break down. It's hard to conceptualize for people who live in more populated areas. Your best bet is to plan ahead and read reviews. It is absolutely worth it to visit areas where there is wilderness. That is why I live here. That being said, it's dangerous in a different way than visiting a city.

Violet624 , Matthew Lancaster Report

#6

If you get pulled over DO NOT GET OUT OF THE CAR. Do not take your seatbelt off, keep your hands visible, move slowly, be polite. Especially if you're darker skinned in any way.

CreativeAd190 Report

ADVERTISEMENT
#7

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country If you go to the national parks, don’t attempt to take selfies with the wildlife. A full grown bison will throw you through the air like a crumpled piece of paper.

abby-rose:

I want to really emphasize this. There are US Park Rangers who are full-time employees of the National Park Service. Their job is to protect the park, the wildlife, and visitors. Take the posted signs seriously and listen and do what rangers advise.

Yearly, a dozen or so people die in the Grand Canyon National Park, often tourists who go hiking without enough water or food and are not aware of how treacherous the terrain and weather can be. Same for Big Bend NP in Texas.

Juergen2993 , Lukas Kloeppel Report

#8

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Don't go to the big chain type places. Go to the mom and pop little restaurants and coffee shops and specialty shops. You will usually find new cool things you enjoy.

OpeusPopeus:


To add to this: FOOD TRUCKS!!!

ElectionProper8172 , Joana Godinho Report

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
#9

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Avoid a hospital visit. Whatever you think it costs, it’s more.

N0t_N1k3L:

Medical travel insurance that goes into the 7 digits. Someone from my country had the misfortune of having a stroke in the USA. 150k+ in expenses. When I went there it was my number 1 concern: getting insurance.

pug_fugly_moe , Thirdman Report

#10

Anyone wearing a MAGA hat.

yourpaljax Report

#11

dont go walking around late at night by yourself ESPECIALLY if youre a woman. I have friends from korea which is a country where its safe to go walk around at 1 am. When they visit here i always have to tell them that its not like that here and a big risk to be out alone especially in cities like LA.

SojinxGSD Report

ADVERTISEMENT
#12

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Always ask the locals where they like to eat. They know better than any travel blog.

mikemac412 , Alex Haney Report

#13

I feel like this answer changes depending on where you are coming from. Certain parts of the country REALLY dislike certain nationalities. There's no way coming here as a german/swede or European is the same experience as middle eastern/African/Asian.

Hbimajorv Report

#14

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country When visiting the U.S., it's best to avoid discussing sensitive topics like politics and religion with strangers, even if they bring it up. Also, be mindful of local customs and etiquette, as they can vary widely. And of course, don't forget to tip in restaurants—it's a common practice here. Enjoy your time in the States!

Vexina1997 , Jessica Da Rosa Report

#15

I was in a bar in Russia once and the bartender told me he wanted to visit the US and to go to Alabama because of the song sweet home Alabama.


Literally the only time anyone has said they want to go to Alabama to me, don't go to Alabama foreigner.

DaveinOakland Report

ADVERTISEMENT
#16

It’s not uncommon for perfect strangers to greet you, unlike most of the world where people tend to keep to themselves. If someone says “How are you doing?” it’s not really a question, just a greeting.

kindest_asshole Report

#17

Taking weed across state lines. It’s not legal everywhere.

Gromit801 Report

#18

Honestly, most of the bad areas will be intuitively bad to any human being with basic decency and common sense. That said, I would avoid Texas.

Yak-Fucker-5000 Report

#19

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country America is HUGE and things are a lot further apart than Europeans realize.

UnspecificGravity:

The flight from London to New York is only about an hour longer than the flight from New York to Seattle.

MrRGG , Mackenzie Cruz Report

ADVERTISEMENT
#20

Don't smoke in public buildings, this is illegal.

Don't smoke in someone's house, apartment, or condo without asking for permission. This isn't illegal, but it's still extremely rude.

Max10imus Report

#21

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Ordering a large at a restaurant, or *especially* a movie theater. I don't care how hungry you think you are, you will not eat/drink it all in one sitting.

Amazing_Excuse_3860 , Geraud pfeiffer Report

Add photo comments
POST
Ash
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Also, if you can't eat everything in a restaurant, go ahead and ask for a box and take it back to your hotel to eat later. This is considered perfectly normal and is expected in the US.

M
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes, you can eat it all - or get the left overs to go. And you can take your soda and popcorn with you when you leave the theatre.

Starry starry night
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You could half the portions and put the proceeds into the waiting staffs wages and no longer need to tip. Happier workforce, healthier population.

StrangeOne
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Some restaurants I hear charge you double for sharing one plate with someone.

madbakes
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There may be an added fee, but it's not double. It's usually just in the fancy restaurants that may charge for splitting.

Load More Replies...
Suby
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If you get a hotel room with a fridge and microwave, you can save on meals. Just take the leftovers with you and heat them up when you get hungry.

Cthulhu Kitty
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I love to go for breakfast or lunch the next day or late night snack when hungry at hotel

Leesa DeAndrea
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is especially true at truck stops. I asked for a bowl of oatmeal & a glass of milk at a truck stop. The bowl of oatmeal was enough to feed three people & the glass of milk was 16 oz. I asked for a smaller milk & was told that's the only size it comes in!

Carlye Piparato
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Before choosing a place to eat, look at the other customers. If they’re all @ 200 lbs overweight you might want to try somewhere else. Unless you like deep fried everything in huge servings with no taste other than deep fried.

Margaret Weaver
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Starbuck's largest cup size exceeds the volume of the human stomach. You think it's funny, but they really don't care how badly you damage yourself as long as you pay. It's like a Black Mirror episode, but over there that's just... life.

Kayla Schuster
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I do this to have a 2nd meal later. If I've gotta pay that amount I might as well make it last 2 meals.

Lilith
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is the reason you will see the fattest and laziest people to the point of disgust. Hope you don't have an injury and need a motorized wheelchair, all the lard A***s are using them.

Calvin Smelliott
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Split a large drink at a theater with 2-3 other people if you’re okay drinking after one another. My husband and I get a large to split and always have plenty left. And, never order a large popcorn unless 4-6 people are sharing. A medium is enough for 2-3 people.

Shadow
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is true for Wendy's in Canada they matched their sizes to their American sizes. Unless you want enough food to feed a family of 4 and just as much pop never ask for a large, always a small!

Jeffree Inferus
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Even drink sizes are monstrously enormous: the McDonalds USA small drink is slightly bigger than the UK/Australia *large* size.

A Happy Doggo
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

For me if it’s a drink I order a medium and if it’s food I order a small

Paulsible deniability
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Unless you ARE an American, then you will eat it all and then go out for ice cream afterwards.

View more commentsArrow down menu
#22

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Heavily depends on where you are going....but don't assume the price you see is the price you pay. Sales tax isn't included on most price listings and Tip is expected for food service.

bluejams , Kenny Eliason Report

#23

DO NOT TRY TO BRIBE COPS. As f****d up as American cops are bribery does not fly. Unless you're wealthy or powerful.

gaghan Report

ADVERTISEMENT
#24

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country I find a lot of foreigners have about 2 1/2 inches of a personal space bubble, while us Americans value our space. Keep at least a 2-3 feet distance when conversing with strangers. I've had an Italian guy come so close I thought he was going to kiss me. Very uncomfortable for someone who isn't used to a lack of personal space.

MasterPip , cottonbro studio Report

#25

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Driving from New York to LA.

MedicinalTequila:

We had an exchange student from France staying with us (NY). one day, we saw her with a map of the US, said she was going to take a bus to California because she had heard so much about it on television.

We had to sit down and explain it was going to take a week, each way.

MarbleousMel:

"Lol I have some German friends who flew into Texas and wanted to make a day trip to Los Angeles during the week they were in the US. After that first trip, they planned much better and now visit the country by regions and give themselves more time."

No_Finish_2144 , Ekaterina Belinskaya Report

ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#26

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Don't interact with police unless you absolutely need to.

Snackdoc189 , Jacky Lam Report

#27

If there is garbage on the street or on the floor of the establishment, there are other regulations being ignored. If the floor isn’t clean, the rest of the place isn’t clean either. I know that sounds very snobbish and privileged, but coming from absolute poverty and climbing my way out, it’s absolutely correct.

PilkShots Report

#28

If you're visiting a well-known and large city (New York, Boston, Seattle, Las Vegas, Houston, etc.) Avoid contact with people passing out CDs or offering to give you free things because they will try to charge you for it once they reel you in.

noellemackenna Report

#29

If you’re visiting Alaska, DO NOT visit rural or remote areas alone, especially if you’re inexperienced.

Alaska has the highest missing persons rate (about 168 missing people per 100k of the population, and we have 730,916 residents as of 2023), and the VAST majority of the state is unpopulated, unexplored and untamed wilderness. There’s even the Alaskan Triangle, a huge expanse of land between Anchorage, Juneau, and Utqiagvik (formerly known as Barrow) where more people go missing, along with disappearing aircraft, alleged paranormal and extraterrestrial sightings, and much more.

My advice, if you’re a first-timer to Alaska, is to stick to Southcentral Alaska. You’ve got Anchorage and the Mat-Su Valley, where there’s plenty of tourist attractions. If you’re feeling more adventurous, there’s whale-watching and glacier tours in places like Seward and Homer. If you want somewhere further in the interior, there’s a two-hour drive to Talkeetna, or a another 6 hours to Fairbanks!

totallynotalaskan Report

ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#30

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Avoid looking lost and unorganized in areas of big cities with high crime rates. Dress functionally, always keep the illusion of knowing where you are and where you're going, pay attention to your surroundings. Bad people will target folks who look lost and unorganized more often than people who appear oriented.

xtrasmolpp , Szymon Shields Report

#31

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Don't expect the US to be pedestrian-friendly. Some of our larger cities are, but even they pale in comparison to EU cities. You need to drive here. NYC is basically our only major city that's not true of, but even there, public transport is not as good as that found in a lot of European and east Asian nations. You should expect to have to rent a car as part of your vacation expenditure if you don't have other accommodations.

MothraWillSaveUs , Refine 網頁設計 Report

#32

Gary Indiana!! Do not, under any circumstances, go to Gary, Indiana. Ever

stublycurious Report

ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#33

The heat. If you're going to hike in the desert, bring plenty of water.

tacobelmont Report

#34

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Generally, you should tip at sit-down restaurants with full service (ie waiter comes and takes your order, brings food, refills drinks and clears your dishes). At these places, traditionally the minimum is 15%, but most people I know tip closer to 20% standard.

Heliawe , Gül Işık Report

#35

Americans Recommend Foreign Visitors Avoid These 45 Things When They're Traveling The Country Hollywood Boulevard.

Ok_Response_3484:

My cousins came from Oklahoma with preteens/teens and I tried to warn them that it wasn't really a good place and especially not for kids. They didn't listen. When I saw them that night, their mom said "I should have listened to you. It was horrible"

Wishing4Signal , Aman Report

#36

Don’t do the kiss on the cheek greeting. Well, as someone already mentioned, the US is 50 separate places with different customs, but the peck on the cheek, if that’s common where you’re visiting from, isn’t so popular here. It was something I had a hard time getting used to when visiting friends in Colombia.

5hrs4hrs3hrs2hrs1mor Report

ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#37

Don't lock anything valuable in your car. This includes the trunk.

Affectionate_Ask_769 Report

#38

Look up the crime rates of any city before you go there so you know which areas to avoid.

anon Report

#39

The typical touristy places. This is a massive country with so much more to offer than Disney, Las Vegas, Hollywood, etc.

9_of_Swords Report

#40

For the most part, the US is reasonably safe as long as you're not looking for the dangerous parts. For example, don't visit the ghetto – the worst parts of the US are arguably more dangerous than the poorer parts of some other developed countries.

Hollywood is a tourist trap. Honestly, the entirety of LA is just a difficult place to visit and it's not set up well for tourism.

New York can be a bit dirty as a city, mostly due to high density. It's a great city to visit with a lot to do, but it can be overwhelming if you're alone since it's so big.

Chicago is actually a pretty nice city to visit, the reputation is mostly due to the bad areas, but if you're visiting, you're probably going to be in the city where it's reasonably safe.

Moaning-Squirtle Report

ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#41

In Washington DC, avoid taking pictures in front of DC District court thinking it is the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is 6 blocks away Also, the White House is MUCH smaller than you think it is.

SafetyMan35 Report

#42

I say this as a Mississippian, Jackson, Mississippi.

Fragraham Report

#43

The one thing you should probably avoid above all else is being a bad guest. If you have someone buy you a treat, eat it and thank them for it. If they suggest X attraction, at least consider it. A lot of them will love being hosts or at least guides and if you spurn that they'll be hurt.

Snowtwo Report

#44

Be careful where you stay in bigger cities. I've seen people Airbnb places in bad neighborhoods in NYC and suffer for it.

akaloxy1 Report

ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#45

North Philly. Maybe just avoid Philly all together.

Five2one521 Report