Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
Who are the world's most obnoxious tourists? Hint: it's not the Americans
Monolingual, white tennis shoes, an unbecoming outfit and an ugly fanny pack: my stereotypical image of an American tourist. But apparently Americans don't win the number one spot for the world's most obnoxious tourists. In Europe, that special place is held for the French, reports Time Magazine.According to an international survey conducted for Expedia.fr, the French are in fact considered to be overall the worst of the worst of tourists. Employees in 4,000 hotels in Germany, the U.K., Italy, France, Canada and the U.S. were asked to rank their clients on different levels ranging from willingness to speak the local language to discretion and elegance, and French travelers did not fare well.
France fell behind India and China as providing the world with the worst tourists. And the stereotypically obnoxious American tourist? Out of 21 countries, with the most liked at the top, the US got an impressive 11th place. Why is that? Among other reasons, despite language faults, Americans get the top spot for trying to speak local languages the most. Quelle surprise.
Filed under: Arts and Culture, Europe, North America, France, United States, News, Consumer Activism
Reader Comments (Page 6 of 6)
Peter Apr 22nd 2009 10:51PM
So they surveyed hotel staff in Germany, the U.K., Italy, France, Canada and the U.S. I wonder how many from each country?
Maybe if they had also surveyed staff from India and China, those countries might not have come out on top. Maybe if they had surveyed taxi drivers, they might have had a different result. Maybe if they had surveyed restaurant owners they would have different results. It's just a very limited survey whose results really have to be taken with a grain of salt. Even so, the author should fix the post to make it more clear that the French were NOT voted the world's most obnoxious tourists.