We’ve all encounter them, wherever you travel, there is no avoiding those stupid and annoying tourist. Waving around selfie sticks, eating Big Macs, 30 minute photo shoots, walking an hour to save a few bucks, breaking the law, overplanning, and wearing an “I love New York” shirt. In this blog post I might get a little heated because these are the seven things tourists do that annoy me the most.
Taking Too Many Pictures
The Chinese are usually the biggest culprits of this, let’s be real. Every tourist destination you go to, you won’t struggle to find herds of loud and disrespectful Chinese tourists. They totally disregard the 20 other people trying to get a picture, while they wave around their selfie sticks and yell at each other.
What you will notice is that most of the selfies they take are with random objects in the background like walls, bins or random people.
A person with common courtesy would line up quietly with their phone or camera ready to go, get the picture and move on. And perhaps offer to take a photo for a group of people next in line.
It seems the Chinese don’t learn basic etiquette or have much respect for not only the attraction but the other people trying to get a picture.
Don’t get me wrong it’s not only the Chinese, but they stand out as they are in large groups waving their meter long selfie sticks carelessly, yelling, and overall being disrespectful.
Not Trying the Local Food
Aaargh . . . this really gets on my nerves. You travel to foreign countries to experience new cultures but avoid trying the countries local cuisine. Seriously, you can get McDonald’s back home.
If you ask them why they won’t try the food, you will likely hear a response that sounds like this . . . “I don’t like that food”. Yet they haven’t even tried it.
Or they think it will make them sick. I mean, how can you be so basic and boring to not even try the incredible local cuisine on offer. The local cuisine was not only discovered but perfected in that particular country. Also the food will usually be a lot cheaper than western food and you get an authentic dining experience.
I won’t lie, after travelling around Japan and South Korea and mainly eating foods like ramen, sushi and kimchi, I did crave a burger. But make trying as much of the local cuisine as possible a priority.
Travelling to Impress Other People
Ever since social media and in particular Instagram, it seems everyone is an “influencer”. Posting a bikini shot at a tropical beach in the Philippines and writing a completely irrelevant caption of some corny quote you don’t even live by. It’s like their intention is to show all their followers how good their life is compared to yours. Instead of maybe telling a story about their trip or describing their thoughts on the destination, they add no real value to their audience.
I’m not saying you can’t post a beach photo at a tropical beach in the Philippines. But it’s easy to see when a so called “influencer” posts pictures in a self-absorbed manner.
Spending as Little as Possible
Since when was it a competition to see who can spend as little as possible during their trip? Among the backpacker crowd this seems to be something to brag about. You will hear people tell you how their only form of transportation was hitchhiking and walking countless hours. Or how they saved $2 because they spent 10 minutes arguing with the staff of a hostel to get a lower price on a hostel that only cost $5 per night anyway.
If this is your idea if travelling – arguing about small amounts of money, avoiding tours and acting homeless then good for you. I’d much rather make the most of my travels and experience the country without being a tight-ass and thinking it makes me a superior traveller.
Being like Logan Paul
We’ve likely all seen that video of Logan Paul acting like a complete idiot in Japan, not only breaking the law but being disrespectful to the locals and their culture. You don’t have to act like Logan Paul, but many tourists fail to research the countries laws, culture and way of life beforehand in order to be respectful.
Unfortunately many tourists are careless. They will leave their rubbish behind, completely disregard rules, and live like they would in their home country. It’s like they think the world should change to suit them.
Overplanning
Some people get a little too carried away when planning their trip. This is usually what new or less experienced travellers tend to do. They will plan every day of their trip in so much detail that they have the timing of every meal and their bed time to the minute.
Part of the reason people travel in the first place is to get away from routine. To have the freedom to do what you want when you want.
Whenever you are travelling things don’t always go to plan. Take me for example – going to the wrong airport in Osaka, Japan narrowly making my flight to Seoul.
Sure, there are certain activities and experiences you will want to tick off. But having a less hectic schedule allows for a more spontaneous and flexible experience.
Dressing like a Tourist
I cringe in disgust every time I see someone wearing a shirt saying “I love New York” or whatever city they are in. Not only are they cringe worthy but you are also telling everyone, “look at me I’m a tourist”. Or wearing a bum bag to keep your money in . . . I mean seriously, you are just drawing attention to where all your money is and you look dumb. It’s hard enough avoiding scammers and pickpocketers as it is. The goal should be to blend in with the locals if possible, not to stand out.
Are you someone who does one of these seven things? At the end of the day there is not much that can be done about these annoying behaviors of tourists. Maybe I’m just being too critical?
