61 Of The Biggest “No Nos” Tourists Have Done While Traveling
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; and make sure to upvote the ones you found the most surprising.#1TW: 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.Image credits: LameFernweh#2If 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).Image credits: Jellyfishjam99#3People 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.Image credits: XenorVernix#4“WHY DON’T YOU ACCEPT DOLLARS?!” I’ve heard this in Italy, England, and Japan.Image credits: behemuthm#5Taking 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).Image credits: WalkingEars#61. 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.Image credits: CraftyOpportunity618#7Being 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. ?.Image credits: pomoerotic#8Nepal: 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.Image credits: A_dalo#9People 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.".Image credits: bromosabeach#10When 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.#11Expecting 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.Image credits: Tiiarae#12Posing and imitating Buddha in temples in Thailand- so offensive and tacky.Image credits: anabanane1#13Don’t take photos of locals without permission ESPECIALLY children. I see it a lot in African countries and it bothers me a lot.Image credits: Life_Temporary_1567#14Walking around supermarkets with no shirt on or in your swimming stuff. I hate it. So disrespectful.Image credits: One_Tart_9320#15(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.Image credits: cheese_for_life#16Taking 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.Image credits: Anutka25#17If 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.Image credits: eigenstien#18I'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!#19Dudes going to poor countries acting like they're god's gift towards local women. Super cringe :/.#20Being loud, drunk and violent are among the worst things tourists can do.Image credits: valpiccola_#21If 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...Image credits: El_Gronkerino#22Europeans: 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 :).Image credits: StakedPlainExplorer#23This isn’t cultural but leave your f*****g drone at home.Image credits: Additional_Nose_8144#24In 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.#25Driving slowly looking at the scenery, holding up local traffic; we've got places to be, people to see.
If you want to admire the view pull off somewhere & enjoy it properly.Image credits: DaveB44#26Those are not garbage cans outside shops in Japan those are for umbrellas. Don't be me A.K.A a dummy.Image credits: passengerv#27Saw a group of Italien men try to pick up women while visiting Auschwitz. That was beyond cringe.#28Everywhere: watching videos on your phone and talking on the phone with the speaker on.#29Just general rudeness to locals. Treating them disrespectfully.
I remember being in a restaurant in Bangkok and the table next to us would snap their fingers at the staff to get their attention. Just disgusting.#30Wearing 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?Image credits: 10S_NE1#31Don’t turn right on a red in Europe. Oops.Image credits: bglenden#32Jaywalking 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.Image credits: NArcadia11#33I've learned my lesson by now, but when I first started traveling, the big one was not paying attention to the days you are going in relation to the country. Like finding out you planned your day around seeing the museums of a city on the day of the week they are all closed. Or trying to visit a local natural attraction not realizing it's a domestic holiday when everyone in the country is also going there.Image credits: kevlarcardhouse#34Do not touch delicate artwork or ancient artifacts.
I see this happen everywhere. Drives me nuts.#35We were following a group of British tourists up the Big Daddy dune in Namibia and they were playing bad American pop on a portable Bluetooth speaker. Ok, I heard Justin Bieber so maybe it was bad Canadian pop. We were with a local guide, he yelled at them, adding it was a local holiday, so they were being especially disrespectful, and they sheepishly turned it off. I (American) said a silent prayer of gratitude to the universe that it wasn't Americans being obnoxious this time.#36Please just leave the wildlife alone. I was in the Philippines and saw a couple pick up a couple of star fish from the ocean floor to take a picture with out of water, then toss them back in after the photo.#37Not brushing up on local etiquette before traveling somewhere new. For example, when I visited family in Tokyo, I brought a gift (not strange where I'm from to bring a gift for your host/hostess). But the gift etiquette in Japan is complicated, and the hostess was embarrassed because she wasn't expecting it and had nothing ready to reciprocate. Much befuddlement and so on for me.#38Thinking every culture is like Americann culture. Our 5 star different, complaining because something “isn’t right” but in that country that reaction is considered wrong. Also comparing how we do it in America and inferring our way is the right way. The other thing I learned was I always say on the “other”, “left” or “opposite side”of the road not the wrong side in the Britain and Ireland. It’s an assumption it would be wrong to say it in Japan too, but I’m not sure.
I always find attempting even a few words in the country’s language is appreciated. ( except in France, they got angry with me).#39Stop loudly talking about how cheap everything is.
Locals in many places don't have near the purchasing power you might as a tourist from a wealthy country. It can be infuriating and disrespectful to the locals who may be struggling with cost of living.#40Loudly pondering why something is done in a particular way merely because it is done differently where the tourist is from.Image credits: lh123456789#41Kathmandu was second hand embarrassment to the point of humiliation. We went to see thee living goddess. People come from all over Nepal to see her and receive her blessings. While we were there with many religious devotees and tourists alike, waiting for her we were advised not to take pics. It was a very black and white rule reiterated several times. She comes to the window, several people take pics, all tourists, including a group from Australia, she gets pulled straight back into the building and no blessings given. #42Not reading the fine print before booking a flight on a budget airline. Cheap flights are cheap for a reason. Their policies towards carry-ons and checked-bag sizes vary, and you might have to unexpectedly fork up some more money. Also, don't expect budget airlines to make it on time if you have a tight connection or will have to go through immigration on your layover.Image credits: beefdingleberries#43Dont assume that a place accepts Apple Pay or honestly any sort of debit or credit card. First time visiting the Netherlands, I was in Amsterdam for pride and was behind a large group of Americans at a hot dog stand. They all ordered their food (about 20+ euros worth) and STARTED EATING IT BEFORE PAYING, and when the leader of the group whipped out her phone for Apple Pay, the very confused Dutch man told her he doesn’t accept anything other than cash. Took them 5 minutes to figure out which one of them had enough cash to cover it! When I came up and ordered in English he kept repeating before handing me my order “ ONLY CASH MEVROUW! “ god bless him lol.#44I’m currently in Zagreb and today saw three loud American girls kicking furniture over and then kicking swings in a play area of a park today. They were probably late teens early twenties and were everything people hate about Americans abroad. Loud and weirdly disrespectful.#45Going to Paris in August when all the Parisians take their holidays, which means all the restaurants and bakeries you'll probably want to go to are actually closed for two weeks.Image credits: Short_Concept#46Showing up at a popular city attraction without a pre-purchased ticket. Some examples that come to mind are the Vatican in Rome and the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. Don't waste your time in line. Do the research ahead of time to save time and see more things. For instance, we took a tour of Palatine Hill that included a tour of the Colosseum. When we got to the Colosseum, we bypassed hundreds of people waiting in line. Tripadvisor is a great resource for this type of information.Image credits: ladeedah1988#47American military in Europe so I’m already not the Germans’ biggest fan. I literally cannot go anywhere on a train with my friends here. So obnoxiously loud and they don’t care or get embarrassed at all. Just play into the loud american stereotype perfectly.
Also they don’t even attempt German. I think the least you can do as a foreigner would be to say dankeschön or tschüss instead of just thanks.#48No public displays of affection in Vietnam please. Maybe don’t even hold hands to be respectful.
In most Asian countries, please receive shop receipts with both hands. Same for business cards and do not put it away if seated, place it on the table until end of interaction.#49Outside of the US, when someone asks where you are from, the answer is not your state. It is your country aka simply the US. ?.#50Watching a man with two very young kids walk to within 100 feet of a grizzly bear in Yellowstone.#51Don't put your feet up on the train seats in Germany. I guess I should have known better but the train was nearly empty and the seats were hard plastic. Being yelled at in German by a tiny German woman is one of the scarier things I've experienced. I'm not actually sure if that's what I was doing wrong but it's my best guess.
In my city of Washington, DC, please don't block the sidewalks in crowded areas, or get in the way on the Metro.#52Give the monkeys fruit.#53Don't accidentally get on the women's only carriage (as a man) in the Delhi Metro (yes, it was me ??♂️).#54I don’t know if this is a No No. I was in the Montemartre part of Paris at lunch in a small restaurant. Four women from .I’m guessing Texas, “Do y’all have Dr. Pepper?”, “No? I can’t believe y’all don’t have Dr. Pepper!”.#55Expect locals to understand your own language, Ive been embarrassed so many times by other Argentines going to someone in the Netherlands speaking straight Spanish.
I see it as a mix of entitlement and lack of empathy.#56Taking photos of the locals minding their business but especially in countries in the global south. In the global south, I also find it uncomfortable when wealthier tourists still haggle in markets.
As someone else here has said, taking selfies in inappropriate places particularly the Holocaust memorials and sites like concentration camps in Europe. Being rude to locals and disrespecting/not following local customs or openly challenging them too.#57Perfumes and colognes. Please stop. Bathe properly and wear deodorant. No need to assault people with nasty smells.#58Reading signs for Historical places out loud while you block everyone else from reading it. Wearing athlesure in cities where it’s not accepted. Talking too loudly. Comp,aiming about prices.#59I see a fair number of people from certain other countries that try to haggle for the price of products in the US and seem upset when it's made clear that prices are firm.Image credits: diatom777#60Not caring about being ripped off because "it's cheap for me anyway".Image credits: Ok_Association_9625#61In a Muslim country, don't eat in public during Ramadan. Even if you guide gives you food from the market to try, even if he insists that its okay.Image credits: spicyfishtacos
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