France tops 2008 list in Europe of most obnoxious tourists
July 7, 2008
French tourists are the worst in Europe; Japanese are the best in the world overall, new survey says
Americans have long been considered the default worst tourists in the world by many, especially the French, but apparently the impression is not only false, but the reverse. According to a recent international survey, the French are now considered the most obnoxious European tourists. Only Indians and the last-place Chinese rank lower among all countries worldwide, with the French finishing 19th among 21 countries. The US tied with the Thais in the middle of the pack at number 11. Japanese tourists were seen as the best, most generous and politest.
The survey, which polled 4,000 hotel employees in the US, the UK, Canada, Germany, Italy and France, was conducted by the French arm of Expedia.com. The survey based its findings on criteria ranking each nationality by the willingness to spend money, how much complaining they did, attempting to speak local languages, interact with local cultures and sample local cuisine, generosity, general cleanliness and politeness. The French did poorly in many of these areas. The French are notoriously bad tippers; in France, the tip is customarily included in the total bill at restaurants so it may be an oversight in some cases. French tourists are also unlikely to speak the local language or even to try. As for the most universal language, English, French people on average speak English less well than almost any other non-English-speaking nationality, even though English is compulsory in French schools. French tourists were also seen as whiners, complaining loudly about the quality of food and lodging abroad and about not being allowed to smoke. Beyond miserliness with tips, French travellers are also seen as penny-pinching; however, some point out that with the large amount of vacation time in France, the French have to budget accordingly and have less money to spend on any one trip.
Surprisingly, French tourists ranked low even in France. They came in next to last among nations ranking the popularity of their own tourists who vacation at home.
The news of the unpopularity of French tourists may be galling to the Gauls, but it isn’t new. A survey conducted among 15,000 European hoteliers last year also saw France as the worst nation of tourists overall, followed by India, China, Russia and Britain. The same survey said Americans were the worst-dressed, followed closely by the British (oh, those sandals with socks!) This survey also voted the Japanese the world’s best tourists, followed by the Americans and the Swiss.
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