[quote]And the best tourists in the world are…
Wed May 23, 2007 9:49AM EDT
LONDON (Reuters) - The best tourists in the world are the Japanese, followed by Americans and the Swiss, a survey based on views from hoteliers across Europe said Wednesday.
Japanese tourists stood out for being polite and tidy, securing 35 percent more votes than the Americans who came second.
Swiss tourists were commended for being quiet and considerate, unlike the Britons who were judged to be the fifth worst tourists because of rude behavior, noise and a miserly attitude to tipping.
But despite their faults, hoteliers do look favorably upon British spending habits voting them the third biggest holiday spenders after Americans and Russians.
Based on responses from 15,000 European hoteliers, the survey carried out on behalf of travel Web site Expedia showed that the worst tourist nation was France, followed by India, China and Russia.
Britain was second in the worst-dressed tourist table which was headed by the Americans, and fifth in the least-generous table which was headed by the Germans. reuters.com/article/wtMostRe … 3120070523[/quote]
IMO a poorly written article. Lack of detail re:results.
Having worked in the tourism industry myself for far too many years, I would have to offer my opinion that gay people make the best tourists. Followed closely by biker gangs.
Then stagettes followed up by stags.
That’s as far as tips go. If I was to demograph which group is likely to spend more overall cash, I’d have to go with corporate incentive groups. Cheapest group? The nearly dead.
AND: I have hosted some wonderfully classy folks from France and some absolute pigs from Japan. Even met a group of German Rastafarians on Koh Chang last time…friendly, well read, smelly…dreadlocked and full of mange… Hell, I even befriended a veteran of The Vietnam War who made a fortune as a logger in Montana. Me, the beatnik bohemian clown hanging out with what I couldn’t imagine to be a more stereotypical antithetical personality from mine own. Oh, and his cursing out the bus driver in Bangkok as I boarded, was my first impression of the guy, so as far as “an American tourist”, he started off on the way wrong foot. He turned out to be cool in an old man curmudgeon sort of way…kinda like Sandman without the brogue…
Yup, gimme a biker gang or a gay pride thingy like The Gay Olympics or Whistler’s Snow Ball over a tour group from a particular nation anytime.
Oh shit my brother is traveling in Europe and in Germany right now, oh wait they said this guy was 41 too old to be my brother. I wouldn’t be surprised if he pulls some antics to taint the good ole USA too. Guess it runs in the family
You waited tables at a resort town near the border. My condolences.[/quote]
Sure, but that wasn’t the only job I had. It was the job where I met the biker gangs though, and developed my fondness for leather and ink.
Dude, I lived in Whistler for 10 years. During the summers, I worked as a tour guide on trains that travelled The Rocky Mountains and eventually, one that travelled across the country in 5-star style. I’ve been a liftie and a chauffeur, a bartender and a raft guide, a journalist and a would-be politico. I ran for mayor and audaciously suggested that my administation would do it all it could to secure The Olympics. I was all but laughed off the ballot. I got the least amount of votes in the history of democracy. A guy that was suing the RMOW for putting down his mangy dogs got 10 more votes than I did.
Do you know where the next Winter Olympics are being held? I didn’t become da mayor, but I did get his ear. In fact, I coached his son in Bantamn baseball 3 years after the election and we became friends. 2 years later, Whistler won the bid to host the 2010 games. Coincidence?
So I do have a lot of experience working with “them”. The Gorbs. It’s a fascinating industry and one I hope to get back into eventually, but here in Asia.
I can only hope tht whatever little resort I land on attracts corporately-incentivized groups and gay folk. Finns are fun too.
I don’t want no old folks. (We called the x-country train The Trans-Incontinental).
Out and about and I have to agree; the yanks are good travellers, just preferably not in military units. Likewise the Japs.
Aussies are generally nice but overly eager to impress some stupid national importance about twenty times over that country’s GDP ranking and well actually they’re hicks and they suck, and the poms are marred by having among their generally well behaved numbers some of the rudest and vilest wankers on the planet.
There are numerous sources citing an increase in random acts of violence in Thailand on foreign travellers, and almost any piece you read about this will also mention the related hike in pommie scum tourists.
The dark horses are the mainland Chinese. They accept they are new at this game and tend to keep their heads down, but at this stage tend to be the better educated and are quietly willing to party. Watch this space.