World's 10 rudest countries for travelers
Travelers aren't always welcome, and some people let you know it
Travel search site Skyscanner recently released a list of the world’s rudest nations for visitors, naming the countries whose smiley and friendly natives are apparently confined to their promotional videos.
The result, which lists 34 countries, is based on Skyscanner’s online poll, which received more than 1,200 responses from Europe, North America and Australia.
France, the champion of impoliteness
La Belle France was declared the champion of impoliteness, garnering nearly 20 percent of the total votes.
French people are known for “their abrupt and curt nature,” especially while facing foreign tourists, Edinburgh-based Skyscanner told International Business Times.
Russia took second place with 16.6 percent of the votes, followed by the United Kingdom (10.4 percent), Germany (9.93 percent) and a puzzingly labeled “Others” (miscellaneous countries).
China (4.3 percent) ranked sixth on the list, leading Asia.
Language barriers and cultural differences are the main causes
China-based etiquette expert Lawrence Lo (卢浩研) pointed out that language barriers and cultural differences are the two major players behind the ranking.
“The French are very protective of their language, and customers can get different responses for ordering in French or in another language,” said Lo.
Yi Bao, Skyscanner marketing manager for China, gave an example to back the "culture difference" theory.
According to Yi, though queuing is a social norm in the West, it’s not a common behavior for Chinese people, “so [it] could be interpreted as being rude [by international travelers.]”
The personality of hospitality staff is another contributing factor.
Lo said many restaurants’ waiting staff in Chinese cities are usually young women from rural areas, and that the Chinese are naturally more shy than Westerners.
“[These waitresses] don’t have the confidence or language skill to handle foreign travelers. Sometimes, they’d rather avoid them,” said Lo.
“On the other hand, a lot of French waiters have worked in this position their whole life, so they have a superiority complex in front of travelers.”
Lo also said the result of the survey depended on what type of travelers were voting.
"For many backpackers, challenges in language and culture actually form part of the fun of traveling," said Lo.
Here are the 10 rudest countries on Skyscanner’s list:
1. France
2. Russia
3. United Kingdom
4. Germany
5. Others
6. China
7. United States
8. Spain
9. Italy
10. Poland
The countries voted least rude were:
25. Japan
26. Denmark
27. Canada
28. New Zealand
29. Indonesia
30. Portugal
31. Thailand
32. The Philippines
33. Caribbean region
34. Brazil
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