Jaunted - Tag: Travel Surveys

Survey Says: French Tourists Still the Worst

amandak — 2009-07-15T17:34:18-05:00

It's time again for the now-annual Expedia survey results on the world's best and worst tourists: and the French have done it again. Done it again on the wrong end of the scale, that is, because the survey says:

French travelers are the biggest skinflints, the worst tippers and the least able or inclined to speak foreign languages. They also finished next to last in terms of their politeness and behavior.

Ouch. At the top of the list were the oh-so-polite Japanese, again, followed by English, Canadian, German and Swiss tourists. In some interesting individual categories, the Japanese were named as the least likely to complain and the Italians won the best fashion sense gong, while Americans, Italians and Spanish scored the top three spots in the "loudest tourists" section.

Keep this info in mind when choosing your travel companions in the future and you might end up having a better trip.

Related Stories:
· French Tourists Still the World's Worst [Time]
· World's Worst Tourists: The French Who Only Speak French [Jaunted]
· Japanese Tourists Are the Best [Jaunted]

[Photo: lecercle]

The Titanic Awards Lets You Say, 'Yes, This Travel Experience Is The Worst'

juliana — 2009-06-23T18:11:08-05:00

Over here at Jaunted, we see all kinds of travel surveys on nearly every part of the travel experience. There are surveys about the worst airline food and the meanest flight attendants and the hottest destinations and so forth. Heck, we've even created some of our own. But there's a new sort of survey site on the scene called The Titanic Awards. Here is the site's mission statement in its own words:

If you’ve ever wedged yourself into an airplane seat, checked your luggage or checked into a hotel, you know there are few perfect trips on this planet. Something invariably goes wrong. At times, very wrong. It may be a computer scheduling glitch you can almost understand. Or something bizarre, but entertaining. Even outright incompetence at almost incomprehensible levels.
The Titanic Awards seeks to take a different approach to these often spectacular underachievements in the travel industry… by celebrating them.

Survey Travel: Brits Heading to All the Globe's Corners

amandak — 2008-10-24T10:26:21-05:00

In the UK, another travel survey's been done to serve the needs of another travel company. OK, cynicism aside, the recent discoveries of Opodo are actually pretty interesting: Their theory is that a relatively strong Euro and pound have had British travelers heading further away from Europe for their vacations.

The first weird thing is that the destination which has really taken off is Lima which has had an almost 100 percent increase in bookings. We're guessing these travelers are actually en route to Machu Picchu, but the survey makers are letting us draw our own conclusions.

Other spots where you're likely to find a sudden influx of British travelers include the eclectic mix of Jordan, Cairo, South Korea and Bulgaria. Of course, following the example of the naughty Brit who pretended to be Spanish, you may not even know you're traveling amongst Britons.

[Photo: markg6]

Central City: World's Worst Cities Announced

ced138 — 2008-10-23T10:00:50-05:00

Dear Central City, Colorado: Your town sucks. Sorry. It wasn't up to us to decide. We heard it from the National Geographic Center for Sustainable Destinations, which released preliminary data on its findings, to be published in next month's National Geographic Traveler.

The list cites Central City's uncontrolled casino growth as the reason for its number one slot. Second on the list is Phnom Penh, because of its "indifferent government." True enough! But selling the riverside French colonial city with its distinct architecture, vast cuisine and kind populace short because it has crappy managers is like writing off America for the same reason. And we wouldn't want to do that, now would we?

The survey is not yet available on the organization's website, but keep checking: It should appear before the end of October, in time for Traveler's November issue.

Related Stories:
· World's Worst Cities Announced [PPP]
· Wake up Tourists: St. Louis Most Dangerous City in the US [Jaunted]

[Photo of Phnom Penh: serge]

World's Worst Tourists: Do Germans Really Steal Tips?

amandak — 2007-09-12T09:30:01-05:00

Despite an Expedia survey suggesting Germans were the world's most popular tourists, anecdotal evidence seems to suggest the opposite. In a BBC Talking Point forum, German tourists were frequently mentioned. Of course, there are a whole stack of German tourists out there, increasing the probability that they'll annoy somebody, somewhere.

Excuses aside, apparently it is not only their habit of putting their towels on pool chairs before dawn that's considered very annoying: a traveler who'd backpacked around Asia said they'd seen a lot of German tourists "treating the Asians quite rudely". A tourist worker from Bali described German tourists as the most arrogant on the planet, and someone who'd worked in a London restaurant near a major tourist attraction said "the rudest tourists tended to be either very young or very old Germans".

One commenter even said they had "caught a German stealing from the tip plate on the bar more than once in Tunisia". We've heard Germans are supposed to be stingy, but stealing from the tip plate?!

Related Stories:
· World's Worst Tourists Coverage [Jaunted]
· Germans Tourists Beat Heatwave With Nudity [Jaunted]
· Bus Driver Burns Pool Towels [Jaunted]

[Photo: Ancia_ontour]

World's Worst Tourists: Chinese In Third Place, But Working On It

amandak — 2007-09-05T09:30:01-05:00

Seeing hoards of Chinese tourists is still a relatively recent phenomenon, and it seems the Chinese themselves are still learning how to be tourists. That might explain why they came in third on an Expedia survey of the world's worst tourists. Chinese tourists were also voted "most reluctant to sample foreign food". Perhaps because there's always a Chinese restaurant wherever you go?

But luckily the Chinese foreign ministry is onto the problem. They've issued guidelines to help Chinese tourists learn appropriate behaviors. The main advice is to:

Keep peaceful in public places, don't talk loud and avoid sticking out. Don't get involved in other people's quarrels in public places.

The ministry stops short of suggesting Chinese tourists should show a more adventurous spirit with their menu choices, but one step at a time.

Related Stories:
· European Survey Gives High Marks to US Tourists [SF Chronicle]
· China Tells Its Tourists No Shouting [SMH]

[Photo: curoninja]

World's Worst Tourists: Israelis Might Top The List

amandak — 2007-08-29T09:50:01-05:00

We thought we'd heard all we could about the world's worst tourists. That is until we came across a BBC discussion from a couple of years back said that it's not only British holidaymakers to watch out for: Israelis join them at the top (or bottom?) of the list. According to workers in the tourist industry who joined the discussion, Israeli tourists can be noisy, arrogant and obnoxious. An amusement park employee had this to say:

I work at Disneyland and come in contact with tourists from all over the world on a daily basis. My co-workers and I all agree that Israelis are the most consistently rude tourists we have the misfortune to deal with.

Another commenter said they'd heard guides in Thailand who show around groups of Israeli tourists are paid double "because it's such hard work!" At this point, we're not sure which country can brag that its tourists are the absolute worst, but it's surprising just how many nationalities are in the running. Perhaps we should do away with tourists altogether?

Related Stories:
· World's Worst Tourists: The French Who Only Speak French [Jaunted]
· World's Worst Tourists: Could Indians Be In The Running? [Jaunted]
· World's Worst Tourists: The Bad, Bad British [Jaunted]

[Photo: Sanctu]