[msdivy]

Originally Posted by jailbird_fynix

This led me to wonder how the rest of the world generally perceives us as tourists. And to nobody's surprise, I found that we've made it onto most of their "Top 10 Worst tourists" lists. With rising confidence, have Indians decided to be as unruly abroad as they are at home?

Indians believe their country is best, their civic sense & mannerism are best. Why would they change when they are in a different country?

[Samba]

You have done a lot of research and sadly all your points are true. Indeed a very good topic.

It feels sad how other countries do not like Indian tourists for their behavior/attitude.

What i feel is, its the selfish nature. Most of us cant think outside of us or our family.

Few small examples which we commonly see in India are -

I see cars, after paying the toll, they wont start immediately. They will take their own sweet time to put the change in their purse, put the ticket in a secured place and then start. Whereas they can easily do that just after going out of the toll booth but they wont!

In train, if one person has got the upper berth, almost all of us must have got a request from that person to give our lower berth to them.

Umpteen number of times i have been requested to exchange my window seat with their middle/aisle seat in a flight.

Bypassing a queue to go in front is a very common scenario on Indian roads.

Littering on public place is very common.

Misuse of water in hotels or from municipal taps.

If we pay for a buffet, 90% Indians will overeat just to justify the money they paid!

Keeping the luggage on an empty chair in a waiting lounge is a common sight in airports and railway stations.

These are just 2-3% of what we see, if i continue to add, the list will just go on & on. When Indians do these in other countries, we are stamped as bad tourists.

Unless we change our mindset and be considerate to others, things will not change.

[SS-Traveller]

Indian tourists are, in general, nice people. A first-time Indian visitor to a foreign land is generally diffident and polite, though s/he may be choosy about the food and the ingredients used. It is only after a few days, or during subsequent visits, that they reveal their not-so-pleasant nature - and there's a good reason for it.

Most places that Indian tourists frequent have a very quiet and polite local population - countries in South East Asia, Europe, Australasia. We consider that politeness to be a form of weakness of their character. Tourists to Middle Eastern countries (and to an extent, the US of A), tend to continue to be on their best behaviour even after the first few days, apprehending not-so-polite action by the authorities.

Broadly, there are 4 types of bad behaviour Indian tourists exhibit:

1. Not controlling their kids:
Indian travellers with small kids tend to let them loose to do their own thing. Kicking the back of the seat ahead on a flight, playing with and dropping cutlery & food to the floor in a restaurant, screaming & bawling, colliding with other people while running around, making a mess in the hotel room and restrooms - all of this is dismissed by parents with a comment of "bachcha hai, khelne do" (they're just kids, let them play).

Here were a few hyperactive kids in the seat behind me, while their parents (3 couples) were busy going through as much free liquor as they could, in the seats ahead of me.



At a restaurant a few days later, there was a loud crash that made me jump - and there was this Indian kid overturning the chairs one at a time, while the parents and other members of the family were busy talking amongst themselves as if nothing was wrong with their kid's behaviour.

2. Being loud:
Whether it be a phone conversation being held with his mum using the speaker phone, or Honey Singh playing on that same phone, Indian tourists love to let the world know about their families and their choice of music. Are headphones that expensive? Must be... otherwise, why carry off those cheap ones from the aircraft? SriLankan Airlines collects those headphones back from all passengers about 30 minutes before the flights land - so headphone theft must be a disease of their citizens too; which brings us to...

3. Grabbing as much as they can of the free stuff, and damaging stuff that can't be taken away:
We took a family from Delhi to a self-service restaurant in Melbourne, where one needs to take little pouches of various sauces to go with the food. The lady took 3-4 fistfuls of those sauce pouches and stuffed them into her handbag. Kal subah breakfast pe kaam aa jayega! (These will come in handy for breakfast tomorrow).

I've also seen this irate Indian passenger next to me on a SriLankan flight, take a toothpick, jab it into the headphone socket and break it off, because the cabin crew took away his headset at a critical juncture of the movie he was watching. Indians don't really care for others' (or public) property.

Of course, this signage I found inside a washroom in Australia really left me laughing for quite a while. They must face enough quirky toilet behaviour to need to put this up!



and finally
4. Driving like they do in India:
But then, the Chinese and Americans are worse at it - so much so that they post signs like these...



Some years ago, as I was undergoing training for my Low Risk Driving Train the Trainer certification, a car zoomed past me on the right lane, cut across 4 lanes of traffic, and went into a petrol pump. I casually commented, That must be an Indian driver. My trainer was aghast when we saw a turbaned man climb out of the car as we passed the pump. Do people in India always drive like this? he asked!

There have been at least a couple of reported incidents of Indian tourists having their rental cars impounded by cops in NZ because they wouldn't follow lane discipline and road signages.

[neil.jericho]

Several years ago, I was returning via Singapore from my first trip abroad and the gate from which my flight was to depart was the last one in the terminal. As I was walking past all the other gates, I was watching how orderly and well mannered the different people were as they prepared to travel to different parts of the world. But as I approached the gate with the flight to Bangalore, I noticed how different things were. Most of the flight's passengers were Indians and the manner in which my fellow countrymen were behaving put me to shame. People were sitting on the chairs with their feet up while wearing shoes, children were noisily running around and creating a ruckus, big families were talking loudly as though they were in their backyards, people sprawled on the floor as though they were in their homes and so on. It was a sea change from the rest of the gates in the airport. Ever since then, Ive noticed this to varying degrees at different airports each time I travel abroad.

The biggest problem I see with Indian tourists is our entitled mindset when we go abroad. We paid for the hotel stay, so we are allowed to take the towels home. We paid for flight ticket, so we are allowed to take the cheap headsets home. We paid for buffet breakfast, so we are allowed to take some cutlery home. We get lounge access, so we are allowed to take 4 bottles of beverages in our bag before we board the flight. We bought our tickets into the park, so we can ogle at the local women all we want. We paid for flight ticket, so we are entitled to lots of booze.

A large majority of our tourists dont know when to leave our Indian-ness behind and be more considerate when they go abroad. Sadly all this brings disrepute to the considerate Indian tourists who want to go abroad and absorb the culture and history of the world.

Im glad that video of the Indian family in Bali got widely circulated. Shame on them. What an embarrassment they are to our country. I do hope that their friends and family have got to see it.

It just goes to show, money can buy you everything but not class.

[twin_turbo]

Adding to what everyone said, there is some reality to the reports. For example, while i was travelling on a business trip, i know a colleague who got warned by the hotel staff for packing his lunch box from the breakfast buffet. I understand people might want to carry some food for later or take it to the room but packing a 3 'storied' dabba with fruits, main course and desserts was a bit too much for the hotel staff.

So there is some reality in all the complaints. Especially, the one point mentioned above on punctuality, littering everywhere etc. Stealing things like in the video is atrocious and should be reported, regardless of the nationality.

On the other hand, a lot is just because of the cultural difference. Talking out loud in the open or packing lunch while on a trip is just an Indian thing. Unless it causes direct inconvenience to others, i think it is fine.

[landcruiser123]

I hope such rotten eggs shown in the video are extremely rare. But I'm not too surprised. Living in the USA has taught me that people of all races can be noisy too.

What Indians don't have is a respect for the system and care for their surroundings. NIMBY- "Not in my Backyard" - a term used to describe how Indians don't care where the trash goes as long as it is not in their house/backyard. Most Indians don't think twice about inconveniencing others for the personal gain which they never get. It is seen as normal (unfortunately) in India, but rude everywhere else.


A resort in Switzerland has to pay high wages to keep their staff during breakfast, they will have limited hours.

[McLaren Rulez]

It shouldn't be a surprise really. The same disgusting behaviour is on full display everywhere in India too. Rude, loud, rule-breaking, cheap and shockingly lacking in civic sense - the vast majority of India's population are a total waste of air.

It remains to be seen how many generations it takes to change but I doubt it'll happen in any of our lifetimes.

[revvharder]

I am sad but have to agree all of your points are the harsh truth.

I and my family travels a lot either within India or outside India and I represent my country when I am travelling, people should understand the same. They are representing the whole community if they are visiting a foreign land.

After reading and hearing a lot about the bali video I would say to people like these that you should postpone the holiday and purchase those things rather than stealing a Hotel's property.

Even in International flights there are those 90% Indian kids who just create ruckus.

I always prefer to carry my own pair of headphones which are more comfortable and hygienic but I have seen not only indian's but foreigners too sneaking headphones.

Once I was travelling from India to US and my family was already there but I had my exams so I had to catch the flight two days later and to my surprise Emirates just upgraded me to the business and this gentlemen wearing gold jewelery, having an iPhone sneaks in the ipad provided in his bag and I could say nothing to him because what could a 16 year old boy could say, so I decided to tell the steward about that. After listening to me, I returned to my seat and they had a meeting with the captain and the captain just kindly told the passenger to return the Emirates property or he would have him arrested as soon as they land. The man turned red in embarrassment and handed it over to the pilot and after 30 minutes or so we landed and as a thank you gesture Emirates provided me with complementary upgrades and asked how many people will we be on the return journey and provided for same.

In the end I would say 60% of those ill mannered Indians just destroy the reputation of those 40% well mannered Indians and I would be extremely embarrassed if a 4* or 5* hotel hands me out a flyer like mentioned by OP because if I can spend 8 to 12 grand a night for a room I can afford the rest too.

[rapid_fire]

I agree very well with the Opening post. In my opinion, the main reason for this could be the difference in our culture. Most of the westerners give a lot of importance to “how they are being perceived by others”, while most of the Indians have a “I don’t care” attitude. Politeness is very important in their culture, which is evident in their language and behaviour, and for us it is the least important thing in our fiercely competitive environment.

I don’t think we can do anything to change behaviour of the adults in our country, but we can atleast train our children, teach them good manners and how to talk politely and behave civilised in a community, so that we can avoid such disgrace at least in future.

[GutsyGibbon]

Originally Posted by sushantr5

1. Compared to tourist from developed countries, we always emphasize and covering the most of things in the given span of time. We want to see all do all for sake of doing it. We think we will never come back and why shall we miss anything from all the tourist attractions. Contrary to Tourist from Europe-USA, they would like to have experience, they will relax in their holidays. They will go hiking, cycling and what not activities. Foreign tourists gets relaxed in their holidays and we get tired in our holidays..

It does take a while - even for people with opportunities to change from this mindset. We have lived more than 20 years in the US. Even with USCs the checklist mentality was overwhelmingly present in both me and my wife.

We had been to Hawaii right after getting married, and both of us ran from one tourist spot to the other, and felt compelled to see everything. Got up early in the morning, gobbled enough breakfast to last the day and tried to see everything to make sure the answer to "have you seen this" is always a "yes of course". At the end of this vacation I was tired and drained. My American colleagues at work were shocked to see me tired after a vacation that was supposed to be relaxing.

Then we went again to Hawaii (after more than a decade), with grownup kids in tow. With a mindset to relax, we rented an oceanfront apartment/vacation stay. Enrolled kids in surfing lessons, and had enough novels and books to read by the beach. For 7 days, all I did was sip Mai Tai, eat freshly cut pine apples, read magazines and just idle away. It was life changing. At the end of 7 days I was on cloud 9. When people ask me, if I have seen this or that in Maui, I readily say "no". And, I am very fine with it.

These days vacations are very different for us. Last time we went to Switzerland, we took a comforter and an all day nap by Lake Constance, wandered around aimlessly. For a 7 day stay, I think I have 1 or 2 touristy spots I can name. This much change in mentality only came after our second visit to Hawaii.

As you rightly said, we can all change provided we feel/realize there may be opportunities in the future, or live in peace even if there are none. The present is the most important one, that we absolutely deserve to enjoy. Honestly, I have never looked at any of the pictures I have taken in the 90s. So much time and energy went into creating those pictures.

[twin_turbo]

Originally Posted by GutsyGibbon

Honestly, I have never looked at any of the pictures I have taken in the 90s. So much time and energy went into creating those pictures.

Makes so much sense. We click pictures after pictures, buy external hard drives and make duplicate copies, only to never open it again.

It takes a lot of strength to decide that you will not cramp every place on the map in the 5 days of vacation you get but once you do it once, you realize the true meaning of the word 'vacation' i guess.

[ROG_AK]

Cultural differences or not, is politeness something that needs to be taught? Perhaps it is. Having grown up in a humble African country, I had the shock of my life when I had to return to India and witnessed the utter disregard for people around you. I think it stems from fundemental principals which are not instilled at an early age.

[kiku007]

My addition to the thread? Misuse of Wheelchairs.

Overenthusiastic children book Assistance Services like Wheelchair for their parents even though they have NO disability.

Reasons like the below are the most common,
1. This is the first time they are travelling abroad.
2. The service is free.
3. Peace of mind. The person will take care of my parents through immigration, customs etc.

Seriously??

I hang my face down in disgrace whenever I see this unfold in the airport arrival lounge.

50+ aged Indian parents will be pushed on a wheelchair by Airport/Aircraft staff, the parents see their children/relatives and they cooly get-up and walk much to the dismay of the staff.

I've heard of instances where Aircraft staff have refused to provide Wheelchair services when the passenger doesn't need it and they have point blank said, "you can walk can't you? There might be someone else who can use this."

I strongly dissuade my cousins/friends from doing this. But then what the hell, unless the airlines charge for it, the misuse will continue.

[Avenger_123]

What an excellent topic, am currently in US and keep traveling between India, Canada, and US. I can relate to most of the observations.

I really do not have anything against retaining our identity and culture, but there are few things I get irritated with -

* Patience - we are always in a hurry, not sure why. Right from the signal to wait in the queue. On a recent trip to India, I was pissed off when the uncle behind me kept on pushing me, even though the line was not moving, this is to board an aircraft !!
* Absolute disregard for personal space- For most cases, we don't mind barging into other's personal space. As someone told - complete paisa vasool is our mindset in everything.
* Personal Hygiene - This is relative, most of us have strong body odor, I believe driven by the food we are used to. But we need to make sure it is controlled. I remember when my company set up the India development center, people were coming to Canada for training . After the first batch we had a mail coming from the VP to Indian counterpart about importance of personal hygiene - like use deodrants etc. There were also pictures from the resort showing hair blocked Jacuzzi tubs and all - needless to say highly embarrassing.

I believe the mad competition and push to Excel in all field is the root cause. We do not have that feeling of plenty that we see here in US - whether it is roads, food or anything.

[vigsom]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Broadly, there are 4 types of bad behaviour Indian tourists exhibit:

1. Not controlling their kids:

they're just kids, let them play

2. Being loud:

3. Grabbing as much as they can of the free stuff

4. Driving like they do in India:

Of the four points listed above, the one that irritates me the most is 1.

1. Most of us as kids didn't have the privilege of taking international trips because our parents couldn't afford them; not anymore with kids of today.

There is a lot of disposable money today, but no upbringing; and that is how such behaviour surfaces.

2. Grabbing free stuff and leaving hotel rooms in a mess is exhibited even by senior leadership, stating that the hotels have charged so they have to be made to work.

I have seen cases of Senior Vice Presidents taking coffee, tea, dairy whitener costing less than 30 rupees with them and depositing these rare items at home to build a museum.

Once at Moti Mahal, I even saw a group grab packs of aftermint (mukhwaas) after paying a bill of close to 4 grand.

On a flight from AUH, a guy got a can of beer and then in less than 5 mins asked for another. The flight crew told him to first finish the first one then ask for another.

Such experiences are endless.

Money can't buy everything.