A survey by LivingSocial, conducted among more than 5,600 respondents in five countries by Mandala Research, discovered that Americans are widely considered the world’s worst tourists, closely followed by China, a new economic power on the world scene.
"Americans turn out to be pretty active globetrotters, with the average person having visited at least four countries,” said Dave Madden, GM of LivingSocial Escapes, North America. “Unfortunately, Americans have pretty low opinions of themselves as travelers, so it’s time to turn on that Yankee charm and improve our global image."
Probably, the same can be said of their Chinese counterparts across the Pacific Ocean. As China continues its dazzling economic growth, though a little slower over recent years, a growing number of Chinese people have socked away enough money and vacation time to afford an enjoyable travel abroad.
Experts assume that Chinese people travelling overseas in 2011 might break the 70 million barrier and consumption of each traveler might average ＄1,000, partly due to the stronger Chinese yuan.
This sounds like an exciting piece of news for countries who are trying to recover from an economic recession and that they have rolled out the red carpet for Chinese visitors. It worked and delivered enormous economic goods for otherwise desperate businesses in Europe. During the shopping spree of the 2012 Spring Festival holiday, Chinese people spent $7.2 billion on luxury goods globally, a 28.57 percent growth year on year, according to World Luxury Association.
Their global fellow travelers, however, don’t feel the same way. Their main gripe is that the Chinese are always shouting, no matter whether they are in a coffee shop or in a museum; The Chinese are also labeled as habitual queue jumpers and litter in an “as-I-wish” way, which earns them little respect while travelling in a foreign country.
Curiously enough, the survey identifies French visitors as the second-worst tourists and ranks Japan, a country commonly known for its elegance and modesty, as the fourth-worst country of tourists.
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