Tourists Gone Bad

notyourcommodity

notyourcommodity

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Apr 14, 2015
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I was reading about some of the incidents that have occurred because of tourists in Italy this year.

In March, two California women were arrested for vandalism in Rome after they scratched initials into a wall of the Colosseum and took a photo of it.

In May, two tourists in Cremona climbed an 18th-century marble sculpture of Hercules to take a photograph of themselves. They ended up causing a crown on it to smash to pieces.

In June, three South Korean tourists in Milan crashed a drone into the city’s cathedral while taking aerial photographs.

What do you think about tourists these days? Do you see a lot of tourists gone bad when you travel? And what do you do to try and remain respectful of the local culture and customs?
 
People get confused when they don't understand a natural work of art. Just because something is not guarded or has ropes around it means it should not be touched or defaced.

I think people or some tourists take chances or they don't understand the customs and they do need to be told. It seems obvious not to climb a statue or to deface an ancient building, but it seems apparent people do need to be educated.

I am more of a traveler than a tourist, I blend in wherever I can and I don't flout the rules, and ask if in doubt.
 
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Gabe said:
People get confused when they don't understand a natural work of art. Just because something is not guarded or has ropes around it means it should not be touched or defaced.

I think people or some tourists take chances or they don't understand the customs and they do need to be told. It seems obvious not to climb a statue or to deface an ancient building, but it seems apparent people do need to be educated.

I am more of a traveler than a tourist, I blend in wherever I can and I don't flout the rules, and ask if in doubt.
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Well said - and I liked what you mentioned about seeing yourself more as a traveler than a tourist. I appreciated the differentiation you make between the two (they are very different things, aren't they?!)

I agree that sometimes it is a matter of people simply not understanding what is off limits, but sometimes I also think it's a case of generally being inconsiderate and thinking they're above the law.
 
I would hope that these incidents are just one offs, and I would hope that the majority of tourists act responsibly when they're visiting a foreign country.

If this kind of behaviour is on the rise though, it wouldn't surprise me as I think in society as a whole, people are showing less and less respect for each other
 
pwarbi said:
I would hope that these incidents are just one offs, and I would hope that the majority of tourists act responsibly when they're visiting a foreign country.

If this kind of behaviour is on the rise though, it wouldn't surprise me as I think in society as a whole, people are showing less and less respect for each other
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Yes, you're right, it does seem like it's a societal level thing where manners and respect are somewhat going out the window overall.

I hope if anything the fact that these events have gathered worldwide attention means that people will sit up and take notice, and behave in a more appropriate, culturally sensitive manner.
 
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It could be a number of things. Before the internet everyone bough a travel guide and it always had the dos and don'ts clearly written at the beginning so people couldn't miss it. These days people use blogs or internet guides and skip that section. I used to work on a travel website and while there was a page on what not to do, you still had to choose to click it, unlike reading a book.

People are also more brazen, they think if there is no sign saying not to do it, then it's not wrong or illegal. I mean you don't walk into Buckingham Palace even though there are no 'No Entry' signs do you? I think people do take a chance, and there was a recent video of an Asian tourist prodding one the guards in London and he turned on him and shouted "Get back from the Queen's Guard"and pointed the rifle at him. He knew it was wrong, but still tried it on. Because of this they have had to put a roped area around to stop people approaching, all because of inconsiderate tourists.
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I remember seeing that video, I don't think the tourist will be doing that again in a hurry anyway. Haha.

I also think tho that the world is becoming a smaller place due to Google maps, Google earth, the internet in general and also the speed at which you can actually travel from country to country, and because of that, people aren't as respectful as they once was.

The mystery surrounding different cultures and countries as gone, it's as if we're all just one big blend and anything goes.
 
Some tourists are good - they respect the culture and the people in the area they're visiting. But there are so many other tourists who have no respect for the people who live in the places they're visiting, and sometimes they don't even have any respect for the history of the area. People travel a lot more these days than they did a few years ago, so I guess the respect levels are going down.
 
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I don't think you can class football supporters in with tourists, although I do see what you mean. They are their for one purpose, to see their team win, and if they don't things can get out of hand.

While they might respect the country they're going to, they certainly won't have any respect on that particular day or night, as all they'll focus on is the football side of things.
 
pwarbi said:
I don't think you can class football supporters in with tourists, although I do see what you mean. They are their for one purpose, to see their team win, and if they don't things can get out of hand.

While they might respect the country they're going to, they certainly won't have any respect on that particular day or night, as all they'll focus on is the football side of things.
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If we're counting football supporters as tourists, then I'd say they're the worst 'tourist'. I don't want to generalize, but mostly they end up being the tourists who have no respect for the history or people of the country.
 
I was replying to a previous comment but for me personally, I wouldn't class them as tourists to be honest, they're there for a particular reason, to watch the game, it's not as if they're there so enjoy the actual country they're visiting.

Not all football fans are hooligans though dint forget. I've been to a few countries in Europe following my team and it's rare these days to see the running street battles that people used to associate with football, especially when an English team comes to town.
 
I agree, I wouldn't count them as tourists either. They're not there for the country, they're there for something completely different. And yes, it's true. I wasn't trying to generalize at all - many football supporters are very polite. But there are quite a few who can cause quite a bit or ruckus in the country they're in.
 
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I think people who are visiting a country for the purpose of sports are in a very different mindset and can often be rowdy. However, it is sad if as tourist we can't value what we have traveled to come see and damage its beauty for future tourists. These people don't seem to have any concept of what they are visiting, but rather there just because everyone else has done it and they want to make a mark for themselves. It is truly sad and this type of behavior may some day end the privilege of touring ancient monuments for others who can actually value it.
 
Like I said in a previous post, with the internet becoming more and more popular, the world as got a lot smaller and people don't treat other countries and landmarks with the respect they deserve.

For many, seeing these places isn't a once in a lifetime opportunity, like it once was so there's no magic involved anymore, it's just seen as another day out.
 
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