Why do tourists not want to act like /look like tourists?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For me, I like immersing myself in whatever culture I'm in. I feel like it gives me a real taste of the place. Appearance does play a role in this. I'm also a bit of an introvert, so I don't like being haggled/having a ton of attention on me. I prefer blending in.

The minute you open your mouth, they will know you are not a local. When you go to a restaurant, the waiter will know you are not a local. When you buy a souvenir, the salesperson/cashier will know you are not a local. When you go to a tourist site and ask someone where the bathroom is, they will know you are a tourist. When you get in a cab, and tell the driver where to go, he will know you are a tourist.

You can't really get away from it.

NP. I know people will be identify me as a tourist, but I still don't like standing out as a really obvious one.

I grew up in a tourist town, a cruise ship stop. Believe me, we treated people VERY differently depending on how they approached us. The people who treated us townfolk like animals in a zoo, taking pictures of us doing our normal daily things, gawking of our "quaint" little houses, completely overwhelming our restaurants and being really loud in their utter disbelief that our restaurants dared to serve different things than theirs at home - yeah, they were obnoxious. They completely changed the feel of our town with their presence. We did everything possible to avoid them. I tried to not even go into town on cruise ship days. On the other hand, if someone showed up and really showed an interest in getting to know our town, we'd show them the really cool stuff that the tourists never knew existed. We loved having them around. They became "honorary locals".

And you know what? After a few decades of this, 90% of the time you can guess which type of tourist it'll be based on how they dress and carry themselves. I want to be the approachable kind of tourist. Like it or not, how you dress projects something about you. What kind of image do you want? You may not care. But when I'm traveling, I would like for locals to not have an immediate eye-rolling reaction to my presence, and I'd like the opportunity to engage with them a bit. Dressing the part helps.

FWIW, though, I actually find this matters less in big cities. You find all types there anyway, so you don't really stand out no matter what. It makes a big difference when you get off the beaten path.

This is true. Where did you grow up, btw?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For me, I like immersing myself in whatever culture I'm in. I feel like it gives me a real taste of the place. Appearance does play a role in this. I'm also a bit of an introvert, so I don't like being haggled/having a ton of attention on me. I prefer blending in.

The minute you open your mouth, they will know you are not a local. When you go to a restaurant, the waiter will know you are not a local. When you buy a souvenir, the salesperson/cashier will know you are not a local. When you go to a tourist site and ask someone where the bathroom is, they will know you are a tourist. When you get in a cab, and tell the driver where to go, he will know you are a tourist.

You can't really get away from it.

NP. I know people will be identify me as a tourist, but I still don't like standing out as a really obvious one.

I grew up in a tourist town, a cruise ship stop. Believe me, we treated people VERY differently depending on how they approached us. The people who treated us townfolk like animals in a zoo, taking pictures of us doing our normal daily things, gawking of our "quaint" little houses, completely overwhelming our restaurants and being really loud in their utter disbelief that our restaurants dared to serve different things than theirs at home - yeah, they were obnoxious. They completely changed the feel of our town with their presence. We did everything possible to avoid them. I tried to not even go into town on cruise ship days. On the other hand, if someone showed up and really showed an interest in getting to know our town, we'd show them the really cool stuff that the tourists never knew existed. We loved having them around. They became "honorary locals".

And you know what? After a few decades of this, 90% of the time you can guess which type of tourist it'll be based on how they dress and carry themselves. I want to be the approachable kind of tourist. Like it or not, how you dress projects something about you. What kind of image do you want? You may not care. But when I'm traveling, I would like for locals to not have an immediate eye-rolling reaction to my presence, and I'd like the opportunity to engage with them a bit. Dressing the part helps.

FWIW, though, I actually find this matters less in big cities. You find all types there anyway, so you don't really stand out no matter what. It makes a big difference when you get off the beaten path.

This is true. Where did you grow up, btw?

Southeast Alaska. Small towns, big cruise ports. The difference between visiting these places in "tourist season" vs "off season" is amazing, they are completely different places.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agree with whomever says about getting fleeced. Tourists are pegged as easy targets for theft be it a mugging/purse snatching or taxi driver seeing $$$.

I don't try to blend when I travel, just be nice, not obnoxious, but always alert especially in large, foreign cities and sometimes vocal when it calls for it, like you realize you are being taken advantage of. In certain places where the population is fairly somewhat homogenous looking, it's impossible to blend in!

exactly.. has nothing to do with how you dress or look. It's more about your behavior.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live in SF and just this morning was on a streetcar going to work when a group of tourists got on. They were all crowding around the front, trying to figure out how to pay, how to get change, blocking other people from getting on behind them, totally holding up the works. Then one of them somehow didn't manage to get ON the streetcar before it left and she yelled at the driver.

They were so annoying. I don't want people to feel about me the way I felt about them. That's why I don't want to seem like a tourist.

This. I figure that people can tell I'm a tourist, but I don't want to be one of Those Tourists. I want to be respectful, and polite, and not gum up the works. No, I'm not going to blend in, but I also don't need to stand out in any bad ways.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agree with whomever says about getting fleeced. Tourists are pegged as easy targets for theft be it a mugging/purse snatching or taxi driver seeing $$$.

I don't try to blend when I travel, just be nice, not obnoxious, but always alert especially in large, foreign cities and sometimes vocal when it calls for it, like you realize you are being taken advantage of. In certain places where the population is fairly somewhat homogenous looking, it's impossible to blend in!

Yes. To some extent it's like living in a house that doesn't stand out quite so much as a target for easy burglary. Sure, you could get into my house if you really wanted as a burglar, but I'd rather not be the most obvious one you'd pick.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in SF and just this morning was on a streetcar going to work when a group of tourists got on. They were all crowding around the front, trying to figure out how to pay, how to get change, blocking other people from getting on behind them, totally holding up the works. Then one of them somehow didn't manage to get ON the streetcar before it left and she yelled at the driver.

They were so annoying. I don't want people to feel about me the way I felt about them. That's why I don't want to seem like a tourist.

This. I figure that people can tell I'm a tourist, but I don't want to be one of Those Tourists. I want to be respectful, and polite, and not gum up the works. No, I'm not going to blend in, but I also don't need to stand out in any bad ways.

Yep exactly. Those tourists on the streetcar were taking up my commute time and I didn't want to be late to work. Sometimes if I can tell a tourist is lost I will give them directions, or recommend a good restaurant to them.