More Americans than ever before are breaking international
laws when they vacation, but the problem is that they might not even know it.
From simply possessing marijuana to bringing ammunition into
a foreign country, many Americans are unfamiliar with international law and the
numbers don’t lie.
In the past year, there have been more than 120,000 news
articles on “bad behavior on vacation,” six times more (up 512.2 percent) than
the 19,600 news articles the year before.
Dubbing this phenomenon “tourist syndrome,” travel analysts
at Radical Storage conducted a survey to uncover just how normalized bad
behavior on vacation is, and the psychology behind it.
Further showing their apathy or indifference, or both, many
Americans have posed inappropriately with statues in other countries. More than
75 percent of them are below the age of 43.
Knocking over a wall of masterpieces in the pursuit of the
perfect selfie, being intimate on the Great Pyramid of Giza – these are real
examples of tourists behaving badly. Some places, like Copenhagen, are actively
rewarding tourists for good behavior, whereas other places, like Spain, are
seeing waves of anti-tourist protests.
People are more likely to act out on vacation the younger
they are. Around 70 percent of those aged between 18-27 (Gen-Z) said they are
likely to behave differently on vacation.
“Unfortunately, the findings of this survey confirm what we
already know,” Giacomo Piva, co-founder at Radical Storage, said. “The tourism
industry may have recovered from the impact of COVID-19, but sadly the epidemic
of bad behavior continues to threaten the future freedom of travel, with
anti-tourism protests sweeping across Europe.”
“The fact that 56.5 percent of people admitted to behaving
badly and experiencing 'tourist syndrome' on vacation shows us that this issue
isn't about the few ruining travel for the many – but the many ruining travel
for us all,” Piva continued.
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