I luv to hear when tourist try to pronounce some of the unique NYC names like Houston Street. I once told a tourist that mispronouncing it can get u kill. You should have seen him...he had "Oh Snap!" look on his face. Then I told him I was kidding ;)

#46 - You feel less safe in your Canada hometown? I thought it was super-safe there, is there a lot of crime in your city??

And of COURSE people want to visit the WTC site. Duh.

American tourists in other countries are just the same, if not more cuntish, than the tourists we have here.

Anna Anderson, a dentist from Malmo, Sweden, thought New Yorkers must find their floors shameful, otherwise why would they be hiding them, as in the room she and her husband shared in the Hotel Pennsylvania. “There are carpets glued to the floor covering the whole room,” said Ms. Anderson, 36.

It's not so much being ashamed of the floor as so much as there probably aren't any floorboards in their hotel room, and the carpet's the only thing stopping people from falling through into the room below.

they need to learn to get out of the way of people who have no time.

Sounds like you have an incredibly inflated sense of your own importance.

How about teaching humans not to stop in the middle of the sidewalk, or at the top of the stairs/escalator as if they were the only person in the world?

Yeah, those people are called New Yorkers. Five bucks says you've been guilty of this.

The dumber the tourist, the ruder they think I am. Funny how that works.

I think I have found the definition of irony.

I'm not a New Yorker, but visit often from Canada. As a single female, I feel completely safe walking in Manhattan alone at night, which is not the case in my hometown. You guys are damn polite, too, and I absolutely agree about the behavior of tourists on the street. Walking at a snail's pace, 5 people across, is not acceptable no matter where you're from.

When in the city, I get stopped about once per day and asked for directions (in non touristy areas). Something about me must look local yet non-threatening. =)

I love the ones who try to out-Noo Yawk the Noo Yawkers. Very entertaining, especially if they're french.

Well, despite the increase in the number of tourists coming to Brooklyn in recent years, it still pales in comparison to the number of tourists visiting Manhattan. I'm grateful for that when I come home to the relatively quiet streets in Brooklyn Heights/Cobble Hill.

Now, we just need the Dollar/Euro exchange rate to reach a point where it doesn't make sense for a lot of Europeans to come here. In other words, I'll get a more reasonable deal on my next European vacation.

The dumber the tourist, the ruder they think I am. Funny how that works.

How about teaching humans not to stop in the middle of the sidewalk, or at the top of the stairs/escalator as if they were the only person in the world?

And how about not trying to stop someone who's running (literally) to work to try and ask where the M&M store is?

Tourists who come to NY need to remember that this is a city where people WORK. It's not a leisurely city. They should enjoy themselves, yes, but they need to learn to get out of the way of people who have no time.

Indeed, moving to the side so people can get by isn't rocket science, and it isn't some unique local custom. It's common sense, which most tourists seem to forget at home.

On the other hand, it's not rocket science to let people off the subway before trying to push your way on. Yet how many of the "intellectually superior" NYC natives still do that?

@ #4 & #5:

FWIW, toilets like that in Germany and many other parts of Europe are supposedly designed this way to conserve water. The design seems totally counterproductive to me, though, since you have to flush approximately eleventy million times to actually get stuff to go down.

which way is the World Trade Center?

still many tourists are afraid of the dark and light dark.

People you cant have your cake and eat it too...If you choose to live in a world hub such as NYC accept the fact that there will be many many tourists from all over the world. There are many other cities you could choose to live in which are much quieter (and much cheaper) but yet most residents enjoy the electric atmosphere which tourists contribute to.

And reffering to tourrism as a safety net...gimme a break; 3 local airports, thousands of hotels and restaurants, shopping gallor, taxis, street vendors, museums etc...many of which would be out of business without tourism...

dear tourists,

this is not just a playground for your silly vacation. people actually work and live here. you would do well to get out of the way.

kthxbai.

Plenty of tourists are annoying, plenty are totally cool and know how to blend into a city. Of course it's only the clueless, bumbling ones you notice. Just like plenty, if not more, of native New Yorkers are loud, bumbling, fat morons. I've had lost tourists block the subway door and more sweaty natives block it who should know better.

"Just because you're a tourist, doesn't mean you have carte blanche to be an idiot."

Well of course not. And just because someone is a tourist, and in our way, doesn't give us the green light to shove them.

And it's damn hard to know where you are going all the time in this huge bustling and very confusing city. Even when you are from here! Imagine getting out of an airport shuttle in midtown.

i shoulder checked the shit out of this girl last week. her and her friends took up the whole sidewalk standing around all facing one direction, even oblivious to a very rude "EXCUSE ME" about 1 foot from her ear. i was trapped by scaffolding as well so it was like the two worst things in the city combining forces to drive me over the edge

The German tourists are channeling George Costanza's spirit.

Except for the nine-months pregnant part, I agree with AnonEMouse.

@robingee

Yes, many of us are aware of where the tourist are, but due to occupational requirements, we also cannot avoid these locations. Consequently, we grow to hate tourists for the aforementioned reasons.

"Do you think that tourists in Tokyo get shoved aside by the locals? Hell no."

I have in fact been shoved aside by locals in Tokyo during rush hour in the subway station. And I deserved it for getting in the way of people trying to make a living and because I didn't do my homework as to where I needed to go.

Just because you're a tourist, doesn't mean you have carte blanche to be an idiot. Just because you are contributing to the local economy, doesn't mean you have no responsibility to try and familiarize yourself with your environment.

Indeed, moving to the side so people can get by isn't rocket science, and it isn't some unique local custom. It's common sense, which most tourists seem to forget at home.

In NYC, while I don't shove idiot tourists, many of them deserve a decent shoulder check for egregious sidewalk blocking.

Tourists never bother me one bit. If someone doesn't visit NYC often or has never came here before, of course they're going to be lost, confused, taking pictures everywhere etc.

It probably will be the same way for most people when they go visit another city, which they are not accustomed to.