Survey Reveals the World’s Politest Tourists

Whether it’s trying local delicacies, leaving generous tips, or being remembered for good manners, every nationality has its own travel reputation. A new survey by online marketplace for African safaris, SafariBookings.com, set out to uncover the biggest personality traits among tourists. They asked 192 of their tour operators the following questions:

Which nationality is the politest?
Which nationality tips the best?
Which nationality spends the most money while traveling?
Which nationality is the most active and adventurous?
Which nationality is the biggest foodie?

These are the results:

The Most Polite Tourists

Rank	Nationality	Percentage
1.	Japan	21.1%
2.	Norway	10.6%
3.	Switzerland	10.4%
4.	Canada	9.2%
5.	USA	8.7%
6.	Poland	8.2%
6.	Netherlands	8.1%
7.(=)	Germany	5.7%
7.(=)	UK	5.7%
9.	France	3.3%
10.	China	3.2%
11.	Spain	2.3%
12.	Australia	2.1%
13.	Italy	1.3%

The survey revealed Japanese tourists are the politest, with 21.1% of mentions – almost double that of Norway in second place. Italian tourists were rated the least polite in the survey, with just 1.3% of the survey answers rating them the politest nationality in the world.

A tour operator from Imara Tours Zanzibar shared, “Many of our European guests are very interested in wildlife behavior and often ask detailed questions about animals and conservation. Their curiosity makes game drives very engaging.”

The Best Tippers

Rank	Nationality	Percentage
1.	USA	29.5%
2.	Germany	13.1%
3.	Canada	10%
4.	Switzerland	8.6%
5.	UK	6.9%
6.	Norway	6.6%
7.	China	6.5%
8.	France	6%
9.	Spain	5.8%
10.	Netherlands	4.4%
11.	Australia	2.6%

Tipping behavior is most commonly associated with American tourists, who dominated the ranking with 29.5% of mentions – far ahead of all other nationalities. Tourists from Germany, Canada, and Switzerland follow more closely, while other nationalities account for smaller percentages.

The Biggest Spenders

Rank	Nationality	Percentage
1.	USA	24%
2.(=)	Germany	12.8%
2.(=)	Canada	12.8%
4.	Norway	11.8%
5.	China	8.5%
6.	UK	8.1%
7.	France	7.2%
8.	Switzerland	5.1%
9.	Netherlands	4%
10.	Australia	3.5%
11.	Italy	2.2%

Again, American tourists came out on top by a considerable margin, accounting for 24% of answers in the survey. The close positions suggest tourists from Germany, Canada, and Norway have similar spending habits while on vacation.

A tour operator from Imara Tours Zanzibar shared that regardless of nationality, tourists arrive “hoping to see the Big Five, but often leave saying that unexpected moments, such as watching elephants interact with their young or witnessing a dramatic sunset, became their favorite memories.”

The Most Adventurous Tourists

Rank	Nationality	Percentage
1.	Germany	21.1%
2.	France	17.8%
3.	Netherlands	11%
4.	USA	9.5%
5.	Australia	7.9%
6.	China	6.8%
7.	Italy	6.4%
8.	Canada	6.3%
9.(=)	UK	4.5%
9.(=)	India	4.5%
11.	Spain	4.3%

Adventure-seeking behavior is led by German tourists, ahead of French tourists in second place. The other nationalities follow closely, revealing a diverse ranking with European travellers featuring strongly across the top three.

A tour operator from Imara Tours Zanzibar shared that American tourists “are often surprised by how close they can get to wildlife while remaining safe in the vehicle. Their excitement and enthusiasm are always enjoyable to witness.”

The Biggest Foodies

Rank	Nationality	Percentage
1.	India	18.7%
2.	Japan	17.5%
3.	France	12.4%
4.	China	12.3%
5.	Netherlands	7.7%
6.	Italy	7.6%
7.	Spain	7.5%
8.	Germany	7.1%
9.	USA	4.9%
10.	Canada	2.2%
11.	UK	2.1%

The foodie category revealed one of the most balanced distributions across nationalities, with Indian tourists narrowly ahead, closely followed by Japanese tourists. French tourists rank third, while Chinese tourists also feature highly on the list alongside nationalities from the Netherlands, Italy, and Spain.

A tour operator from Rafiki Tembo Tours & Safaris shared, “After years in tourism, I have found that people from different countries are often more similar than different. Regardless of nationality, there is usually the same excitement when guests see their first elephant, lion, or giraffe in the wild.”

Anita Kovalevska, data researcher and content manager at SafariBookings.com, commented on the study:

“What stands out in these results is how different nationalities lead in different areas – Japanese tourists for politeness, Americans for tipping and spending, and Germans for adventure. For the questions surrounding food, the results are much more diverse, suggesting that individual preference plays a bigger role than national customs.

“Overall, it’s fantastic to see so many different nationalities in the ranking. Traveling provides the perfect opportunity for people from all over the world to come together and enjoy the magic of an African safari.”

ENDS

If you use these insights, please link credit to https://www.safaribookings.com/

Source: SafariBookings.com internal survey data

Methodology: Internal data was used to analyse the number of safari enquiries made in 2024 from each country. Each country was then assigned a weight based on how its enquiry volume compares to the median country, meaning countries with fewer enquiries than the median received a weight above 1 (boosting their votes), and countries with more enquiries received a weight below 1 (reducing their votes). Each country's raw vote count was multiplied by its weight to obtain a weighted score, and all weighted scores were then converted to percentages within each category.

Some respondents named multiple nationalities in an answer; these have been included in the counts.