TravelJUN 18, 2023

35 Of The Most European Things, According To Americans

Dominyka Proškėnaitė and Dovilas Bukauskas

139

For the worldly American, the summer Eurotrip is practically a rite of passage. While much connects the US and Europe, the two entities are different enough that American travelers often experience culture shock when they visit different European countries for the first time. One person on Reddit asked American travelers to share what struck them the most when they visited and got a ton of great responses.

The two continents’ histories, both separate and intertwined, make for an interesting opportunitY to compare and contrast how they’ve found different solutions to similar problems. While some of the comments shared were lighthearted and fun, others pointed to interesting differences in perspective.

#1

35 Of The Most European Things, According To Americans

Restaurants paying employees a fair wage and not expecting the customer to make up for low wages.

deadevilmonkey, Brooke Cagle

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309points

#2

Universal healthcare

Feisty_Affect_7487, Karolina Grabowska

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299points

#3

Good bread.

thegreatgatsB70, Pixabay

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267points

Europe is a popular enough travel destination for Americans that there’s tons of info out there on the cultural differences. There are tons of travel sites out there that help American tourists understand some of the cultural and practical differences they can expect. Indeed, stats indicate that Europe was the top outbound US tourism destination by continent with 15.8 million visitors.

#4

Walkable towns

Mustang46L, Lisa Fotios

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264points

#5

Americans think 100 years is a long time and Europeans think 100 miles is a long distance.

DaddyHojo

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244points

#6

Bars older than the US

ncopp, Victor Clime

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217points

One major historical difference is that the USA was born out of a revolution. This gives it quite a distinct cultural legacy and makes it quite young on a historical scale. Some of the answers to this question highlight as much, pointing out that they can visit historical buildings or even working pubs that are older than the entire United States as a political entity.

#7

I think as a whole, it’s there attitude towards work.

The vibe I get when visiting most European countries is most people seem to work only to live. While in the states, it feels we live to work. The most common thing out of an American’s mouth when meeting someone new is what do you do? I did not find this to be the case in Europe, and I am super jealous.

hurtmore, Chahriar Hariri

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203points

#8

Getting sick without going bankrupt

CancerBee69

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200points

#9

Infrastructure built around walking, bicycles, and busses. Not just exclusively built around personal vehicles.

Cassandra_Canmore

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179points

Though the US is considered by many to be the home of capitalism, one difference in some countries is that travelers can expect is to pay for certain services that are often considered to be gratuities in the US. According to TEFL Worldwide, for example, Americans may be surprised that they will have to pay for water at restaurants unless they ask for tap water and they may also have to pay for public restrooms. Many countries will make shoppers pay for plastic bags, but this is part of an EU-wide effort to move away from disposable plastic and towards reusable bags.

#10

900 year old universities

Lazy-Ad-770, Molnár Tamás Photography™

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177points

#11

Everyone is bilingual or multilingual.

Royal_Acanthisitta51, Diva Plavalaguna

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173points

#12

maternity leave

urallclapped, Toa Heftiba

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168points

Another significant cause of some significant differences is the European political structure. The European Union enforces certain differences across the entire union, but at the same time, member states have far more independence than the states making up the US. Some cultural differences stretch across the entire EU and others can vary from country to country.

#13

Tiny city streets.

SuperstitiousPigeon5, Caleb Maxwell

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150points

#14

The sirens that go BEEE booo BEEE booo BEEE booo BEEE booo

TrueReplayJay, camilo jimenez

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142points

#15

Drinking cappuccino on a cobblestone street outside of a cafe, which is hundreds of years old.

vetheros37, Dustin Bowdige

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138points

There are many differences in terms of money as well. Credit cards aren’t as popular in Europe as in the US, and most countries have moved away from paper checks entirely. Tipping for services is also usually considered to be optional, although very touristy spots that can spot American travelers may try to pressure them into tipping regardless.