From taking your shoes off indoors to being on time, a new survey reveals the social etiquette rules that travellers should know before heading to Europe.
Euronews – New research has revealed the etiquette rules travellers should know before heading to Europe, from greeting strangers to getting dinner right.
Preply, an online language learning and tutoring marketplace, looked at public data sources and surveyed 1,600 people living in 27 countries about European etiquette, and the results challenged some assumptions we’ve all probably been guilty of making.
You might associate Europeans with cheek kissing as a greeting, but it’s actually far less common than you might expect. In 23 of 27 countries, the majority of people surveyed would actually wait for the other person to initiate two cheek kisses.
While not every country is as strict as Sweden – which saw 100% of respondents say it’s a must – taking off your shoes is common practice across the continent. In 24 out of the 27 countries, most people said they would take their shoes off when visiting someone’s home.
Everyone likes to receive a gift from a visitor, but some like it more than others. More than half of the survey respondents considered bringing a gift to be standard practice, while a third said they reserve gift-giving for special occasions.
While opinions differ on most etiquette topics across Europe, finishing food was considered respectful across all 27 countries. Seen as a universal marker of respect for the host’s effort, 82% of men said they always finished meals, compared to 75% of women.
Online searches for the term “is it better to be on time, early or late?” were, according to Preply, up 66% globally over the past year, and the data reveals a somewhat complicated answer. In 23 out of 27 countries, respondents favoured arriving on time, with Greece particularly keen on punctuality, while 35% of men said they prefer to arrive early, a higher figure than female respondents who aim to arrive on time.
