A French tourist in Britain has shared their experience of visiting London and what stood out to them the most.

On Reddit, the user Commercial_Tiger_524 gave their feedback about the UK’s capital city after taking two trips there last year. They first came to London to do an internship at their brother in law’s company and they came again later to accompany him during a visit to England.

The French tourist took a train to St Pancras Station and wandered around the streets of Mayfair and Knightsbridge. Perhaps surprisingly, what stood out to them the most was how “welcoming”, “kind” and “friendly” the locals were.

Stereotypically, people in the north of the UK are viewed as friendlier than those in the south, particularly in London, where locals are often seen as being too busy getting on with their own days to take notice of others or to say ‘thank you’ to the driver when getting off a bus. The Reddit user recalls walking on a narrow pavement in London and bumping into a man dressed in a suit who said: “I’m sorry mate.”

The user, who is a fan of luxury cars, searched for some in Mayfair and Knightsbridge and “was not disappointed”. In their Reddit post, they added: “Apart from that, I found the locals to be very welcoming, kind, and smiling. Was it just luck, or are you all like that?

“One experience that stands out: I was walking on a narrow sidewalk and accidentally bumped into a man in a suit. I panicked and apologized, and he replied ‘I’m sorry mate.’ I’m not sure if that’s common in England, but people are so friendly! I felt like he was talking to me like I was one of his friends!”

The French tourist also enjoyed their second trip to London last year and even decided that “London is better than Paris.” However, there was one downside – “the smell of mushrooms from the all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet at the hotel.”

Despite Londoners generally not having a reputation for being as friendly as those in the north, one quirk common among all Brits seems to be apologising for bumping into someone or even when someone else bumps into them. One Reddit user who commented on Commercial_Tiger_524’s post claimed: “If you walk into anyone British, even if you do it on purpose, we will say sorry. We say sorry about everything. It’s a weird thing we do.

“Also French people speaking English sounds very nice, so generally you will find people like the sound of your voice. Also we are very polite, until we get drunk (which is quite alot) and then we can be very outrageous.”

Another added: “We will always apologise in situations like that… even when we think it’s your fault. It’s more ‘I’m sorry this situation exists’ but Londoners are friendly.”

Someone from America who moved to London said: “I hope you continue to come over and explore England and the other countries that make up the UK – it’s kind of an amazing place. London has grown on me over time.

“I loved it as a tourist, but hated it when I first moved here. I think homesickness for my home city and the previous European city we lived in before moving to London had a lot to do with that. There’s a billion things to see and experience, so enjoy it!”

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