7 phrases tourists use that locals secretly roll their eyes at

I've lived in three countries across different continents, and each time I moved, I went through that awkward phase of being the obvious foreigner. You know the one where you think you're being polite or friendly, but the locals are giving you that patient smile that says they've heard it all before.

Living in São Paulo now, I see it from the other side. Tourists say certain things with the best intentions, but those phrases make it pretty clear they're just passing through. Some are harmless. Others make locals mentally check out of the conversation.

Here are the phrases that get the most eye rolls, and what you can say instead.

1. "How much is that in USD?"

This one makes people bristle every single time. When you ask a vendor or server to convert their prices to dollars or euros, you're basically saying their currency doesn't count as legitimate.

I've heard this phrase in markets from Kuala Lumpur to Santiago, and the reaction is always the same. A slight pause. A polite but cooler response. The local currency is real money to the people who earn it and spend it every day.

If you need help with the conversion, just pull out your phone and do the math yourself. Better yet, learn the rough exchange rate before you arrive so you have a sense of what things cost. It takes five minutes and saves you from that moment where someone has to smile through their annoyance.

2. "I don't eat spicy food" (in places where spice is standard)

Look, I get it. Not everyone has the same tolerance for heat. But when you're in Thailand, Mexico, or India and you announce that you can't handle spice before even tasting the food, it comes across as dismissive of the entire cuisine.

Spice isn't just about making your mouth burn. It's part of the flavor profile that's been developed over centuries. When you refuse it outright, you're missing the point of what you came to experience.

A better approach is to ask for mild versions or try small amounts first. Most places are happy to adjust the heat level if you ask politely. But don't walk into a culture known for bold flavors and expect them to bland everything down without at least trying what they're actually serving.

3. "Everything is so cheap here"

I cringe every time I hear this one. Yes, your currency might stretch further in certain countries. That doesn't mean everything is cheap for the people who live there.

When tourists say this loudly in restaurants or shops, they're forgetting that locals earn salaries in that same economy. What feels like a bargain to you might represent a significant expense for someone else. As noted by G.K. Chesterton, "The traveler sees what he sees, the tourist sees what he has come to see." That perspective matters when you're commenting on prices.

If you want to appreciate good value, keep those observations to yourself or share them quietly with your travel companions. Shouting about how cheap everything is just highlights the economic gap and makes locals feel like their home is being treated as a discount destination rather than a real place.

4. "Do you speak English?" (without even trying the local language first)

This phrase has become such a reflex for English speakers that most don't even realize how entitled it sounds. You walk up to someone in their country and immediately expect them to switch to your language.

I'm guilty of this too, especially when I first moved to Brazil. But I quickly learned that even a basic "bom dia" or "obrigada" changes the entire interaction. People respond with more warmth when they see you're making an effort, even if your pronunciation is terrible.

The problem with leading with "Do you speak English?" is that it assumes English is the default. It puts the burden on locals to accommodate you rather than showing respect for where you are. Try a greeting in the local language first. If they respond in English, great. If not, you've at least shown you care enough to try.

5. "This is just like [insert Western city]"

Comparing every new place to somewhere back home is exhausting for locals to hear. When tourists say things like "Oh, this is just like Portland" or "This reminds me of Brooklyn," they're reducing a unique place to a familiar reference point.

I get the instinct. We all try to make sense of new experiences by connecting them to what we already know. But when you do it out loud, you're telling locals that their city only matters in relation to yours. It flattens everything interesting about where you are into a copy of somewhere else.

Every place has its own character shaped by history, culture, and the people who built it. When you visit, pay attention to what makes it different rather than hunting for similarities. The whole point of travel is to experience something new, not to find versions of home scattered around the world.

6. "I'm basically a local now"

Spending a week or even a month somewhere doesn't make you a local. This phrase drives residents up the wall because it erases the years of lived experience that actually shape someone's connection to a place.

I've been in São Paulo for a while now, and I still wouldn't claim to be a true Paulistana. There are layers to understanding a city that take time. The unspoken social rules, the neighborhood dynamics, the way people navigate daily life. You can't absorb all of that on a short trip no matter how many local spots you visit.

Saying you're basically a local also suggests that being a tourist is somehow embarrassing. There's nothing wrong with being a visitor. Own it. Ask questions. Be curious. But don't pretend you've earned insider status when you're still figuring out how the metro works.

7. "Why don't they just do it like we do back home?"

This is the phrase that makes locals want to end the conversation immediately. When you criticize how things work in a different country and suggest they should just copy your home system, you're being incredibly arrogant.

Different places have different ways of doing things for reasons that are usually more complex than they appear. Infrastructure, history, climate, and culture all play a role in why systems look the way they do. Cultural dimensions deeply influence how societies organize themselves, from business practices to daily routines.

If something seems inefficient or strange to you, get curious about why it works that way instead of immediately judging it. Maybe the slower pace exists because people value different things. Maybe the confusing system makes perfect sense once you understand the context. Either way, your two days in the country don't give you enough insight to declare that everything should change.

Final thoughts

Travel is supposed to open your mind, but that only happens if you approach it with humility. The phrases locals roll their eyes at all have one thing in common. They center the tourist's perspective and treat the destination as existing primarily for their convenience or entertainment.

When you travel, remember that you're a guest in someone else's home. Learn a few words in the local language. Keep your voice down when discussing prices. Don't compare everything to where you're from. Show genuine interest in how and why things work differently.

Those small shifts in how you communicate make a huge difference in how you're received. And honestly, your experience gets better too when you stop performing tourism and start actually connecting with the place you're visiting.