Though vacationing somewhere makes it seem like living there would be heaven on Earth, the reality of residing in a town fueled by tourism is not a cute one. Here are the 10 most ANNOYING things about living in one.
1. Traffic
Yeah, we all get caught in the occasional two-lane traffic every once in a while but traffic due to tourists is NOT ACCEPTABLE!!!!
Aside from the fact that there are literally a bajillion cars filled with people that have absolutely no idea where they're going, they're terrible drivers too! It takes all of me not to rear end that Ohio native in the minivan who just cut me off by swerving three lanes in three seconds to get off at their exit because THEY DONT KNOW WHERE THEY'RE GOING!
2. Tourist attractions everywhere
So we all like to have a little fun sometimes, maybe even go to a few dinners shows here and there. But lets cut to the chase and I will explain to you the very unnecessary amount of tourist attractions there are in towns like these. I mean this terrible traffic that is basically caused because all of these people rushing to get their kids onto the nearest water slide!
I mean when it is the middle of December and you can't drive but two hundred feet without seeing a mini golf course, beach store, and breakfast restaurants. May I remind you these tourist attractions TRAPS (let's refer to them as such from now on) stay vacant 10 months a year and are taking up precious space that could just be a nice nail salon or something.
3. Tourists taking pictures of everything, everywhere
Okay yeah everybody needs a cute picture on the beach I can definitely understand that sweetie. But if you're honestly going to swerve into a parking lot going 60 in a 35 just to side park and take up three parking spots in your truck to take a picture of a billboard just because there is a 3D shark on it, you need to stop.
Also, if you are going to participate in the action of dangling your iPhone out the window to take a picture of a restaurant I am telling you right now if that phone gets any closer to my car than the 3 inches away it already is... we will have an issue.
4. Four hour waits at restaurants
So, we locals try to stay away from the super touristy packed restaurants you know the ones that people who live here really eat at. However that doesn't keep these vacationers from locating the nearest Outback or Olive Garden. Needless to say the locals discount hardly makes up for the four hours we have to wait just so I can get my ravioli.
5. Overly crowded beaches
So in the offseason walks on the beach are widely enjoyed by everybody. However its quite hard to walk on a beach with thousands of screaming kids throwing their plastic shovels at their feet because their sandcastle fell over. I mean its been made hard just to catch a few rays because you can't even find a square foot of bare sand to lay your towel down due to the overcrowding. I guess on the bright side if theres a shark attack its less likely to be me because of all the other people in the water
6. Tourists take everything/dirty everything up
So I am positive these tourists aren't walking around their hometown throwing candy wrappers and soda cans everywhere, but I guess its fine that they do it in mine!
And I really cannot even go to Ben and Jerry's to get my favorite ice cream (10/10 recommend "Milk and Cookies" anyways this is for another article) without all of the tourists eating it all first and the store running out. Even my favorite places to shop don't have my size in ANYTHING because they all just come and shop all day and buy everything in my size I guess.
7. Prices go UP
Yikes, this is probably the most obvious one there is.
From clothes, food, even Ubers prices are jacked UP! Matter of fact some places even require payment for public beach parking. There are actually some restaurants that have the audacity to charge $19.00 for a turkey sandwich. No thank you, hun, ill come back in February when it costs about $7.99 as it should.
8. No seasons
Oh, how I LOVE AND ADORE the season of fall. Well, what a shame we literally don't have one where I live. Actually, after a little asking around with my friends that live in different vacay beach spots around the U.S.
The one thing they complained about (aside from tourists and traffic) is that there are LITERALLY no seasons at all! I'm sure that we would all love nothing more than to sit and have picnics as we watch the leaves fall, however that is impossible because of the fact that the leaves just die to fall off and grow back. Not to mention there's no snow, but if we're lucky the occasional hurricane.
9. There are hardly any good jobs in the off season for locals
UGH, THIS ONE PROBABLY HITS ALL OF THE 14-15 YEAR OLDS HARD!
We all know that the big bucks for the youngsters come with the restaurant business. During the summer restaurants are booming with hosts, servers, busboys and everybody else running around.
Except once that "fall" and winter season hits, employment cuts back because quite frankly they don't need us to work anymore. Restaurants only hire so many people in the summer because they know it is going to be busy as ever, but that only lasts about two months before a lot of restaurants actually close for the offseason leaving everybody to get a new job. Dog sitting has always sounded fun to me.
10. People always telling you how "great" it must be living in a vacation spot
"Oh my god you live at the beach?! That must be awesome!!"
I'm sure it would be a tad more pleasurable if reasons 1-9 listed above were not so consistent, but they are and we all have to deal with it.
I don't understand why you all think we basically live on the beach like no we have jobs, school, vacation OUTSIDE of where we live and much much more.
You're wrong because, after about a year of living somewhere like this, you've seen all there is to see and you have gone to the beach enough times to fill up a 90-year-olds vacation scrapbook. So what do we have left to do? Go to the mall.
Alrighty well if you can relate to this list at all, congratulations you live in a town where the initial population is actually very small yet triples during vacation seasons. The offseason is our prime as locals and we all must stick together!
But I can't lie I do love a good visit from my grandma and friends once in a while, even though they contribute to most of the items listed above.