To be mad at tourists?

[Laserbeam24]

AIBU to be mad at tourists? I live in a place that's popular with cruise ships. Which is fine, great for the local economy. My house it's is right at the end of the Main Street, cue lots of tourists holding maps and doing lots of pointing.

Today, the number of tourists have totalled to HALF of our population. That's a different gripe altogether, though.

I have two cats who enjoy sitting in the window and watching the world go by. I also have a six month old. The issue that I have, is that tourists are stopping to tap on my window (!!!!) to get a response from the cats. I could understand if this was a child once in a blue moon, but it's multiple times every day, and typically grown adults every time there's a liner in.

I've also had a good number of people look into my windows. Not just a sneaky glance as they walk past, but two hands on the window around their face so they can get a proper look in.

I've tried blinds. Someone knocking gave the cats such a fright they jumped and broke the blinds. I don't want to have to keep my curtains shut every day. I'm not going to scold my cats for being at the window, it's their house too! What do I even do?

I'm worried that my daughter is going to grow up thinking this is normal. It's also just incredibly infuriating. Where are people's manners! AIBU?

Interesting post. I too am a born and bred Londoner with generations of family before me all from London.

We left because it because it changed . And not in a good way.

Which I won’t go into because I will be flamed and shouted down … and I am in a precarious place mentally as it is so no, won’t go there.

Personally, I would not go back to London even if you said to me I could live there for free . And as for bringing my beautiful babies up there. Not on your nelly.

Such a shame . It used to be so lovely ( gets hard hat and literally legs it……)

An hour or so on Google translate and you could probably get something knocked together!

@SkylarSpirit

You are being a bit over dramatic. In our case we moved hundreds of miles but it is perfectly possible to move a few streets away within the same town providing financially the OP is in a position to do that and there is housing available. It presumably is a Channel Island which are not minute and there are undoubtedly other streets and towns. Literally no one has suggested that she change schools, careers and abandon family and friends and uproot her whole life. There are other less drastic options.

The problem seems to be the OP is not financially in a position to move anyway. Do you rent or own?

@Cornishclio

Not a channel island. I rent, I've accepted that it's not a feasible option to buy a home. Moving to another town on my islands mainland would be an option, but there are no houses up for rent.

We have a huge issue within our NHS and education industry. There's no houses available for people wanting to move up here and start a permanent job, so we have to rely on locums/agency workers.

Literally no one has suggested that she change schools, careers and abandon family and friends and uproot her whole life. There are other less drastic options.

That was the OP's own language:

"As for people telling me just to move; that would be the preferable option but there's no housing available. Moving off island would mean leaving everything and everyone I know behind."

Moving would be quite an extreme response to the issue of your cat being annoyed by people tapping on the window, when solutions like window screens, signs, sprinklers, growing spiky plants, are much simpler.

And maybe not in this thread but "Oh just up and move to a cheaper area/move Up North/look at this lovely cottage in the Outer Hebrides I found on RightMove that's only £22k" (to a professional opera singer or museum curator complaining about London property prices - usually complete with sneery "what exactly are these magical jobs that can only be done in London") or "just sell your house and buy somewhere cheaper" (to someone wanting to get a bit of cash fast) do come up a hell of a lot on MN.

Not really relevant to your post, but I thought i would answer something you said. For some reason you mentioned council housing, you said you wouldn’t be entitled to one because you work. That is not correct, actually the majority (I’m not saying vast majority here btw) of people I know who live in council houses work. Whether you get on the list is a different matter, and the list might be years long, but working or not does not have a bearing on getting a council house.

You are a better person than me @Laserbeam24 I would be out there berating the nosy fuckers or opening the window and doing so.

London is a different matter. I'm a born and bred Londoner too and it's awful how we're being pushed out, but London is the capital city. There's really no comparison to being priced out of a major world city due to an increase in people moving there permanently resulting in an increase in property prices, and people feeling they have to give up their lovely houses that they already own because tourists who are just passing through for the day are acting like antisocial twats.

Why is it different though? particularly as so many Londoners are 1/2nd gen immigrants so have no ties to other parts of the country & don't necessarily feel comfortable leaving London.

Blimey do people still use paper maps?
Yes, the batteries don't go flat!

Can you get that film that makes the windows dark from the outside but you can still see out of? That way no one can see in. The cats can still sit and look out as well. I'd also get a sign saying please do not touch CCTV in operation to try deter them. Absolutely ridiculous people I'd never dream of touching somones window or looking in.

1 way mirrored film.

They then cant see the cat or in your property.

I would be interested to know why you assume OP must live somewhere in the Channel Islands. There are many, many islands in UK. I live on one and it's not a Channel Island. Your circumstances have absolutely no bearing on OP's post and are indicative of the lack of imagination a lot of people on MN seem to suffer from. Everyone's personal circumstances are unique.

This is really annoying!

You can actually get stuff to put on your windows so that you can see out fine but when people look in it’s like a mirror and they just see their reflection.

There was a thread years ago about tourists taking the mick and there were people regularly sitting on peoples garden furniture whilst eating, picking fruit from their trees and sitting in the garden whilst eating and one even setting up a tent.

I think most of the tourists were British so it’s not even like it was the done thing in their country.

Can I ask where you live just out of curiosity?
I assumed you lived In Southampton because of the cruise ships but now I don’t know.

I’d be tempted to spring up to the window stark naked. That would ruin their day I can tell you! 🙈😂

We get lots of cruise ships in Edinburgh too. The islands off the west coast of Scotland (Arran, Mull, Skye, Lewis etc) are probably on the itinerary and a ship load of tourists has an even greater impact on these small places. People seem to forget how to behave themselves.

Put up a sign. PERSONS TOUCHING THIS WINDOW WILL BE SHOT or similar.

Could you stick up a mask of a face? Sounds a bit daft but like those policeman cut outs they sometimes have in supermarkets. If people feel watched they might stop.

Then record them on her phone checking themselves out fixing their hair and checking for boggies 🤣

I would be tempted to get a sign saying something like this is a family home not a tourist attraction. Would you like me staring through your windows and upsetting pets etc? I think some people just need a wake up call. Quite often when people are on holiday they do things completely out of character and a polite reminder will probably work for the majority.

I am all for a sprinkler that comes on automatically and just right as they approach your window. This would be funny to watch

We live in a moderately touristy village. I found people sitting in my tiny walled garden eating their ice cream. My neighbour found a man in their dining room wanting to order a cup of coffee.

Both were told to feck off in mo uncertain terms.

Worst was a woman holding her naked-from-the-waist-down son up so he could take a puss in the window box outside my living room.

She got bellowed at and told she was a filthy bitch.

I wonder if people forget to bring their common sense on holiday. I live in London. It’s tourist central, which is fine. But blocking up the whole pavement so people who want to walk have to step into the road because there’s a horse and they need to take a photo.

I’m sure they have horses wherever in the world you are from, MOVE out the way!

Can you complain directly to the cruise company? If that doesn’t work, then I wouldn’t be polite about it. I’d be out yelling at every person who did it. And then word gets round that the locals are horrid and unfriendly and it might deter others…..?

Motion activated sprinkler would be the funniest!

I thought of that, but poor postman & delivery drivers.

Maybe one of those remote controlled ones, so when you see someone (through your window film) you can turn it on.
A warning sign 'this is private property' and they've had fair warning.