Comfortable holiday destinations for black people

[Sparklebaby111]

Hi I feel like I'm hitting a wall.

I was considering a nice hotel in Turkey for a last minute holiday, but I really really can't take the 'lets stare at the black people' routine. Anyone willing to share their experience of holidaying in Turkey - more specifically Antalya/Belek. Where else would you recommend where you weren't stared at constantly? In Portugal we found the other hotel guests - mainly Russians and Germans -to be constantly staring. Now we have our 8 year old, I don't want him to experience this. We went to Mexico last year and loved it - our son is keen to travel the world - bless him! Thanks!

This thread is a bit eye opening for me. I'm black and have never experienced any issues anywhere. Maybe I'm just oblivious, I don't know, but I have never felt stared at or uncomfortable when abroad.

@garlictwist Out of interest where are the places you've been abroad? Are you in quite a mixed area?

@Mackenziemimi For me it tended to be the older generation that just stared and stared sometimes you could tell they were just curious other times it became the hostility was mainly from people mid 40s especially in shops. It wasn't everyone and there were some very nice people that we met but not enough to make me feel to go back for a third time.

Was followed around or ignored quite abit, My friend is mixed-heritage as a group and she noticed too that the tone was different towards her much more friendly and more curiosity than anger. The younger Italians we met were lovely and friendly to everyone but it wasn't enough for me to keep returning.

I went to Brindisi in Italy last year. Loved it. No stares, felt safe. Would go again.

Gee, thanks.

Mainly Europe. Trips in recent years have included Alicante, the French Alps Hungary and also Arizona.

@garlictwist ooh would love to go to Hungary...one of my colleagues is Hungarian and always says how beautiful it is.

With respect to the Asian tourists, it is actually possible that they have never seen a black person before. The UK is a diverse place, lots of the rest of the world is not. If you watch the Olympics, when the athletes all come in during the opening ceremony behind their flag, you will get an idea of how diverse, or not, different countries are.
I had a friend from Mongolia, she said when she first came to the UK she couldn't believe all the different types of people here. She said she expected everyone to be white and, in her words, she 'couldn't stop staring at people'. She said that everyone in Mongolia is Mongolian and that there was one black man in Mongolia and everyone knew who he was. He was an American professor at the University apparently.

Wtf 😬 btw this forum is for black mumsnetters...

WTAF

RLY?

How bloody depressing I didn't realise this was a thing. I did laugh at your "bog standard" comment .

@Kendodd

I do understand that we're so much more diverse in the UK and especially in London.... but they must have televisions and have seen black people before. I've had it a lot from Japanese tourists and I expect if they can afford to travel, they must be exposed enough to not behave like that.

Asking for photos with me, like I'm a circus freak, is so very annoying.

TBH I would just go to the Caribbean or Africa. That way you can truly be happy and have a wonderful holiday without any issues. I’ve never understood why as black people we choose to spend our money in places that don’t want us.

More or less, this. I don't wish to be going abroad, and spending my hard earned money in places where people think it is okay to treat me differently, due to the colour of my skin. Why should I spend X, putting money in their pockets!

I was in Madeira last year with my 3 young black kids. DH was unable to make it.
We were fine, kids made friends with some French kids that didn't speak English and my kids don't speak French 😂 My kids also made friends with two siblings from Surrey and still keep in touch (I met the parents- brownish man and white wife).
At the pool, we were two black women there but the other lady had no kids so she was super hot 😂
I noticed an Eastern European looking girl stare at me and I stared pointedly back at her and she averted her gaze.
Staff at the hotel were a mix of races and were nice, we stayed at Enotel Lido in Funchal.

We were in Majorca in 2022 and it was fine. I felt one of the staff was a bit surprised when the kids said they were from Ireland. Again just me travelling with them 9, 6 year old and 11 month old kids as my husband has form for not getting time off. We did get stares at the airport but that could also be because I am a youngish looking black woman with 3 children.

I remember being approached by a Swedish lady at Palma Airport whilst shopping at mango. She was amazed that I was in my own with all 3 whilst she's struggling with her husband with a baby.

We're off to Billund in Denmark next month and will report back.

My Polish friend keeps asking to go to Poland and I'm like ehhh... nope. Considering her mixed Polish and Turkish kids are considered "black" no thanks 😂

Hope you find someplace lovely for you and your family to enjoy your break.

True that often the racism can come from tourists from other nations rather than locals. When we were in Charina, Crete we had awful overt racism from Russian tourists and in Abu Dhabi we had issues with a Saudi family.

We always check nationality of tourists at the hotel before we go and avoid hotels with large Russian, polish etc groups. So that is worth bearing in mind too. We were invited to a wedding in Poland recently and just decided not to go. Just not worth it.

I wholeheartedly agree and have found this to be the case with other hotel guests - particularly Russians/Germans

Thanks for the replies!

Me and DH visited Lake Como in 2016 and loved it. No stares or bad vibes. In fact, we've been to a few places in Italy and it's one of my favourite countries.

The only holiday destination I have experienced what @Sparklebaby111 has mentioned is Salou in Spain. This was in 2001. I was there as part of a school trip and 1 of 2 black kids in the large group of us who went. Everytime we used the pool in the evening, many of the German holiday makers would stare. I noticed that it was just at me and the other black kid. It made me so uncomfortable. They were very mean stares, like they were disgusted at my presence.

To them seeing you in the flesh is different to seeing you on TV especially if they hear your accent isn't American.

In my case I've had stares from a variety of ethnicities and mostly children.

However the complete and utter rudeness is asking for photos.

Went interrailing a few years ago across Europe and also travel fairly regularly.

No issues in Turkey last year. Stayed in Antalya. Have been to Tenerife a few times and on the last occasion there was a "comedian" doing racist jokes which the crowd loved it I wasn't massively surprised looking at the demographic.

No issues in Italy despite being concerned about that. Saw racist graffiti but I think looking like a tourist was protective. Germany, France and Belgium all fine. Did experience once episode of overt racism from a elderly woman in Austria.

Husband is white and we definitely got stares in New York this month but I found it easier to brush off, maybe because of lack of language barriers. No issues in Jamaica, Barbados or Cuba.

Loved Brazil and Colombia, especially the bits with larger afro populations. Panama was also cool.

No issues in Thailand, some staring in Malaysia but this was over 10 years ago.

I've avoided Eastern Europe.

I had a lovely time at Lake Como, also went there for a wedding, the whole place was great, and the people were warm and welcoming. I'd go there again easily.

Just come back from Dalamam in Turkey and absolutely no issues with staring (we're a very dark Asian family). Although the majority of the guests were white British, there were families from a range of backgrounds and all the kids got on well together.