“The hardest job kids face today is learning good manners without seeing any”. ~

A while back Trip Advisor surveyed 3,800 travelers about which behaviors tick them off when they visit a pool or public beach. And they weren’t shy about sharing their opinions about these annoying behaviors. Ranking up there was chair hogging, blasting music, kids running amok, invasion of space and smoking. AND they gave the “thumbs down” on tight-fitting Speedos (especially when accompanied by black socks & sandals 😉

Frankly when people book a tropical vacation it should be mandatory that they read up on “beach etiquette” (another mandatory read should be “airplane etiquette” but that’s for another blog!). On many occasions we’ve had to pack up and move on a beach due to people yelling, encroaching on our space or trampling over us.

The fact is no matter how beautiful and jaw dropping a beach can be, the whole experience can be ruined by inconsiderate behavior of other beach goers. Having some proper beach etiquette can help you avoid being a “beach BUMmer”!

So here’s a few (tongue in cheek 🙂 beach etiquette tips that will help keep frowns at “bay” (pun intended!)

1. Space: make sure you place your towels, cooler and chairs a respectable distance from others so it doesn’t turn into a game of Twister to move about. Securely anchor your umbrella so a neighbour doesn’t get impaled if the wind grabs it.

2. Music: don’t be the “boom box” person. There’s now a new invention called an “iPod! People go to the beach to relax and not hear a small concert. (And frankly I’ve heard enough of “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” to last a lifetime).

3. Sand: shake out towels in a secluded spot so you don’t blind your neighbour or literally turn his “sandwich” into a SANDwich.

4. Kids: while you may love your kids, not everyone else does. Keep kids from running wild, soaking and sanding towels and keep a handle on their noise level. (And NO, strangers do not want to watch your kids while you go swimming).

5. Language: beaches are for families and not nightclubs so keep your foul language to yourself. (Little ears are listening and the next thing you know they’re repeating it to grandma (insert eye rolling.)

6. Horseplay: while it’s fun to play Frisbee it’s really not fun getting whacked on the noggin’ so go find a secluded spot to play.

7. View: don’t block the view of someone who specifically arrived early to get a good water view (especially if you have one of those mega umbrellas that block a mile of the beach).

8. Boozy bathers: we all want to enjoy a Corona, but keep in mind too many can be obnoxious and dangerous (and frankly falling into a sand castle moat is not pretty.)

9. Noise: refrain from screaming (unless you’re drowning) & be considerate, turn down your phone, and keep your conversations discreet – we have no need to hear about you going ‘hog wild’ at the bar last night.)

10. DO NOT, we collectively beg of you, feed the seagulls. Believe it or not some people don’t appreciate the squawking & bird droppings that go with feeding these vulture-like birds. (Trust me they won’t go hungry if they don’t get your Doritos.)

Overall, a little common sense and courtesy will go a long way to ensure everyone has a happy day at the beach. Given the stats, I think I’m onto something here.

Come stay in our fab rental properties and enjoy the best beaches and service!

Contact us today at info@yourbestgetaway.com! And YEP we are on Instagram now so check out our fun posts here!

Salud!
“PLAYA” Gal (a very satisfied client now working to promote Playa Beach Getaways!)

Sally Foran is a happily married mom of 3, residing in Canada and is a frequent traveler to the Riviera Maya MX. She is an aficionado on ‘everything Playa del Carmen’ and writes with joy and passion about the area. Sally has completed online courses to act as a certified travel agent for the Riviera Maya MX. She is also a witty blog contributor to Work & Family Foundation Canada, and NAVUT (offering professionals new to Ottawa the inside scoop!) Sally has also been awarded Blogger of the Week, and nominated as Blog Treasure Hunt of the Month on TravelBlog.Org which enjoys over 250,000 bloggers world-wide.

Playa Beach Getaways / Your Best Getaway is a Denver CO. based company owned by Tonya Sarina offering luxury oceanfront condos & villas in Playa del Carmen & Cabo. They have earned a rating of Excellent by Trip Advisor, FlipKey and VRBO and continue to earn raves from satisfied guests who return time after time. They have also been awarded a “Super Host” designation on Airbnb & earning rave reviews on Booking.com.