advice for British hoteliers to avoid offending foreign guests

The classic TV comedy series "Fawlty Towers" starring John Cleese was based around a rude and rather neurotic hotelier

After seeing the earlier post about bizarre complaints made by the archetypal "whingeing Pom", a reader has sent in this article in The Telegraph about an equally bizarre list of dos and don'ts for hoteliers to help prevent insulting foreign guests devised by VisitBritain:

"DO: Understand that Indians are amiable but have a tendency to change their minds quite frequently.

DO: Ensure tourists from Russia – a 'tall nation' – are housed in rooms with high ceilings and doorways.

DO: Realise that Australian people are being endearing when they make jokes about 'Poms'.

DO: Anticipate all of the needs of a Japanese visitor – even if they haven't told you what they are.

DO: Deal promptly with any complaint from German or Austrian tourists, who can be 'straightforward and demanding' to the point of 'seeming rude and aggressive'.

DON'T: Ask superstitious people from Hong Kong to sleep in a historic property or a four-poster bed because they associate them with ghostly encounters.

DON'T: Exchange a smile or make eye contact with anyone from France who you do not know.

DON'T: Describe a visitor from Canada as 'American'.

DON'T: Try to talk to Belgians about their country's politics or language divisions.

DON'T: Say 'no' in a direct way to a Japanese tourist – instead think of a 'nicer alternative'.

Full article