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Telegraph
27-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
What the Spanish really think of the English, according to locals
Spain and England have something of a tempestuous relationship. At points we have been bitter rivals, at others we have fought side by side. We like to bicker over a very large rock. Our royal families have inter-married. The English have stolen plenty of Spanish words (patio, siesta, fiesta, tornado). And, of course, Britain as a whole sends approximately 18 million tourists to Spain each year (only around 2.2m Spaniards return the favour and spend their holidays here). As the Lionesses prepare to take on the Spanish women in tonight's Euro 2025 Final, and millions of British families prepare to fly to warmer shores for the school summer holidays, what does Spain really think of us? We asked our Spanish experts, and two of their local friends (Gina Guillén and Nora Vos Lizari; see audio clips below), to reveal the truth. 'The stereotype of the badly behaved Briton is alive and well' Eddi Fiegel, Costa Brava destination expert The British tourist looms large in the Spanish imagination. Unsurprisingly, perhaps, given that more of us visit Spain every year than any other nationality. It's also unsurprising that the way we're perceived varies quite dramatically depending on where you are and who you speak to. Whilst we're generally seen as polite and respectful, the stereotype of the badly behaved, lager-drinking Briton, having it large it till the small hours is alive and well. Spaniards tend to drink beer in cañas (the equivalent to a half pint), so they're often staggered by some Britons' tendency to down pints in large quantities. They're also surprised at our sometimes devil-may-care approach to sun care. As one Spanish friend told me: 'Spaniards don't understand this hunger to get tanned real, real quick because most of you have very pale skin and the sun here in Spain burns, so it's like 'Wow, they should put way more SPF and be under the umbrella'.' People do, however, acknowledge that most Britons are polite and they're delighted when we make an effort to speak their language and express our appreciation of their food and culture. However, whilst our good manners are seen as a boon, Spaniards are sometimes bewildered when we express our displeasure or complain about something whilst continuing to smile. To locals who, if feeling unhappy, tend to express their displeasure in no uncertain terms, this seems bizarre. 'Since the Brexit vote, the Spanish aren't such big fans' Joanna Styles, Costa del Sol destination expert 'English sounds posh,' my Spanish mother-in-law used to say when she heard me speaking to my would-be bilingual daughters. She, like Spaniards born before or during the Franco dictatorship, felt deep admiration for the British, stalwarts of law and order. Proper. Sensible. The Brexit vote numbed that view, and since then, the Spanish aren't such big fans. They generally divide the British into two camps: those who live in the perfidious Albion, a phrase still used in the press that harks back to the Armada humiliation (piratas is another tag); and those who holiday or live here. The former live in a gem of a country – oh, how the Spanish adore Cambridge and Oxford; they love the shopping and the pomp and circumstance at London monuments; and can't get enough of the chocolate-box villages and rolling hills. Britons who visit or live in Spain are different. 'Why do they burn themselves to a crisp, drink themselves into a stupor and want dinner at 5?,' asks my friend Luis, echoing most of his fellow compatriots. 'We call the British ' guiris ' [an affectionate Spanish word for foreigners, comes from guirigay meaning festive chaos]. They're people who are out of place, disorientated, who come here looking for sunshine, food and the fiestas in Spain, who has no sense of the ridiculous,' says Luis. 'We see funny situations when they try to integrate with the Spanish by joining in the dancing and folklore at our fiestas, but it's obvious and we all know that they have no idea what's going on,' he adds. Spaniards also fail to comprehend why so many British expats – including those who have lived here for decades – don't attempt to speak Spanish. Our long-time neighbour from Clacton said 'Mornin' to my Spanish husband instead of ' buenos días ' for years. 'It's like they think they're better than us,' says Luis. He, like over 49 million others, is hoping La Roja will show just who is superior and beat the British (again) at their game. 'There's a lot of admiration, particularly in sport' Sally Davies, Barcelona destination expert There's no sugar coating it – ask someone from Spain what they think of when they think of the English and you're going to hear one of the following: warm beer, ' balconing ' (the perilous practice of leaping from balcony to balcony after a big Magaluf night out) and the 'lunacy' of Brexit. It could be worse – until surprisingly recently this list would have also included Benny Hill, one of our more bizarrely successful exports. Catalan actor Pep Planas thinks there's a lot of admiration for the English, 'particularly in sport, and especially football,' though the dining culture leaves him confused. 'They have this great cuisine but they don't give food the same value that we do, particularly at lunchtime. We think about meals as a place to be with family and friends, not just a way to relieve hunger.' 'I don't think one should really generalise,' says Mari Méndez from O Grove in Galicia. 'But I do get a very different impression of the English at home from the English abroad. When we go there, they can be a little impolite, and less inclined to help us out when we're struggling to understand something. 'But when they come to my home town they're always charming, very keen to try our food, and to understand the culture and language.'
Scottish Sun
13-06-2025
- Scottish Sun
From souvenir stamps to different surnames: Five ways your passport could stop you boarding your flight
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) MILLIONS of Brits will be heading abroad in the next few months to make the most of the summer holidays. However, thousands of families are also being caught out by a number of strict rules in place, which has seen them banned from their flight. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 5 Stamps in your passport are just one of the ways you could be breaking the rules - and be banned from boarding your flight Credit: Getty Most of the confusion comes down to not knowing all of the passport rules in place. So we have explained the five ways that people are being forced to miss their holidays, all because they made a mistake with their passport. Fake souvenir stamps Some holiday destinations offer a souvenir in the form of a novelty stamp. Places such as Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin, The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum in Japan, Machu Picchu and Ciudad Mitad del Mundo in Ecuador (where the equator runs through) are just some of the places offering the fake stamps. Even in the UK, the Welsh village Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch which has the world's longest place name offers them. However, don't be tempted to put the stamps in your actual passport, and instead ask for them on a piece of paper instead. One woman said she was stopped from entering Thailand after getting a stamp in Machu Picchu. Another was banned from her flight to the US because of a Hello Kitty stamp in Taiwan. Someone person on Reddit said they struggled to get a visa for India because of a novelty stamp, while another said they were banned from entering Malaysia for similar reasons. While some places might not might the stamps, it is best not to risk putting them in your passport. Brit yoga teacher stranded in Thailand & barred from return flight over 'tiny' passport problem…would YOU have noticed? 5 Novelty stamps are a huge risk to have in your passport Credit: Alamy Different surnames to your kids If you are going on holiday with any kids that don't share your last name, you could run into problems at the border. Strict anti-trafficking rules mean that border staff are required to ask for any documents that prove they are related to you, or you have permission to take them out of the country. For example, if they are your children but you do not share their surname, you will need something like a marriage certificate alongside your passport. Mum Eddi Fiegel was nearly banned from boarding their Eurostar home with their daughter from Disneyland Paris, as she was not married to her partner - so had a different surname to her. And a family missed their Christmas holiday to South Africa because their son had a different name to the mum, and the dad wasn't travelling with them. An alternative option is a consent letter, sharing permission from their legal guardian although this may not be accepted in all countries. Any minor damage (depending on country) When it comes to damaged passports, the UK government cite the following as damage: you cannot read any of your details any pages are ripped, cut or missing holes, cuts or rips in the cover cover coming away stains on the pages (for example, ink or water damage) Any passport that falls under these rules will need to be replaced. However, some countries have much stricter rules when it comes to what a damaged passport is. Indonesia is known for having some of the world's most restrictive rules with a number of travellers banned from travelling to Bali. One man said there was a "minuscule tear on the photo page, barely visible to the naked eye" while another person was told it was "too dirty" to be allowed. Any tiny tears or spills on a passport is likely to get you banned from a holiday to Bali. Vietnam is also just as strict, with the UK Foreign Office warning: "Your passport must have no damage. "British nationals have been denied entry and exit due to passport damage." 5 Bali (pictured) along with Vietnam have some of the strictest rules Credit: Alamy Incorrect expiry date One of the most common mistakes thousands of Brits are still making is having the correct expiry date on their passports. Pre-Brexit rules allowed UK passports to have a validity of 10 years and nine months (rolling over unused months from the previous passport). This is no longer allowed, so any extra months are no longer seen as valid. This is only affecting Brits with a burgundy passport, as the new navy passports only have a 10-year validity. If you have a different start date to an expiry date, you might run into trouble, so make sure to add 10 years to your start date to find your correct expiry. You will also need a few extra months on it depending which country you are travelling to. 5 Make sure you have enough empty blank pages to leave room for entry and exit stamps Credit: Alamy Not enough blank pages If you are a frequent traveller, you might find your passport is getting a bit full. But most countries require at least one page to be fully blank, to leave space for an entry and exit stamp. For Europe, every country requires one full page, while countries including Germany, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Finland, Netherlands and Portugal require two pages. One person on Reddit said they were told to get a new passport as they only had "three [blank] pages scattered about," while another said they had to get an emergency passport in Bangkok after needing a full blank page to go to Laos. One of the strictest is South Africa, which requires three blank pages. Standard passports have 34 pages, so you might want to pay extra for a 54-page passport if you plan on travelling a lot. Or you can try the sneaky trick, where passengers put a blank post it note on a page so border officers don't use it to stamp.
The Irish Sun
13-06-2025
- The Irish Sun
From souvenir stamps to different surnames: Five ways your passport could stop you boarding your flight
MILLIONS of Brits will be heading abroad in the next few months to make the most of the summer holidays. However, thousands of families are also being caught out by a number of strict rules in place, which has seen them banned from their flight. 5 Stamps in your passport are just one of the ways you could be breaking the rules - and be banned from boarding your flight Credit: Getty Most of the confusion comes down to not knowing all of the passport rules in place. So we have explained the five ways that people are being forced to miss their holidays, all because they made a mistake with their passport. Fake souvenir stamps Some holiday destinations offer a souvenir in the form of a Places such as , The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum in Japan , Machu Picchu and Ciudad Mitad del Mundo in Ecuador (where the equator runs through) are just some of the places offering the fake stamps. Read more on travel rules Even in the UK, the Welsh village Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch which has the world's longest place name offers them. However, don't be tempted to put the stamps in your actual passport, and instead ask for them on a piece of paper instead. One woman said she was stopped from entering Thailand after getting a Another was banned from her flight to the US because of a Hello Kitty stamp in Taiwan. Most read in News Travel Someone person on Reddit said they struggled to get a visa for India because of a novelty stamp, while another said they were banned from entering Malaysia for similar reasons. While some places might not might the stamps, it is best not to risk putting them in your passport. Brit yoga teacher stranded in Thailand & barred from return flight over 'tiny' passport problem…would YOU have noticed? 5 Novelty stamps are a huge risk to have in your passport Credit: Alamy Different surnames to your kids If you are going on Strict anti-trafficking rules mean that border staff are required to ask for any documents that prove they are related to you, or you have permission to take them out of the country. For example, if they are your children but you do not share their surname, you will need something like a marriage certificate alongside your passport. Mum Eddi Fiegel was Paris , as she was not married to her partner - so had a different surname to her. And a family missed their Christmas holiday to South Africa because their son had a different name to the mum, and the dad wasn't travelling with them. An alternative option is a consent letter, sharing permission from their legal guardian although this may not be accepted in all countries. Any minor damage (depending on country) When it comes to damaged passports, the UK government cite the following as damage: you cannot read any of your details any pages are ripped, cut or missing holes, cuts or rips in the cover cover coming away stains on the pages (for example, ink or water damage) Any passport that falls under these rules will need to be replaced. However, Indonesia is known for having some of the world's most restrictive rules with a number of travellers banned from travelling to Bali. One man said there was a "minuscule tear on the photo page, barely visible to the naked eye" while another person was told it was "too dirty" to be allowed. Any tiny tears or spills on a passport is likely to get you banned from a holiday to Bali. Vietnam is also just as strict, with the UK Foreign Office warning: "Your passport must have no damage. "British nationals have been denied entry and exit due to passport damage." 5 Bali (pictured) along with Vietnam have some of the strictest rules Credit: Alamy Incorrect expiry date One of the most common mistakes thousands of Brits are still making is having the correct expiry date on their passports. Pre-Brexit rules allowed UK passports to have a validity of 10 years and nine months (rolling over unused months from the previous passport). This is no longer allowed, This is only affecting If you have a different start date to an expiry date, you might run into trouble, so make sure to add 10 years to your start date to find your correct expiry. You will also need a few extra months on it depending which country you are travelling to. 5 Make sure you have enough empty blank pages to leave room for entry and exit stamps Credit: Alamy Not enough blank pages If you are a frequent traveller, you might find your passport is getting a bit full. But most countries require For Europe , every country requires one full page, while countries including Germany , Belgium , Cyprus, Czech Republic , Finland , Netherlands and Portugal require two pages. One person on Reddit said they were told to get a new passport as they only had "three [blank] pages scattered about," while another said they had to get an emergency passport in Bangkok after needing a full blank page to go to Laos. One of the strictest is Standard passports have 34 pages, so you might want to pay extra for a 54-page passport if you plan on travelling a lot. Or you can try the sneaky trick, where 5 Follow the rules and you won't have any problems heading abroad this summer Credit: Alamy
