- 8/5/2025
Europe and America share many cultural similarities — but there are still plenty of habits, traditions, and everyday customs that Americans find completely bizarre. In this video, we count down the top 10 European behaviors that often leave Americans surprised, confused, or even shocked.
From dining etiquette to lifestyle quirks — these cultural differences might surprise you!
From dining etiquette to lifestyle quirks — these cultural differences might surprise you!
Category
😹
FunTranscript
00:00But you know what the funniest thing about Europe is?
00:02What?
00:02It's the little differences.
00:04Welcome to WatchMojo.
00:05Today we're counting down our picks for the most unique things that Europeans often do
00:09that Americans might find a little weird.
00:11Obviously there will be some big generalizations to follow
00:14as we realize that not all Europeans do these things
00:17and not all Americans would find them weird.
00:19Come on, throw in a bug.
00:21Uh-uh, I don't tip.
00:23You don't tip?
00:25Number 10.
00:26They kiss on the cheek as a greeting.
00:27Then, you move in.
00:30Applying your cheek to their cheek
00:32and making a little kissing noise.
00:35It doesn't matter if you're friends, family, or even acquaintances.
00:37If you know someone well, chances are you're getting a kiss on the cheek.
00:40Cheek kissing is a common greeting in many parts of Europe,
00:43with countries like Italy, Spain, and France being the most famous for the practice.
00:47Say it.
00:49I'm your friend.
00:52Will you hold me?
00:53No.
00:54Kiss on the cheek.
00:55No.
00:55Just hug me.
00:56I don't want to do any of that.
00:57Two kisses is the norm.
00:59Typically, one on each cheek.
01:00But three or even four kisses is not unheard of.
01:04It's meant as a sign of warmth and familiarity.
01:06But it might be misconstrued as weird in America,
01:09where hugs and handshakes are far more common greetings.
01:12Cheek kissing is seen, but it's often reserved for romantic or familiar relationships,
01:16and is not typically used as an everyday greeting.
01:18My name is Mike.
01:19I'm going to be your driving instructor.
01:21Welcome to our country, okay?
01:22My name is Borat.
01:24Okay, okay, good, good.
01:25I'm not used to that, but that's fine.
01:27Number nine.
01:27They get really close to each other.
01:29Where is it?
01:32Where's what?
01:33Personal space, personal space!
01:41Another reason that kissing is reserved for very intimate couples is that Americans are
01:44huge on personal space.
01:46Many Americans value their space bubbles, typically a couple of feet or more.
01:50Meanwhile, many southern and eastern European cultures are known as contact cultures, and,
01:54well, they love their contact.
01:56Physical touch is often employed not just in greeting, but in general conversation,
02:00and they tend to stand much closer while speaking, which could come across as uncomfortable to
02:04many Americans.
02:05Oh, you must be Kramer.
02:07I've heard about you.
02:13Hey, you must be Aaron.
02:15I've heard about you.
02:16And public spaces are often packed, with people standing exceptionally close to each other
02:20in places like restaurants and subway lines.
02:22Europeans will easily, albeit unintentionally, burst your space bubble.
02:27Dad, do you want to ask for something?
02:28Don't touch!
02:30Number eight.
02:31They sit and drink very small coffees.
02:34Command the door.
02:37Bonjour.
02:38American coffee culture typically emphasizes two things, speed and volume.
02:42That means you walk into a Starbucks, quickly order your coffee, and get a gigantic cup that
02:47can power five Olympic weightlifters.
02:49This isn't really a thing in Europe.
02:51Excuse me?
02:52I happen to be passing, and I thought you might like some coffee.
02:56Oh, that's very nice of you.
02:58For one thing, getting coffee to go isn't nearly as prevalent, with the traditional mindset
03:01being to sit and enjoy your drink, and walking around with a coffee can be seen as touristy.
03:06Furthermore, the portions would be regarded as comically small for Americans.
03:10Espresso is the norm in many European countries, and general coffees are much smaller than the
03:14mega cups you often see in America.
03:16So, if you need your 20-ounce latte, you're going to have a hard time.
03:20Excuse me, miss.
03:21There seems to be a mistake.
03:23I believe I ordered the large cappuccino.
03:26Hello!
03:28Look at the size of this thing.
03:30Number seven.
03:30They have long and late meals.
03:32They can take us at 5.15.
03:34What are we, 80?
03:35Or 10.45.
03:36What are we, 20?
03:37For many Americans, sitting and having a meal seems more like an inconvenience than anything.
03:41Casual restaurant visits last maybe an hour or two, and nightly family dinners can be
03:45over in 10 minutes.
03:47This would be seen as baffling in many parts of Southern and Western Europe, where eating
03:50meals is a prolonged and heavily social exercise.
03:53Late dinners are the norm, often not even starting until 8, 9, or even 10 p.m.
03:57And man, are they long, with meals consisting of multiple courses and often stretching over
04:02some three or four hours.
04:03Even everyday family meals can stretch well over an hour.
04:06And Sunday dinners are often enormous family events.
04:09When they say night out, they mean night out.
04:12So, Ma, you're going to come to the big game?
04:14Game?
04:15What game?
04:16Miss Meadow's soccer team is going to the sectionals.
04:18Nobody tells me anything.
04:20Did everybody hear me just tell my mother about the game?
04:23Number six.
04:23They don't tip.
04:24Hey, we just, we just want our money's worth.
04:27I'll bring them faster than you can eat them, but I want a 20% tip.
04:3120?
04:31I thought 10 was the norm.
04:3315 is standard.
04:3520 is classy.
04:3620 it is.
04:38Why are we still talking?
04:39I want some ribs.
04:40The concept of tipping has been firmly ingrained in the American psyche.
04:44Your waiters, your bartenders, your pizza delivery person, everybody gets tipped, and often
04:48quite handsomely.
04:50Some of this is legitimate kindness, but some of it is also the cultural expectation of tipping
04:54itself.
04:55That is, if you don't tip, you'll be poorly regarded.
04:58Just ask Mr. Pink.
04:59Let me just get this straight.
05:01You don't have a tip, huh?
05:02I don't tip because society says I have to.
05:05All right, I mean, I'll tip if somebody really deserves a tip.
05:07If they really put forth the effort, I'll give them something extra.
05:09But I mean, it's tipping automatically.
05:11It's for the birds.
05:11Tipping is just not the same in Europe.
05:15Waiters are paid livable wages, the service charge is often included in the bill, and
05:19tips are certainly not expected.
05:20And even if someone is feeling friendly and does include a tip, it's often quite modest,
05:24typically just an easy rounding up of the bill.
05:26Certainly none of this 20% stuff.
05:28Excuse me, gentlemen.
05:29Was there a problem with the service?
05:31What are you talking about?
05:32You left me $16, sir.
05:35Perhaps you miscounted.
05:36Number five.
05:37They pay to use public restrooms.
05:39Wow.
05:42Gary?
05:43What?
05:43I know this isn't the best time, but when you get a chance to pull over, are you crazy?
05:51I'm not pulling over now, but I got to go.
05:54What am I supposed to do?
05:55One of the biggest culture clashes that Americans find in Europe is having to pay to use the public
05:59restrooms.
06:00Many public areas in Europe, including train stations, shopping malls, and airports do
06:04have public restrooms, but they require a small fee to enter, with the price sometimes
06:08even reaching one euro.
06:09Anybody can look here to use the bathroom for a minute?
06:11Customers only.
06:12Oh, yeah, he's just a kid.
06:14Come on, we'll be in and out of here.
06:15It's not my problem.
06:16It's not your problem.
06:18Coins are the most common form of payment, but cards are becoming increasingly common
06:22in more modern facilities.
06:23Sometimes you even have to pay to use a restaurant's washroom, but then you'll receive a voucher
06:27that goes towards a purchase, like half a euro off a coffee or whatever.
06:31This is mostly done to deter vagrancy, and it helps cover basic maintenance and cleaning
06:35costs.
06:36Frankly, this is not a conversation I ever thought I would have in my professional career, but
06:39it's been brought to my attention that we have an ongoing situation in the washroom.
06:44Someone is not flushing.
06:46Once is an accident, maybe even twice, three times, and that's a pattern.
06:50Then we're not talking about our number one.
06:51Yes.
06:52Thank you, Aaron.
06:53Number four.
06:53They heavily rely on bikes and public transportation.
06:56Eddie Adams from Torrance.
06:59I knew you'd make it.
07:01Take the bus all the way here?
07:03Yeah.
07:03It wasn't bad, though.
07:04The U.S. is built around cars.
07:06The country has a very car-centric culture, and with sprawling cities, limited transit options,
07:11and sparse bike infrastructure, vehicles are often an absolute must.
07:14Contrast this with Europe, which has an extraordinary amount of transit options and is heavily centered
07:19around biking.
07:20Okay, what time do you want to pick me up?
07:21Um, uh, let's see, um, that's actually kind of a problem because I ride a bike.
07:30Many European cities favor cycling, with dedicated bike lanes, traffic signals, and parking spots everywhere.
07:35Biking is a well-integrated part of everyday culture, not just a hobby or a form of exercise.
07:40Most places also have a dense and comprehensive network of public transportation, with even small
07:44towns being well-connected by regional trains and buses.
07:47Many Americans would find Europe's lack of cars flabbergasting, maybe even a little freeing.
07:52Nah, so has anyone got transport?
07:54Yes, yes.
07:55Great, where?
07:56Oh, no.
07:57Well, I passed my test.
07:59David.
08:00I don't have to the point of owning a car you want.
08:02Number three.
08:03They take their clothes off.
08:04Is it true that French babes don't shave their pits?
08:08Some don't.
08:10But they got nude beaches.
08:12Not in the winter.
08:13America is quite conservative and prudish when it comes to nudity.
08:16This is regarded as a very private thing, and nudity in public is virtually unheard of.
08:21So many Americans find it extremely bizarre to see Europeans walking around in their birthday
08:25suits so openly and brazenly.
08:27Many European countries embrace some degree of public nudity, including Germany, France,
08:31Spain, and the Netherlands.
08:33Topless sunbathing is often accepted on beaches, and nudity in saunas is the norm, not the exception.
08:37In fact, bringing your bathing suit into a sauna is considered gross and unhygienic.
08:42Berlin, in particular, is very accepting of nudity, with people often going naked in
08:46public parks like Tiergarten without much issue, so long as it's not lewd or disruptive.
08:51I'm taking a nap.
08:53Wake me up when the train gets here.
08:55Huh.
08:56It says here this town has a famous nude beach.
08:58All right, look.
08:59We can't all just lie around all day.
09:01We've got to get out there and experience the culture firsthand.
09:03Let's go exploring.
09:04Number two, they take weekend trips to other countries.
09:08God, sorry I'm late, man.
09:09Oh, no problem.
09:11Oh, man.
09:13I had a weekend.
09:15The problem with America is that it's unimaginably large.
09:18If you drive six hours in Texas, you're still in Texas.
09:21If you drive six hours in Europe, you're in an alien land five countries over.
09:24As such, many Europeans take weekend trips to entirely different countries.
09:28Europe is extremely well-connected.
09:30Budget airlines offer super cheap flights, and train networks are both speedy and easy to
09:34navigate.
09:40Open borders also means no passport checks, making travel both smooth and efficient.
09:45A Spaniard might weekend in Rome.
09:46A Brit might fly to Berlin for a night or two.
09:49A German could hop over to the Austrian Alps for some weekend skiing.
09:52This is completely normal.
09:53The adventurous spirit deeply ingrained into European culture.
09:57So, listen, here's the deal.
09:58This is what we should do.
09:58You should get off the train with me here in Vienna and come check out the town.
10:01What?
10:02Come on, it'll be fun.
10:03Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get notified
10:07about our latest videos.
10:09You have the option to be notified for occasional videos or all of them.
10:13If you're on your phone, make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications.
10:17Number one, they take huge amounts of time off and basically shut down in August.
10:24So, if you have any vacation time, you're taking it now.
10:28Do not report for a shift until notified.
10:33America is very pro-work, and vacation time is often regarded as a perk, not a right.
10:38There is no federally mandated vacation time.
10:40Companies typically start at just 10 days, and many people don't even use their vacation
10:44time out of fear of guilt or pressure.
10:46In Europe, full-time workers get between four and six weeks of paid vacation, plus another
10:51two or three weeks' worth of national holidays.
10:53If it please the court, my brother, as a multi-region player.
10:57I just pray he's not on a state-mandated five-week vacation.
11:01And people are not afraid to use it, often disappearing from work for weeks at a time.
11:05This extended time off is heavily seen in countries like France, Italy, and Spain, where
11:09industry slows every August as workers disappear for the month.
11:13It's like a zombie movie over there.
11:16What other funny little differences can you tell us about?
11:28Let us know in the comments below.
11:29You know what they put on french fries in Holland instead of ketchup?
11:32Or what?
11:32Maynames?
11:33I've seen them do it, man.
11:37They fucking drown them in this shit.
11:38I'll see you again soon.
11:38Thanks, guys.
11:50My name is Corey.
Recommended
11:47
|
Up next
1:14
31:43
11:57
21:45