Americans in England: 10 Things That SURPRISED Us About the UK

Have you noticed these contrasts between the US and the UK? Or have you experienced your own surprises when traveling? And what are some good footpaths we should check out on a future trip to the UK? Let us know in the comments! Watch our reverse culture shocks video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9nBhnBQhhc&t Why the UK feels like home: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCSujGdXfJM&t Americans First Time Driving in the UK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1f6GH9GIEf0 Our first time in Dorset: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2KDqgt-fKM 3 days in Cornwall: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zB47qW1g-lw&t Exploring Newcastle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBs-rq0EjMk&t

Many footpaths are not just footpaths, they are 'Public Rights of Way'. Which means that no matter where a public right of way meanders across private land, the rights of the walker are paramount, but the walker is expected to be respectful of the property. Many footpaths are hundreds, and even thousands, of years old and provide links between communities.

In a pub, when they ask who's next, you point to the person who arrived 2 seconds before you.

Yes, footpaths are great! One of the worst things about the USA if you are British is that we never know what something is going to cost. In Britain, The sign says "Three ice creams for £4" and you go in and pay £4 and you get three ice creams - done. In the USA you have to add on some random sales tax, and then there's tipping to worry about, and then they might hit you for some surcharge for eating the ice cream on the premises.

Sometimes it's very easy to be annoyed about the place you live, but hearing your kind words about the UK has made me appreciate what we have here. Thank you and I'm glad you enjoyed your stay - hope you come back again soon!

When Madonna lived in the UK her large house had a public footpath running by it and she couldn’t believe that she couldn’t get it rerouted or closed . It was because it was a right of way for so long and couldn’t legally be affected.

I think your reception here is a reflection of your behaviour here.

My old mate Jed was enjoying an after-work pint in his local pub in the New Forest, UK. A very large American couple came in. The guy asked to see the menu. When it came, he read it for a while, and asked the barmaid " What are these New potatoes? She answered " they're small, early crop potatoes. We grow them in our veg garden round the back. So they're fresh today" The American looked around and rolled his eyes upward. He made a large "O" shape with his hands and said:"In the States we have potatoes THIS BIG"... Jed turned to him and said quietly, " Around here we grows 'em to fit our mouths!"

As someone who's from the UK, typically restaurants will only bring the bill over without you asking for it only if they are super busy and need the table (normally told before you sit down they need the table back in like 1.5 hours etc) but otherwise the last thing they want to do is make you feel rushed

I’m not surprised you had a positive reaction in the UK. You are both incredibly respectful, you are some of the few, if not only, American YouTubers who describe driving in the UK as being on the opposite side of the road instead of the wrong side.

In the UK, bringing the bill/check before you ask for it is seen as INCREDIBLY presumptuous.

That's funny that you noticed the toilet/bathroom situation first, that's exactly what I noticed when I first visited the US! I was horrified by the gaps 😂😂

I think the reason people in the UK haven’t always been to other parts of the UK so much is the close proximity we have to Europe. If you can afford a holiday, it’s often cheaper to get a package holiday to somewhere warm than it is to stay in UK resorts like Cornwall or Dorset.

An absence of arrogance makes a difference in people's attitude to you, you guys are genuine

Many land owners would very happily get rid of the paths through their land. But fortunately these paths are ancient before land ownership and are preserved in law, so it's a real treasure in the UK

You two are delightful! You reap what you sow-you sow positivity, politeness & kindness, thats what you will reap!

The hot/cold tap thing is because traditionally hot water was taken from a heated water tank in the attic. As this would sit around full of warm water for hours at a time, it wasn't safe to drink. So the hot and cold were entirely separated so you could drink from the cold tap without contamination. As a kid, it was drilled into me that you should never drink from the hot tap as it would make you sick. Nowadays, most hot water is just mains cold water that's run through a heater as and when needed so it's fine, and mixer taps are far more common.

Customer service in the UK is based on the principle that people don't want to be bothered and if they need something they will ask for it. We value our independence and having a waiter or shop assistant come over and constantly ask us if we need anything or need help with something, makes us feel like children who can't cope with adult life. The vast majority of us just want to be left alone to do what we need to do, it's why self-checkouts are popular. And in the UK you NEVER EVER hand your card to anyone else, except maybe the cashier at the bank. It's one of the most basic security measures alongside not writing down your PIN. You never give it to a waiter for them to take away to process the transaction because you don't know what they are doing with it. You need to enter your PIN anyway, unless it's contactless, so you ALWAYS put it in the machine yourself. This lets you inspect the machine for suspicious modifications, confirm the amount is correct, and make sure the transaction only goes through once.

A tip about footpaths: Stay somewhere outside the big cities and if the weather's nice find a footpath connecting to a nearby settlement a couple of miles away, walk it and grab a pint. It doesn't matter where it is, you'll be walking in footsteps going back thousands of years.

oh wow! Respect for driving in central London and rural roads on your first visit. That's probably some of the most difficult driving you could do! If you do want to drive more in the UK, you are certainly well prepared for it now :) The parking thing, because everywhere is so old and we don't have much space, parking space is at a premium here.