Fit for Travel

Everyone at one time or another is asked the question, "What do you want to do before you die?". It's a simple enough question however the answer is always complicated. The lists are often long and quite involved but there is always one generic response, "I want to travel around the world". Traveling, it's an addiction. Once bitten by the traveling bug, there's no turning back.

But what I find amazing is how many people travel and how few of them actually enjoy it. I have many friends who have been to the most exotic locations on the planet and yet always find something negative to say, it's either the flight, the accommodation or the food. I say, if you're fortunate enough to be able to afford traveling, you need to be open to experiencing every detail, good and bad, and enjoying every minute. This might seem like a naive notion, but no one wants to hear how bad a trip was because the bed you slept on wasn't up to standard. Usually the negatives people bring up are pretty petty and for me, it shows an ungrateful side that I do not wish to entertain.

With everything in life, there's a ridiculous side, people who take certain things to the extreme and expect their friends to keep a straight face once the story is told, so here's a few of the most outrageous complaints made by travelers courtesy of travel24.com and written by Kelly Wheeler:

1. Briefly after checking in, a woman returns to the reception desk clutching a travel brochure. She then proceeds to point out that the bedspread in her room does not match the one in the brochure. Even when she was informed that the hotel had recently been refurbished with all new accessories, the woman was not satisfied until an old matching bedspread was found to replace the one in her room.

2. A man took the time to write in and complain that no one had informed him that there were fish in the sea, and his children had been caught unaware and were now extremely frightened.

3. An African safari is usually an amazing experience, but not for one honeymooning couple. The man complained that the lodge overlooked a watering hole where elephants could often be spotted. Sounds lovely, doesn't it? Apparently not, after one of the elephants became aroused, the man was left feeling inadequate for the rest of his holiday, ruining his honeymoon.

4. For some people it is the terribly unfair commute that upsets them. One couple sent a formal complaint to the airline stating that it was unacceptable that it took them nine hours to fly home from Jamaica to England and it only took the Americans three hours to get home.

5. Apparently many women have also had their romantic holidays ruined. A young woman left an unhappy comment upon leaving a beach resort claiming that all topless sunbathing on the beach should be banned. Apparently her holiday was a complete waste because her husband spent all day looking at other women - and it was all the resort's fault.

6. Lots of people are disappointed with their holiday destination. Heading to the seaside, many complain that the beach is too sandy, while on safari it is ridiculous that no ones warns you that mosquitoes bite. When heading to a water park destination, apparently it is unacceptable not to inform guests that they need to bring swimming costumes and towels. The food is also often unacceptable - one man found the soup to be too strong and thick, but luckily it was ideal as the gravy it was intended to be. Another traveller was disgusted to find that on a trip to Goa in India, almost every restaurant served curry. Their dislike for spicy food was apparently the country's problem.

7. Staff at a well-known hotel thought it was odd that a woman never left her room, but they didn't interfere. Eventually the woman emerged and stormed to reception shouting that she was going to call the police - the irresponsible staff had locked her in her room and ruined her whole holiday! In reality, she had simply mistaken the "Do not disturb" sign for a warning to stay in the room.

8. Many people experience some teensy weensy problems when they get home - and directly blame their holiday accommodation. One couple were horrified to be placed in a double-bedroom instead of the twin-bedroom that they had booked. They now hold the hotel directly responsible for the fact that the woman is pregnant. Apparently it would never have happened if they had been put in the room that they had booked.

9. The pregnant couple were not the only ones to be dissatisfied with their accommodation. After comparing her one-bedroom apartment to her friend's three-bedroom apartment, one woman wrote to demand to know why her accommodation was so much smaller.

10. Other people complain before even getting to their destination. One woman was irate that she was not allowed to take her three-piece suite onboard with her. Yes, that was no typo - suite - as in couch and chairs. The family heirloom could not be put in the hold as cargo and she could not understand why she couldn't have it with her. Perhaps the size of the aeroplane doors had something to do with it?