French etiquette, s'il vous plaît...

French customs and French etiquette are an integral part of French culture. The people are passionate, vibrant and have great national and personal pride.



Some touring visitors may wrongly interpret French behaviour as superior or rude. The French are very proud of their history, art, food, wine etc., and rightly so, there are so many riches to speak of. The French are just passionate about life and all it has to offer: food, wine, company, art, music, ...






Etiquette is a big part of the French culture. For example, everybody always says “hello” (bonjour) to the shop-keeper/assistant on entering any shop and “thank you, goodbye” (merci, au revoir) on leaving. Don’t forget that even as a tourist you’re still a visitor and you are an ambassador of sorts - representing your country. Demonstrating appreciation and politeness (politesse) may even grant you entry or favour, when for an impolite tourist it may be denied. I’ve seen this happen.

If your French is non-existent or limited, at least try to learn the basic greetings, and a few French phrases. The first phrase I learnt which always helped me enormously was: “Excuse me but I don’t speak much French, I come from …” (Excusez-moi mais je ne parle pas beaucoup français, je viens de……) followed by my request in my broken French. I never asked outright if they spoke English first. Some French, even if they understand a little English will not admit to it. I found that by apologising for my bad French they would be more willing to offer up some English. It sounds like a lot of effort, but really it isn’t. It’s just a little courtesy that goes a long way.

If you find your efforts fall on deaf ears or the person is impatient and are you’re struggling to be understood, don’t despair and lose your temper. Remember that there are impatient people in every country, even back home. Just go to someone else for help or use the international language of mime. After all, the famous French mime, Marcel Marceau, popularised the art.