The travellers that hoteliers everywhere say are a real nightmare are the British.

They are notorious for drunken behaviour, general rudeness and for not being able to speak a word of the local language.

The damning verdict comes from a survey of European hotel chains by the travel company Expedia.

Not only were Britons regarded as rude, messy and loud, they were criticised for eating nearly as much as Americans.

By contrast, the Japanese, American and German tourists were the best-behaved visitors.

The survey of more than 4000 hoteliers found that the British were still one of the worst at speaking the local language.

In spite of their shortcomings, Britons are often liked by hoteliers because they spend plenty of money. They were second only to the Americans in this category.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Americans were voted the loudest on holiday, followed by the Italians and the British; the Japanese and Germans were the quietest.

The Americans were also voted the least polite; the Japanese the most polite.

The behaviour of French, Chinese, Mexican and Russian tourists was also sharply criticised: hoteliers said they were loud, obnoxious and unfriendly.

The Germans were praised for their tidiness and for usually leaving their bedrooms spotless before the maid arrived.

news.com.au