Japan Tourists Voted World's best

A new survey has revealed that Japanese tourists are the best in the world, and French the worst.

The Japanese retained the top prize, with hoteliers worldwide naming them the world's best tourists, ahead of the British and Canadians.

Japanese tourists were also ranked the quietest and most polite, as well as the cleanest and least likely to complain.

In the survey, around 4500 hoteliers across the globe rated Australians travellers the sixth best among the 27 nationalities surveyed in the second annual global Best Tourist Survey.

Conducted by online travel company Expedia, hoteliers voted on categories including behaviour, spending habits, fashion sense and willingness to try and speak the local language.

Australians tourists were complimented for being sparing in their complaints (third place), being polite (fourth place), and for their willingness to speak the local language and their good behaviour (fifth place in both categories).

The French were the worst tourists, according to hoteliers, who voted them the most frugal and meanest tippers. They were also deemed the most impolite tourists.

The only criticism given to Australians was that they were perceived as loud travellers, according to the survey, which ranked them the fourth noisiest behind the Spanish, Italians and Americans.

"It's encouraging to see that Australians continue to be regarded as good-natured among hoteliers around the world," News.com.au quoted Expedia spokeswoman Louise Crompton as saying.

"While our loudness might land us in trouble sometimes, overall Australians ought to be proud of these results," she added.