Alcohol is a fundamental part of socialising in many cultures. Drinking together can create bonds between co-workers, provide a chance to show respect for elders and even start business meetings.
But how and when alcohol should be consumed can vary from country to country. Different cultures have important rules, traditions and customs that reveal interesting things about them and are useful to know if you’re planning a visit.
We’ve had a look through drinking traditions around the world and pulled together the need-to-know information and interesting facts.
Drinking Etiquette
In the UK we’re all pretty familiar with ‘cheersing’ in the pub. And it’s well understood that leaving the bar before buying your round carries a certain social stigma. The United Kingdom is not alone in having important customs associated with drinking. Other countries also have do’s and don’ts to be aware of.
In the Czech Republic, for example, you’ll be expected to place a coaster over your empty glass when you’ve finished drinking. Otherwise people will think you want more and keep filling you up.
In Germany, it’s important to maintain eye contact when clinking glasses with someone. If you don’t, you’ll be cursed with seven years of bad sex.
Some drinking traditions have more serious roots. In Japan, how you drink can be a sign of respect (or disrespect) for your elders. If you’re out with colleagues, turn your head away from managers and senior staff members when you drink to avoid causing offense.
Drinking Times
Acceptable times for drinking also vary around the world. Brits tend to think it’s a bit odd to start drinking before midday, and often confine their alcoholic beverages to the evening. Other countries like Iceland and the Czech Republic follow a similar pattern. Icelandic drinkers stay out late, with nights out regularly not starting until after midnight.
Other countries are more accepting of day time drinking. In Spain, France, Russia and Germany it’s not unusual to have alcoholic beverages with lunch. It’s also a tradition in Germany to go for a drink on Sunday mornings, known as Frühschoppen. This stems from a time when families used to gather in the pub after Sunday morning church services.
It’s important to remember that in countries where day time drinking is common, this drinking is still limited, rather than heavy sessions which might be more common at the weekend in the UK.
Keep an Eye on the Law
It’s not just customs and traditions that change from country to country when it comes to drinking. Drinking laws also vary around the world. Be sure to check up about where you can buy alcohol from, what the legal drinking age is and where alcohol can legally be consumed before planning any drinking-related events.
In Germany, for example, it is acceptable to drink in public places. But in Russia consumption is restricted by law to bars, restaurants and your own home (or where you are staying).
In Iceland, the sale of alcohol is strictly monitored. You can’t buy alcohol from supermarkets and other grocery stores. The only place you can buy alcohol, other than in bars and restaurants, is from government owned vinbudin. There are only 48 of these stores in the entire country, so you need to plan ahead if you’re hosting an event where you want alcohol at home.
It’s also worth noting that there are some countries in the world where drinking is illegal altogether. These are known as ‘dry’ countries and include the Kingdom of Brunei, Saudi Arabia, and parts of the UAE and India.
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We can use any hotel, in any destination, so we will craft an itinerary to suit your exact needs. Also, as we can provide any itinerary, the only holiday we'll offer, is the one that's right for you.
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AlisonFletcher
Brilliant trip organised by Dave, included Helsinki, Tallin, Vilnius and Riga. (4 different countries) Everything ran smoothly. Dave organised hotels, flights, taxis, ferry and coach. Have used this company a few times and can't recommend highly enough they are fab 😀
Posted 2 days ago -
Sandra
As always, Chris was extremely helpful and knowledgeable. He gave me good advice on my travel plans and booked the holiday on my behalf. I've used eshores a number of times, and will continue to do so.
Posted 5 days ago -
Harrison
We haven’t been on our trip yet but based purely on the experience of booking the trip we are pleased with the result. It started with a bit of a hiccup as we spoke to a member of staff who never came back to us but when we reached back out again we were placed in the hands of Andy who has helped us book a 2 week trip to India including the golden triangle and then a few days on the beach. Andy was very patient with us with our changes to our tailor made holiday, even when we asked him to explore different areas only to revert back to the original plan. He also recommended moving the holiday back one week which created a saving of over £700 which meant we could upgrade the room for our beach stay in Goa. Andy was also available on weekends if we wanted to speak and regularly picked up the phone as opposed to keeping it to purely email dialogue. Hopefully the holiday will be amazing but based on the booking experience I would recommend eShores if you’re looking to book a tailor made holiday
Posted 5 days ago -
Wendy
I spoke to Lynette who was extremely helpful in understanding the trip that myself and my sister in law wanted from Thailand. Myself and my sister in law are both 72years young and we are really looking forward to our trip.
Posted 6 days ago -
Dawn
Excellent service from Matt at eShores. So very helpful and nothing was too much trouble. I booked Mya holiday after all his hard work finding me the perfect holiday that I wanted. Superb service and not pushy all all.
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Amrik
We have booked two big holidays this year for a group of 8 and a group of 10, Rachel has coordinated our holidays with the utmost excellence, during the consultation we changed countires hotels and even flights but it did not phase Rachel one bit. Exceeds customer expectations by helping advising and supporting throughout the holiday. We are off to Thailand and Dubai in August and then followed by India and Thailand in November, I have rang emailed Rachel many times during the booking and I got very prompt responses even on her days off. Rachel is a credit to EShores and EShores is setting standards regarding customer focus.
Posted 1 week ago -
IainWilliam
I can’t praise Lynette at EShores enough. She has organised my trips perfectly to the point that I wouldn’t use anyone else. She listens to what I want or to the problem I have and comes up with a solution. Nothing is too much trouble. Try them out yourselves and I bet you become a repeater too!
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Kevin
At short notice, I needed a quote to travel through the USA (July the 20th) I emailed eShores with an idea of what I wanted to do, within a short period of time I had a response from Matthew, After several amendments to my holiday which wasn't any trouble to Matthew, Holiday all booked, now looking forward to travelling through the USA Have to say, the service I had through eShores was fantastic, well done Matthew for working through the changes,
Posted 1 week ago -
Marcus
Dealt with Adam who was great, I went back and forth many times, nothing was a problem for him. We got there in the end and Adam arranged a 3 place holiday to Malaysia and Singapore. We go on 5th August, will if update review when we return. EShores so far brilliant hats of to Adam.
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Jill
We as a family used eShores last year to go to USA, and they were brilliant, my husband and 1 are going to Italy with them this September and we have just booked again to go back to USA with them next May, very efficient and Matt is lovely to deal with
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