To greet or not to greet the airport staff?
 

When at the airport, do you usually greet the passport control and customs officers?
I usually try to put on a smile and say hello. But I've noticed that many officers and check-in employees act indifferent and do not return the greeting.

Don't let it bother you. I do the same but most just look at you. One time a passport control agent asked why would I come to Paris since I am coming from a place that is sunny and warm. That is the most conversation I have had with an agent.

If I see one I greet them.
Nowadays at Schiphol I go through robo passport control and never see a customs officer. I greet the security personnel.

The US immigration officials seem to have been to charm school and are generally friendly and chatty, the customs people likewise. Even the TSA people respond to a greeting.

Yes, I always greet them in their own language. I don't care what reaction I get, if any, but it just seems polite to greet them.

I do too. Most of the time people smile back. Was the case in Japan, China, we had an exceptionnaly nice immigration officer in Atlanta recently... The ones who treated me like a piece of dirt were in Ukraine (looked like a communist cow), New York (twice) (looked like a prison officer greeting inmates), and lately in France when they were doing a snail action (slow motion ?). I just gave my ID and he looked at me and he said that one said hello when coming at the desk.
I laughed and said I had lost my greeting skills in the 2 hours wait. He didn't like it. Took me 10 additional minutes. And I wished him a good day when I got my papers back. He didn't like it either. Too bad... Was fun though.

I am really in a foul mood today...

Yes, I always greet them. It is just normal for me to greet someone you are first encountering in most situations, but partly they hold power, also, I can't forget that, so you want to be as pleasant as possible.

Now that I think of it, I'm not sure they respond back or not, I don't recall for sure. I don't think they usually do, maybe as part of their job, they aren't supposed to engage in pleasantries, not sure.

Yesterday, after we greeted the immigration officer at Logan by saying hello he said" thank goodness someone speaks English. I never hear English. It is the new World Order."

It just hurts my pride when I say hello and someone doesn't reply back, so I've decided not to bother anymore to avoid embarrassment. Guess I'm a sensitive soul :(

When entering your own Common Travel Area, what's there to greet? "Good morning, machine"????

When entering a foreign country whose e-control won't accept your passport, in theory you ought to say "Hello".

In my recent experience, civilised immigration officials (Canadian, Aus, NZ and Turkish) greet you back.

The unaccountable thugs (Chinese, HK and American) don't. Never did in China: American official surliness is a recent innovation. 15 years ago, US immigration officials always had a chat.

Tells you a lot about nations, this does. In America's case, it started around the demise of Bush and the arrival of Obama. In off the record with CBP officials, they've told me it's to do with tightening budgets: front-line immigration people are more tightly managed, and surl as a result.

But those CBP officials stared at me in astonishment when I described the mismanaged queues of people wanting to spend money in their country as their "clients".

The idea that such officials are accountable to anyone seems to be incomprehensible.

I always greet them and most are at least cordial in return.
Those Logan immigration officers seem to like to share their opinions. The Fall of the Bush-Kerry election I landed at Logan,and I was asked by the immigration officer why I had gone to France since they hate us. I didn't agree with her at all so then she said they hate Bush and we all are Bushies. This was during the Bush-Kerry election and in Kerry's city. I wish I had kept her name to report her. Others say "Welcome Home!"

I usually do say Good Morning or afternoon or evening, If I know it in their language, I do that. I smile, I am polite and have never had any issue in a foreign country or coming back home to the USA.

I never greet them first, only respond to theirs in identical fashion. Also, my demeanor directly reflects theirs.

Frequently, I have entered or left the EU without saying a word.

"The unaccountable thugs (Chinese, HK and American) don't. Never did in China: American official surliness is a recent innovation. 15 years ago, US immigration officials always had a chat."

Before it became the Department of Homeland Security, it was US Customs and US Immigration. Immigration required a college degree, Customs needed a high school diploma.

Given the love of the civil service for seniority, the fervor with which they protect the incompetent and the fact that college graduates start work later, guess who was left standing in the end.

Back in the day they would stick the dumb ones at small border crossings where they couldn't do too much damage, now they are omnipresent.

There is nothing worse than an uneducated official with a uniform and authority.

Best way to observe that is to enter the US through Philadelphia Airport.



Mark

It would never occur to me to not greet someone who I had dealings with, no matter how perfunctory the exchange,

I travel for pleasure, so I'm always happy to get to both new countries and old favourites, and bring a good mood, which starts with a pleasant greeting. If I don't get one in return, that's their issue, not mine.

A few years ago we were going to Ireland for the first time. For some reason, i was particularly excited about this trip. As I approached the first man in a uniform, I couldn't help myself and in my best Irish accent said to him "top of the morning to you sir". I have never said anything like that before, and never in my life affected an Irish accent, I have no idea where it came from! I shocked both myself and my husband.

The gentleman told me in his authentic Irish accent that you never hear that expression in Ireland except in Tom Cruise movies!

We all had a good laugh about it, and a great start to a great vacation began with a greeting to the Customs officer.

I say a friendly good morning, good afternoon, etc. to anyone I am dealing with. It is called being polite. It costs nothing. Imagine if everyone did this. Wouldn't the world be just a touch friendlier and nicer?

I usually greet the officers, especially if I can do so in their language. Once, returning to the US on home leave, the Immigration Officer asked, "What brings you back?" With a grin I replied, "The free refills." He didn't even crack a smile. :(

I struggle to think why you would not greet officials, they have a dull job stimulated by sudden moments of excitement. Treating them like humans (which they are) sounds like the least fellow humans should do.

Note, I also greet policemen, traffic wardens, nuns and vicars.

That some officials think that behaving back in a like manner in some way weakens their "authority" (think South Park) shows that for some part of the work force, the uniform, the leather boots and the little sheds they sit in really are too attractive :-)

Gee, Loacker, try your "no greeting" idea in France and see how well you get served.

It's a great way to get a stale loaf of bread in the bakery, cause the bus driver to 'forget' that you wanted to get off at St Paul, or have someone give you the wrong directions on the Metro or in the street.

It is not all about you. The French are just better at reminding you than people in most other countries.

Ackislander I always greet French officers, because I find them much more well-mannered than others. I know I will expect to be greeted back.

'but partly they hold power, also, I can't forget that, so you want to be as pleasant as possible.'

No way. They have power if you grant it to them. I had my worst time in US with immigration twice : once when I was Young (waaaayyy before Bush) and entering US by bus- interesting thing to do. I once told the immigration guy to send me back if he wanted but to justify his decision. It sobered him and we started anew on equal basis.


Loacker you definitely have the opposite expériences of everybody. French officers being better mannered, in what movie ?

And a way to get a smile from Chinese is to greet them in Chinese, with a smile. It definitely works better than a nothing, or a grunt or even a hello. But it doesn't work every time.

Now even I can be grumpy, so I allow these guys to be grumpy - they probably also have a few interesting stories that could start threads from them like 'do your tourists smile when they come to your counter ?'

American official surliness is a recent innovation. 15 years ago, US immigration officials always had a chat.

Tells you a lot about nations, this does. In America's case, it started around the demise of Bush and the arrival of Obama. In off the record with CBP officials, they've told me it's to do with tightening budgets: front-line immigration people are more tightly managed, and surl as a result.>>

Flanner - this is the opposite of my experience of the US 15 or so years ago, when we were greeted by the most surly and unpleasant officials, going into Orlando airport. Whilst there seems to be a tendency amongst some to blame Obama/HRC for everything, it's difficult to blame either of them for that.

Conceivably there is no common experience, just anecdote.