Do people ask you to souvenier shop for them while on a vacation?

vhoffman

DIS Veteran
Joined
Jun 5, 2003
Messages
2,489
I've traveled to many places over the years, including Disney. Every trip, there's always someone who asks me to buy them something while there and they'll pay me for it when I return. Its usually something akward to pack or difficult to shop for. We went to Russia 5 years ago and someone wanted me to pick her up a samovar (Russian tea pot). Those are quite large and heavy. I had several people ask me to bring them leather purses from Mexico, woven blankets from Brazil, china from England. Our last trip to Hawaii I had 2 people ask me to bring them an Aloha shirt and a Hawaiian dress. Shopping for clothes for others is a difficult task if you're not sure of their size, tastes, etc. They think if they just pay you for the item when you return its not putting you out. Well, just the inconvenience of tracking down such and such an item can be more than they realize. Not to mention how am I supposed to get it back? There's only so much room in my suitcase, and the airlines have strict weight limits now. Maybe I don't want to spend a part of my vacation running around looking for items for other people. The times I have done so I had the impression they didn't really expect me to ask them to pay for it and acted put out when I produced a receipt. I had one "friend" say that it wasn't what she wanted so she didn't feel she should have to pay for it. I'm not running an import business! With the advent of internet shopping, I just tell my "friends" they can find such and such an item on an internet site and they should shop for themselves. That way they can get what they want and I'm not burdened with doing someone else's shopping. Has anyone else had people expect them to be a world shopper for them?
 
Other than a couple of t-shirts or other small items, I've never been ask to do this. I would have a problem with it, as well. It's very hard to know what another would like.

I think I would beg off saying what a terrible shopper I am and how tight our schedule is going to be. I would offer to pick up business cards for any stores I saw that might be likely to have what the friend wants. Most stores take orders and ship these days.

Sheila
 
Good idea, to offer to pick up business cards. Also I provide my "oustomers" with websites. They can do their own d------ shopping. I've had this problem all my traveling life. It seems people just don't understand what an imposition such requests are (or just don't care). The cash outflow is just one part. The time spent shopping for someone else when your vacation time is at a premium, the hassle of lugging it back, and worrying that you got the "right item" are all factors these people just ignore. Well, my "import business" is closed. On our recent trip to Hawaii I had a "friend" ask me to bring her back a Hawaiian dress (of course, she'd pay me back for it). I just gave her the website for HiloHatties and told her she could shop online to her heart's content.
 


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