Australian content creator Bree Steele, who has been living in India for some time, has stirred debate online with her outspoken take on how some foreign tourists choose to experience the country.
In a now-viral video, the podcast producer called out fellow foreigners for being “stingy” during their travels in India despite having the means to spend more comfortably.
"I have seen so many people come to India with high-paying jobs who won't spend a dime," Steele says in her video. “They'll barter over tiny amounts of money. They would stay in hostels, where they usually stay in hotels, and they'll take like a 17-hour train ride where they could easily fly, and they would if they were in any other country.”
She challenged the notion that roughing it is the only way to have an “authentic” Indian experience, asserting instead that India offers much more than just budget-friendly travel. "It is a huge country with so many different cultures, and there's so much luxury here, and there are so many middle-of-the-range great hotels here. You don't have to suffer to come to India," she added.
Steele also expressed frustration over the way some foreigners reduce India to negative stereotypes. “It is much more than the slums and the heavy-duty trains and cheap food that's going to make you sick,” she said. “You could eat like a king or a queen here. It's very misunderstood and I think we need to change this.”
In the caption accompanying her post, Steele questioned, “Why do people from the West come to India and insist on travelling in the cheapest and most brutal way possible?”
She urged travellers to explore the full spectrum of experiences India offers. “You don't have to struggle to come to India! Whether you're a solo traveller, a backpacker, travelling with family or somewhere in between, there is something for you here!!! India has so many different cultures and ways of living!"
Her remarks have sparked wide engagement on social media, with many users echoing her views.
“I have seen vloggers travel in general trains I haven't been in one ever in my life. Last time I was in a non-AC sleeper was in 2008. It's like, for a few extra rupees you can travel with ease, but they choose the hard way and then cry about it,” one user commented.
Another wrote, “Even locals don't do train rides for 17 hours lmfao. If you're going to a country like India, you need to be spending that $$ on the luxury things. I can be cheap as shit in my own country.”
Some users took a more critical stance, pointing out that such travel content is often created for shock value and views. “People who travel like that and post about it do it for views. It is racism, and it is rage bait. They know it makes people angry, and they know it's engagement,” one comment read.
Another user praised India’s diversity and complexity, noting, “India is not just a nation, it's a subcontinent… If you're here to find only shit then you'd find it, and if you're here to find spirituality and cultural richness, and actual 5-star experience you'd find it too but it comes with a price. If you can't afford that price then you're the poor one, not India.”