There are few things that better capture the spirit and beauty of the Australian summer like a trip to the beach.
But when it comes to the big coastal outing, there are certain unspoken rules that most Aussies follow — in order to maintain proper beach etiquette.
On Reddit, user u/ThatSpecs sought to get his fellow Aussies' advice on such a situation, and posed the question of: "What are your thoughts on this beach etiquette?"
In the comments, Aussies quickly slammed the offending group's behaviour — labelling it "un-Australian" and offered their own thoughts on proper beachside behaviour.
1. "You shat on their shit? Please tell me you shat on their shit. That’s the Australian response."
—Reddit, u/Davo1073
2. "I will run an extra 5km on the burning, hot-ass sand if it means I can be away from everyone else, so I don’t get annoyed and can just enjoy the space and sounds of the ocean."
—Facebook, Chantele Marie
3. "Don't feed the fucking seagulls. It's a recipe for disaster. They will come from everywhere and then seek out food from everyone else, like the blood-thirsty vampires they are."
—Facebook, Sara Mudding
4. "I think if you have music, you must be at a safe difference from everyone else and you must keep it low so that if you walk to another person, you can’t hear it."
—Facebook, Jake Campbell
5. "If it's a really busy beach, don't ask people to mind your stuff. It's annoying as shit and puts the responsibility on strangers to make sure you don't get mugged! I come to the beach to relax, not to be your private security."
—Facebook, Jessica Myral
6. "The preferred level of personal space on Perth beaches is approximately 500 metres."
—Facebook, Peter Clarkson
7. "Definitely no blasting music, give at least a few meters between towels, be mindful of sand going everywhere (especially if you have kids or dogs), take your rubbish with you. Just don’t be an ass, basically."
—Facebook, Cadence Ward
8. "I absolutely hate when people walk around on a busy beach with their thongs on — flicking sand up and into everyone's faces with every step they take. I get that it's hot sometimes, but then find a less-crowded path to take! It's just common courtesy."
—Facebook, Mike Shaun
9. "Proper etiquette is checking which way the wind is blowing before you shake the towel out and moving, so you don't get it on anyone or their things."
—Facebook, Madison Goodwin
10. "Never sit under someone else’s umbrella, have at least 50 meters between towels, take your rubbish, play music so that you can hear it, but not the whole beach and shake your towel off low to the ground or in the direction of the wind."
—Facebook, Jamie Mclean
11. "If you want music, use earphones."
—Facebook, Cadence Ward
12. "If it's busy, it may be squishy for space (if you don't like a busy beach, go to another one), but if you walk on someone else's towel or flick sand on someone's stuff as you go past, you're a dick. Also, if you set up right in front of someone else when there's plenty of room — that's a dick move."
—Facebook, Isabel Wait
13. "I once shook out the sand from my beach towel and I either mistook the direction of the wind or the wind suddenly whipped in a different way and it all got in the lifesavers' faces!"
—Facebook, Caroline Missy
14. "Oh man, the feels. I was at Sandy the other day and hardly anyone was down there — next minute, a group of three families show up and it was almost like they were trying to boot me from my spot they were so close. Their towels were even under my umbrella!"
—Reddit, u/kyrarae293
15. "Never, EVER poop in the ocean, especially between the flags. It’s just gross."
—Facebook, Tom Scott
16. "If someone tried to encroach under my umbrella, I’d get my dog to wee on their thongs."
—Facebook, Asha Jayne Thompson
17. "I don’t care about people snuggling up to me, talking to me or eating my food, but I draw a line when it comes to eshays listening to rap next to me."
—Facebook, Liz Smith
18. "The classic shit head move: Leaving fucking rubbish on a pristine beach."
—Reddit, u/YourGenerational
19. "We had a group sit right next to us, stand on my mum and young children's towels and knock over their sandcastle the other day. I stormed out of the water and said 'You are on our stuff. Get off!' and wrenched the towel from under them. I was seeing red. I was not polite, then they started oohing and oopsing. The beach was relatively empty, they could have even moved two meters the other side."
—Reddit, u/blerghbleblah
20. "Music is fine if it's just for the small area of the owners' towels, but if you can hear it from the water, it's bad."
—Facebook, Natalie Macdonald
21. "We set up our gazebo one time and a family edged their way closer and closer until they were completely under it. Also, they acted like we were 100% not even there, walking all over our shit and sitting on our bags/clothes. They stood on my sunglasses for a while and just acted like they weren't standing on them. Bizarre."
—Reddit, u/Monkeydickyoghurt1
22. And finally, "Well I'm from Tasmania and live at the beach. Very rarely do I have to share it, usually only on weekends and even then probably max 20 people. I have literally never encountered any of these issues."
—Facebook, Jess Huxley
What do you think? Are there any rules of beach etiquette they missed out? Let us know in the comments below!
Responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.