{"id":214,"date":"2025-09-11T14:08:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-11T14:08:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/good-worldwide.go-vip.net\/upworthy\/2025\/09\/11\/usa-conveniences-european-luxuries-ex1\/"},"modified":"2025-09-11T14:08:00","modified_gmt":"2025-09-11T14:08:00","slug":"usa-conveniences-european-luxuries-ex1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/goodinc.com\/qa-upworthy\/2025\/09\/11\/usa-conveniences-european-luxuries-ex1\/","title":{"rendered":"Europeans who came to America were gobsmacked by these 15 ‘luxuries’ we take for granted"},"content":{"rendered":"

Life in the USA has its drawbacks, but overall, it’s pretty great. Even though European countries<\/a> and the Unites States are roughly on the same level development-wise<\/a>, there are still some stark differences in their ways of life. Americans <\/a>may look to Europe and feel a bit jealous over their free healthcare systems<\/a> and more laid-back approach to their professional lives.<\/a>
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But Europeans who visit America are also in awe of some of the everyday things that Americans take<\/a> for granted, which seem to be luxuries. A Reddit user asked Europeans<\/a> to share the everyday American things that they believe are luxuries, and the question received nearly 13,000 responses.<\/p>

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sacha baron cohen america GIF by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment Giphy<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure> <\/p>

Even if there are things we may envy about Europe, Europeans clearly admire many things about the American way of life.<\/p>

Here are 15 of the best responses to the question: \u201cEuropeans of Reddit, what do Americans have every day that you see as a luxury?\u201d<\/p>

1. Disability access<\/h3>

“Disability access everywhere. I can go to any place — theater, store, office, school, whatever — with confidence that I’ll be able to navigate fine in my wheelchair. They’ll have ramps and\/or elevators.”<\/em> \u2014 5AgainstRhoneIsland<\/p>

“Of all the things in this thread, the disability access is it IMO. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 was an absolute game changer, and European countries and the EU as a whole should be embarrassed for not having something like it.”<\/em> \u2014 Jedrekk<\/p>

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The U.S. is more wheelchair-friendly than many European nations that have older infrastructure. Photo credit: Canva<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure> <\/p>

2. Climate changes<\/h3>

“You can pretty much choose to live in any climate you like when you live in the USA and still be in the same country. You like 4 seasons: Move to the Northeast. You like the humid ocean climate – move to Seattle. You like dry warm weather – move to Los Angeles. You like deserts, move to Arizona. You like warm and humid weather – move to the Southeast.”<\/em> \u2014 DachauPrince<\/p>

“I work as an ecologist and the amount of biodiversity in California is insane. I’ll do biological surveys a few hundred miles apart and see so many different plants and animals at each site. I’ve even done work at sites fairly close to each other (sub 50 miles apart) and will still find stark differences between sites. It’s a magic state for wildlife biologists.” <\/em>\u2014 Skinsnax<\/p>

3. Big kitchens<\/h3>

“Big kitchens and big refrigerators\/ freezers. Even in my student apartment, we had a pretty good-sized kitchen. I was dating a Czech girl and her parents came to visit. When they went to my apartment for dinner, the mom was just amazed at the size of my fridge. They were amused when I dumped the scraps in the sink and turned on the garbage disposal. They\u2019d heard about it but had never seen one.”<\/em> \u2014 Granadafan<\/p>

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American kitchens tend to be much larger than European kitchens. Photo credit: Canva<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure> <\/p>

4. Square footage<\/h3>

“The massive houses, a special room just for your massive washer and dryer units, 2 car garage, basically you have tons of space.”<\/em> \u2014 Howiebledsoe<\/p>

“The size of your homes in places like Utah and Texas. There’s a dedicated room for everything. Kids playroom that isn’t the living room or the kid’s bedroom, walk-in pantry room, a laundry room.” <\/em>\u2014 mcnunu<\/p>

5. Free refills<\/h3>

“As an American, it’s so easy to take this for granted. Similarly, getting free ice water in the US as well is something I often forget isn’t exactly a thing in many other parts of the world.” <\/em>\u2014 Gaveuptheghost<\/p>

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Refill, anyone? Giphy<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure> <\/p>

6. National Parks<\/h3>

“There\u2019s just human development on virtually every inch of large parts of Europe. So even when there are parks, they\u2019re not always as untouched as American parks. And the population density in large parts of Europe means you see a lot more people in the parks. America has national parks that are so untouched and massive that you can really be alone if you want to be.” <\/em>\u2014 CactusBoyScout<\/p>

7. A\/C<\/h3>

“Americans pump it all summer long.” <\/em>\u2014 Websurfer49<\/p>

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We do love our A\/C. Giphy<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure> <\/p>

8. Two peaceful neighbors (Mexico and Canada)<\/h3>

“Remember, the world’s longest undefended border is between Canada and the United States. That says something about our relationship.” <\/em>\u2014 Dervishler<\/p>

“We Europeans both love and hate each other in ways that Americans will never understand. But basically, not being French should be enough.”<\/em> \u2014 TitanFox98<\/p>

10. Big schools<\/h3>

“My high school just had a pool, 3 gyms, an agricultural barn with stalls for students to keep the animals they were raising to show at the rodeo, a few labs, a theater, a full-size kitchen that was used for the culinary classes to share (not the cafeteria), 3 tennis courts, 2 soccer fields that were also used for football practice, and a football stadium with a Jumbotron. At the end of the year, the culinary classes would cook breakfast for the graduating class.” <\/em>\u2014 Elephantepiphany<\/p>

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