‘This is what happens when you keep the whole campsite awake until 3am’: Campers team up to get sweet revenge on rowdy neighbors

There are few things as infuriating as those that disrespect a shared space. In this increasingly crowded world, truly isolated areas are becoming less and less available, so when people can’t be respectful of their neighbors, everyone suffers.

I was lucky enough to grow up smack dab in the middle of the woods, so camping has always been easily accessible without the need to travel to dedicated camping sites. For most people, however, that luxury doesn’t exist, which leaves them to share space with rude campers like the ones TikTok user @lizzyandlee were unfortunate enough to stumble across on a recent camping trip.

The TikTokers were recently visiting a “quiet, family campsite” where most — but not all — of their fellow campers were nice and respectful of their neighbors. All except one group, which was more than enough to ruin everyone’s experience, after they stayed up hours past everyone else, “shouting and partying until 3am.”

As a result, every one of the well mannered campers who went to bed at a reasonable hour had revenge on the mind when they awoke. And that came in short form, after the bitter, sleepy campers wrangled up some speakers, and gave the partiers a taste of their own medicine. Sweet, satisfying redemption plays out over the minute and a half long TikTok, as the respectful campers carefully position their speakers as close to the (likely hungover and exhausted) partiers’ tent as possible, and let some nice music serve as their wake-up call.

The camper’s musical vengeance was thoroughly applauded by viewers, who celebrated the glorious pettiness of the move and provided some alternate musical suggestions should the situation arise again. As one commenter noted, “Picking a genre opposite to what they had on is key,” and — while Mötley Crüe
was a great choice — viewers also pitched Vengaboys, Crazy Frog, or (my personal favorite) Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture,” complete with cannon fire.

It may seem entirely innocent, and being rowdy at a campsite certainly isn’t the worst crime a person can commit, but it’s easy to forget the real cost of noise pollution. According to the World Health Organization, “noise is an underestimated threat,” and one that comes with genuine health costs. Among the potential health risks of excessive noise pollution are “sleep disturbance, cardiovascular effects, poorer work and school performance,” and “hearing impairment,” and these issues are felt by nearly half of the population.

The noise pollution noted by the WHO certainly isn’t coming from disrespectful campers, but it’s a good thing to keep in mind next time you’re enjoying yourself in a public place. No one wants to ruin your night, but there’s such a thing as respect. If you notice that everyone around you seems to be asleep, and you’re still up and rowdy, consider quieting down, choosing a more isolated camp site, or get ready to face the wrath of your peers. You asked for it.