What is the nicest thing a stranger has ever done for you?

Everyday Kindness & Small Gestures

• Many stories involve low-stakes but memorable help: covering a restaurant bill, buying groceries or gas, adding a missing quarter for a shopping cart, paying for coffee or tickets, fixing a bike chain, or calling to correct a mistaken food order.
• Physical comfort—especially unsolicited but respectful hugs—left deep emotional impressions.
• People note how “little” things (e.g., a ride, a phone call, a bottle of water, an umbrella in the rain) mattered enormously in the moment and still shape their view of humanity.

Travel, Strangers & Hospitality

• Recurrent theme: being lost or stranded while traveling and locals going far beyond expectations—walking miles to guide someone, driving long detours, offering free nights in homes, cabins, or campsites, or helping with logistics in unfamiliar countries (Japan, India, Canada, Iceland, Thailand, Spain, Australia, etc.).
• Several couchsurfing / hitchhiking-like encounters turned into long-term friendships or even “second families.”

Emergencies, Accidents & Life-Saving Help

• Multiple accounts of strangers saving lives or preventing serious harm: pulling people from traffic, water, or wave pools; performing CPR; stopping potential child abduction; intervening in scams or dangerous snow / highway situations; helping during medical crises or at end-of-life.
• Some emphasize how quickly and quietly competent responders acted, often disappearing afterward without seeking thanks.

Lost Property, Trust & Honesty

• Phones, wallets, drones, car keys, and bags frequently found and returned, sometimes through notable effort (calling contacts, working with banks/police, traveling to deliver).
• A few describe people refusing any reward beyond a simple meal or “thank you.”

Altruism, Social Trust & Society

• Several commenters reflect on whether altruism is declining; opinions split.
• Explanations offered: distraction by phones, fear of interacting, the “bystander effect,” urban anonymity, and political or economic pressures.
• Others argue high-trust societies and consistent law enforcement enable more kindness, and that social media can also coordinate generosity.
• Discussions contrast high- vs low-tourism or high- vs low-trust environments in how strangers treat foreigners.

Paying It Forward & Receiving Help

• Many say these experiences changed their own behavior: they now stop for stranded motorists, shovel neighbors’ snow, keep tools/supplies in cars, or give money/time generously.
• A subthread notes how hard it can be to accept kindness without guilt, and several argue that allowing others to help is itself a gift to them.