Sweeping Changes in China’s Travel Industry

By Order of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, Premier Wen Jiabao announced key changes to regulations of the Chinese travel industry to ensure the well being of Chinese travelers and protect their rights versus illegal practices. The move is considered the first major effort of the Chinese government to rein in on the illicit business practices that have plagued both the outbound and domestic markets of the country’s travel industry in the last decade.

The key changes concern the total transparency of travel packages to consumers before they purchase the tours as well as the issue of legitimacy while travelers are on tour. The age-old problem of heavily commissioned shopping tours was also given special attention as the new rules demand that no tour will be sold below cost. Moreover, travelers cannot be coerced to shop or take part in tour items requiring additional payment.

As commented by Asia Tourism Relations’ Managing Director, Glen Hingley, the new regulations would require changes in the current practices of countries under China’s Approved Destination Status (ADS) scheme. At the same time, it could possibly limit the affordability of travel for many Chinese consumers. However, this is a necessary inconvenience to ensure tomorrow’s Chinese travelers would have a meaningful travel experience that is true to the package they bought to wherever their destination may be.

Source: Travel Daily News at www.traveldailynews.com