'Zero Charge' Tours
The darker side of Hong Kong tourism...
The SARS virus in 2003 and the subsequent loss of tourist trade led the HKSAR government to promote Hong Kong much more aggressively to the mainland Chinese in an attempt to repair cash flow to the beleaguered territory. It worked and the following years saw a huge boost to the local economy from mainlanders. Tourist visitors increased in numbers by 10 percent in the following three years with around half of them being from the mainland.
Surprisingly for Hong Kong and it's pristine tourism image, this has led to an unusual phenomenon that has come to be known as the 'Zero Charge' tour. Recently, a group of tourists from the mainland were simply abandoned by their tour guide. Their crime was that they didn't buy as many good as the travel agency expected them to, and so were not considered to be profitable enough to bother with (the tour guide made little or no commission)... i.e. They were offered a 'Zero Charge' or very 'Low Charge' tour with the expectation they would shop for expensive goods and earn commission for the tour company.
Advertisement: Coming to Hong Kong? Take a look at our hotel rates: Hong Kong Hotels
Not only that, the tourist may not even get the chance to see the sights of Hong Kong, instead being taken to designated shops, given substandard accommodation and cheap meals.
This dark side to Hong Kong's tourist trade has been cited by some as a failure of the Hong Kong government in that they are not taking enough action to protect the interests of visitors to the territory. While incidents like the one described above clearly tarnish the image of Hong Kong, it's clear that there are plenty of suckers out there who think they will get a quality tour for next to nothing. Perhaps even the tightest regulations could not protect them.
This article may not be reproduced without permission from Orient Expat.
Need advice? Got a question? Go to our Hong Kong Forum