China warns tourists of ‘forced shopping’ in Hong Kong
July 20th, 2010 - 9:30 pm ICT by Aishwarya Bhatt
Beijing, July 20 (THAINDIAN NEWS) China has warned its citizens of “forced shopping” in Hong Kong after an undated video surfaced which showed that a group of Chinese tourists were being insulted and forced to shop in Hong Kong by a tour guide.
The video has sparked a lot of rage in Mainland China. Most Chinese often go to Hong Kong to shop for luxury and branded goods, because they are cheaper in Hong Kong than in Mainland China.
The warning was reported by Xinhua, citing an unnamed official of the National Tourism Administration saying the tourism administration was concerned about the way Hong Kong was handling the such practices from their tour guides.
Most Chinese travel and tour companies “force” tourists to shop at shops that give a kickback to the tour agency. The tour operators receive a percentage of whatever total purchases the tourist made. The practice is very common among most of the tour operators.
Hong Kong travel authorities have promised to tighten rules that will protect tourists from being forced to shop or forced to visit designated shops.
Xinhua reported earlier that a 65-year-old tourist died of heart attack, after he engaged in an argument with a tour guide who wanted to force him to shop at a particular place.
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Tags: beijing, branded goods, chinese tourists, chinese travel, citizens, heart attack, hong kong travel, kickback, mainland china, national tourism administration, rage, shopping in hong kong, tour operators, travel authorities, unnamed official, xinhua