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Chinese tourism party finishes trip

Travel Agent Association (TAA) chairman Yao Ta-kuang (姚大光) asked Chinese travel service providers yesterday to reject any deal that promises to offer package tours in Taiwan for less than US$80 per day.

“Please understand that this is a reasonable minimum charge [per day],” he said. “We will also regulate our own travel agencies and discipline anyone who rips off customers.”

Yao further assured the Chinese firms that the Tourism Bureau would take “strong administrative measures” to prevent malicious competition among travel agencies in Taiwan.

Yao said that he hoped that there would be 3,000 Chinese tourists arriving each day starting on July 18.

He also advised the Chinese government to regulate their travel agents, as he has heard some Chinese travel agents had started asking their Taiwanese counterparts for 500,000 yuan (US$73,000) before they would send any Chinese tourists.

Yao made the remarks at a seminar yesterday afternoon, where 39 Chinese travel service representatives who have been touring the nation in the past 10 days were scheduled to share their thoughts and observations before they leave tomorrow.

Former TAA chairman Johnson Tseng (曾盛海) reminded the Chinese representatives that the tour they have been on would cost at least US$200 a day.

The representatives, who are from all over China, arrived on June 16 to acquire first-hand information that would help them design tours for their customers.

While most of the representatives said Taiwan has sufficient resources for the arrival of Chinese tourists, they were some practical suggestions for improvement offered during the seminar.

One of the Chinese representatives said that hotels receiving Chinese tourists should provide shampoo and other toiletries, while the tour buses should provide small pillows or blankets for passengers.

He also said that Chinese travel agents need to be provided with a table of estimated travel times between cities so that they can plan their schedules more accurately.

As Chinese tourists generally prefer food with a strong taste, restaurants should also prepare vinegar or other condiments for them, he said.

He also asked the Taiwanese tour guides to arrange for Chinese tourists to stop at stores selling a variety of products to avoid any shopping disputes.

Another representative said that restaurants should provide less seafood and more local Taiwanese cuisine.

She said that Alishan and Sun Moon Lake were also the favorite scenic destinations of local tourists and expressed concern that hotels in those areas may not have enough rooms to accommodate the influx of Chinese guests.

She also complained that there were not enough trash cans at some of the scenic spots. The parking lots at the spots may not have the capacity for so many extra tour buses, she said.

Still another representative said she wondered if Taiwan had enough quality tour guides to lead the Chinese tour groups.
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