Society

Paying the price for a Hong Kong tour

By Guo Jiaxue (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-08-12 08:26

Li Hau-chun, a Hong Kong tour guide, who was filmed berating a group of mainland visitors for failing to spend enough at a jewellery store. She has since apologised for her outburst. Edmond Tang / China Daily

Hsu Chinyin, an accountant who worked for a Hong Kong travel agency for 10 years, described the business as gambling.

"Every day is a bet and every tour is a bet," he said.

An open letter highlighting some of the issues "people avoid talking about at Tourism Industry Council meetings" was sent to the tourism commission under the city's Commerce and Economic Bureau last month. It was signed: "A tourist industry veteran".

"One (shopping) tour calculated at 20 people per group is the equivalent of betting at least HK$30,000," the anonymous author wrote. "Bosses are not doing charity. The actual situation in the industry is very cruel and some tour guides are a little crazy."

After facing universal criticism on television and in the press, more than 400 Hong Kong tour guides gathered at a restaurant on July 22 to put their side of the story across and protest about the harsh conditions they face.

Many guides complained that they receive no basic salary and must even pay drivers' tips, admission fares and parking fees for agencies, which they sometimes never get back.

In the letter by the "tourism industry veteran", the author stated that travel agencies owe guides as much as HK$10 million for charges they have paid up front. This puts intense pressure on guides to wring every penny out of their clients, by fair or foul play.

"They are totally living on commission," said Wong Ka-ngai, chairman of Hong Kong Tour Guide General Union (TGGU). "So the only way they can make money is to rip off tourists."

The travel agents give guides implicit consent to "cheat" clients should take the blame, he added. "Tour guides are just scapegoats."

"Once tour guides get on the coach, companies have already lost HK$1,000 (on transport costs)," explained the retired city guide, who spent two decades working in the industry. "For companies, guides who can rip off tourists are good guides. Today, they are just salespeople."

He added that there are far more aggressive guides operating in Hong Kong than Li Qiaozhen, while some companies are famous within the industry for the dirty tactics they employ on tourists.

Getting commission on purchases can be extremely lucrative, said accountant Hsu, who revealed that, for every HK$100 spent, about HK$58 will go to the travel agency and about HK$10 to tour guides.

Wong at the TGGU said guides generally take a commission of between 1 and 7 percent, with the highest paid on jewelry items.

However, because of the need to pay commission, vendors can sell their wares at up to 11 times the cost price, read the letter by the "tourism industry veteran".

A statement issued on July 22 by Li Wah-ming, a member of the Legislative Council, said the annual revenue of 60 registered shops (all stores where guides take tourists must register with the Tourism Industry Council) is about HK$20 billion.

To ensure great professionalism, tourism board chairman Tien suggested tour guides be licensed by the government, rather than by the industry's regulating body, the Tourism Industry Council. He also questioned the current level of supervision.

Taking a cut

The mainland has already banned travel agencies from organizing tours for prices less than the cost, deeming it "unfair competition that disrupts the market", according to Shao Qiwei, director of the National Tourism Administration. However, Hong Kong has yet to rule against the practice.