Travel Special: What insiders say

One month after China's first tourism law came into effect on Oct 1, the travel consultants Zhou Shuang and Kuang Jiangnan at Planet Travel shared their thoughts with China Daily on how the new rule is changing the market. Here is an excerpt of their opinions:

"Following the newly enacted tourism law, almost all the travel agencies raised prices, but profits have actually been decreasing.

Travelers, however, are offered better services now. Previously, many agencies charged very low prices, but they usually arranged too many shopping sites on the route. Some tours they organized even contained more shopping than sightseeing.

Planet Travel mainly focuses on customized tourism, so we are not involved with any excess or forced shopping. But as we have always believed, quality service and proper route design are what really matters to stand out in the tourism industry. And driven by the new rules, competition in the future will be more about substance rather than merely price.

The new law has also prompted an increase of self-guided tours among Chinese travelers. Agencies have to respond to the changing trend, and we believe there will be new development in the nation's tourism market after the current transitional period."