Heed tourists' complaints
Updated: 2012-04-09 08:02
(China Daily)
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Local tourist authorities have no excuse for ignoring the complaints about the exorbitant ticket prices of tourist attractions. They should realize the soaring number of visitors does not indicate people are satisfied with their traveling experiences and the service they receive.
According to the statistics disclosed by nine provinces so far, the number of tourists during the Qingming holiday from Apr 2 to 4 soared by about 20 percent year-on-year together with the revenue they generated. But this rise in numbers and income was accompanied by widespread criticism of the increased ticket prices for some tourist attractions.
Local governments have the ticket pricing rights for tourist attractions. Yet, that does not mean they are entitled to constantly increase ticket prices without consulting the public.
The central authority has actually been aware of this problem. In a notice released in 2007, the National Development and Reform Commission clearly limited the frequency of ticket price changes to once every three years for national tourist attractions and required all ticket price changes should go through a public hearing before being notified six months in advance. Regrettably, this notice is not legally binding.
Tourist attractions such as scenic spots and historical places of interests are valuable national treasures and public resources. Instead of being priced at exorbitant levels, many attractions should be free to the public or should charge only a nominal fee.
This is the practice in many other countries. For example, Mount Fuji in Japan and the Niagara Falls in the United States can all be visited free of charge, while seeing the Taj Mahal costs an Indian national only 20 rupees ($0.4).
In contrast, during the recent Qingming holiday, it cost 248 yuan ($39.4) for an adult to visit Zhangjiajie National Forest Park in Hunan province and it set an adult back 180 yuan to see the Guizhou-based Huangguoshu Falls, China's most famous waterfall.
In fact, lower ticket prices would attract more visitors and if local governments pay more attention to their service quality and develop related industries well, the returns will be much higher and stable in the long run, as it is not ticket income, but services such as catering, lodging and shopping that are the real cash cows.
(China Daily 04/09/2012 page8)