Travel agencies have duty to clarify all costs

AN ELDERLY WOMAN who recently paid 980 yuan ($145) to join a seven-day tour to Hong Kong organized by the Hangzhou Sports Association for the Elderly and a travel agency, complained to the media that those on the tour were scolded to tears by their guide who berated them for not spending enough at the various establishments they visited. Beijing Youth Daily commented on Wednesday:

Tours with prices that seem too good to be true are usually embedded with forced shopping. The low prices are the bait in the trap.

This not only violates consumers' right to be fully informed of what they are paying for, but also may break the law if it is misrepresented or the tourists are coerced to buy.