Tourists claim false advertising after viewing rocket launch from rooftop

By CHEN BOWEN | chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2024-01-19 21:00

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The Long March 7 carrier rocket tasked with lifting the Tianzhou 7 cargo spaceship is moved to a launch service tower at the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province, Jan 15, 2024. [Photo by Liu Changlian/for chinadaily.com.cn]

A space science education base in Wenchang, South China's Hainan province, received complaints about false advertising on Wednesday after tourists who bought tickets to watch the Tianzhou 7 robotic cargo spaceship blast off from the Wenchang Space Launch Center were taken to the nearby roof of a residential building.

"They promised to provide a VIP location to watch the rocket launch, but it turned out to be the roof of a local residential building. The view was not as advertised," a tourist surnamed Zhao, who claimed to have spent 2,888 yuan ($403) to purchase the ticket, told Fengmian News.

He said that there were 120 tourists in their group, and many expressed their dissatisfaction and called the complaint hotline of the local market regulation bureau and bureau of tourism, culture, radio, television and sports.

According to an announcement released Thursday by the Wenchang municipal bureau of tourism, culture, radio, television and sports, staff from relevant administrative departments went to the scene to investigate immediately after receiving the complaint. It said that the case is under further investigation and evidence collection.

The local market regulation bureau filed a case against the company behind the suspected false advertising on Thursday morning. The local urban administration and law enforcement bureau also filed a case against the company involved for operating a travel business without an agency license and for travel guides conducting activities without a license.

The Wenchang municipal bureau of tourism, culture, radio, television and sports is studying and formulating regulations to further regulate the operations of the rocket launch viewing market, according to the announcement.

Longlou, a coastal town of Wenchang city, has received more than 1.5 million tourists in the last two years. The number of hotels, guesthouses and homestays has grown from five to more than 50, and the number of shops has increased from 230 to more than 900, Xinhua News Agency reported on Thursday.