為了打擊「零負團費」歪風，內地去年十月起實施《旅遊法》，禁止旅行社以過低團費吸客及指定購物點，訪港旅行團數目因此暴跌四至五成，惟事過境遷，隨着零負團費現象死灰復燃，強迫購物、辱罵旅客及遺棄旅客等問題再度惡化。

近日有不良旅行社以「港澳旅遊發展管理局」等名義發出「免費旅遊券」，聲稱獲得商業贊助，報團者只需支付二百多元人民幣導遊費，便可參加四日三夜的港澳遊。在整個行程中，導遊密集安排旅客購物，威逼利誘，無所不用其極。如果旅客不服從安排，即會被棄之不顧。

購物團禁而不止，主要是因為旅遊法漏洞百出，既不規限宣傳手法，也沒指定執法部門。最諷刺的是，雖然旅遊法規定不准強迫購物，但旅行社只需事先要求旅客簽署「購物同意書」，即可繞過規管，合法劏客。天下沒有免費午餐，部分旅客明知有陷阱仍願上釣，本來為了貪小便宜，結果往往吃大虧。

香港旅遊亂象叢生，旅遊業者、旅客與中港政府都有責任。要根治旅遊業亂象，兩地政府必須對症下藥，從多方面入手，務求標本並治，斬草除根。

Plagued again by zero-fee tours,the tourism industry can hardly uproot its problems

To combat the unhealthy trend of "zero tour fee", the Tourism Law has come into force on the Mainland since October last year, prohibiting travel agencies from luring customers with overly low tour fees and coercing them to shop at designated locations.  As a result, the number of Mainland tours arriving in Hong Kong plummeted by 40 to 50%.  However, the effect was water under the bridge and now the zero-fee tours have returned.  The problem of forced shopping, tour guides swearing at tour members and abandoning them deteriorates once again.

Lately, in the name of such invented titles such as the Hong Kong Macau Tourism Development Authority, some unscrupulous travel agencies are issuing "free travel coupons".  They claim that, thanks to commercial sponsorship, visitors can join their tours by just paying a tour guide fee of RMB200, and then can enjoy a 4-day trip to Hong Kong and Macau.  On the whole trip, with carrot and stick, by hook or by crook, the guides arrange for the tour members to shop intensively.  If the tourists do not comply, they would simply be abandoned by the guides.

Despite the Mainland measures, shopping tours have not been rooted out.  It is because the Tourism Law is flawed with loopholes.  It has neither regulated promotional tricks, nor specified a law enforcement agency.  The most ironic thing is that the Tourism Law stipulates no forced shopping, but travel agencies can circumvent the provision by merely asking their tour members to sign a prior consent form.  There are no free lunches in this world. Some tourists willingly step into the trap for small gains, and consequently end up getting ripped off big-time.

The responsibility for such chaos in Hong Kong's tourism industry should be borne by the industry practitioners, tourists, as well as the Chinese and Hong Kong governments.  To tackle the problem at the root, the two governments must suit the remedy to the case and adopt a multi-pronged approach. Only by doing so can both the symptoms and the root cause be treated, and the problem be eliminated completely.

重要生字

water under the bridge 事過境遷

carrot and stick 威逼利誘

suit the remedy to the case 對症下藥

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