Can tour groups be pressured to shop?

 

AS a travel industry insider, I wish to comment on “Give tour group travellers a free day to shop or stroll at their own pleasure abroad”, which was very well written by a veteran journalist. However, a clearer understanding of how group tours operate could offer better solutions.

For example, the statement “Most of the work like booking your flights and hotels are done by the tour guide” is inaccurate. Apart from flights, land transport, accommodation, meals and entertainment, there are four different suppliers in the travel trade that provide services for the same tour groups.

They start with the outbound tour operator that plans the entire itinerary from departing and returning to the airport of origin, then offers group tours with specific dates for travel, destinations and hotels, and make bookings with airlines, hotels, restaurants, and other suppliers including the overseas inbound tour operator.

Tour leaders are appointed by outbound tour operators to escort tour groups for the entire duration of the tour to assist in check-ins at the airports and hotels, and to ensure that all prearranged services are provided on time and satisfactorily. If not, tour leaders are to manage the situation with assistance from both operators.

Local inbound tour operators provide tour guides and buses for airport transfers, sightseeing tours and other prearranged services. When deviations or decisions are to be made, local tour guides should follow instructions of tour leaders. But this may not happen if the tour leader is inexperienced, naive or weak in personality.

Whether group tours are suitable or not depends on individuals and destinations. They are a must for those lacking confidence in navigating through airports or local destinations on their own. They can be optional for others. It is also similar to choosing a full course meal which is good value if most of the dishes are suitable.

Likewise, tour group members can choose to stay put in their hotels, remain in the bus, be seated at  shopping stops, or venture out on their own without having to be with the tour group all the time. Group tours will be less saleable if the itinerary includes an entire day at leisure as suggested by the concerned writer.

Enterprising tour leaders or tour guides will sell optional sightseeing tours when a morning or afternoon is at leisure, or even night tours in the evening.

These may be done officially or secretly with tour leaders and tour guides pocketing the profits. But both are not allowed to shortchange services promised in the preset itinerary.

Today, most people travel overseas on their own, as they can easily book flights and accommodation, use e-hailing or trains for airport transfers and move about at local destinations. Instead of foldable maps, they use their smartphones for navigation and information, without having to ask or trust anyone they chance to meet.

Unlike tour groups, they do not have to follow a preset itinerary and schedule, do not waste time waiting for others, and are not shepherded to shopping stops disguised as local attractions.

In general, the lower group tour prices are, the higher the number of shopping stops. However, zero fare tours have long been banned. t highly-lucrative outlets, the shopping commissions may be shared by the tour guide, inbound tour operator, tour leader and outbound tour operator.

 

While some outlets may sell at the same price to all customers, most will factor in the costs of commissions, and one of the easiest ways is offering imitation products at bargain prices.

Unlike before, it is no longer easy to get away with ‘forced shopping’ or fake items. Victims could record such transgressions and upload them in social media, which would go viral and force the local authorities to act swiftly before more damage is done to the destination’s tourism industry.

Interestingly, there was a case of a couple in Sabah who won a lucky draw many years ago and the prize was a 7D/6N tour to Beijing for two persons that included 5-star hotel accommodation with all meals and full day sightseeing tours provided throughout.

As the cost of return airfares on a budget airline between Kota Kinabalu and Beijing was minimal, the couple went for the trip. Earlier, the event organiser had paid very little for this tour package, as it could be used as one of the attractive prizes to draw larger crowds.

True enough, the couple got to stay in a 5-star hotel upon arrival and were asked to sign a form which they did without hesitation. But they were not happy with the bus tour later. Instead of sightseeing, it was more like a shopping tour as they were brought from one stop to another.

And worse, they were pressured by the local tour guide to buy this and that until they could not stomach any longer and wished to opt out of the daily bus tours. They made known their decision after they were provided with only a 3-star hotel for accommodation the second night.

That was when the couple was shown the agreement they signed on the first night, which bound them to join all the daily tours until the end or pay a hefty cancellation fee. The couple had to pay several thousand ringgit as compensation or continue to buy things during the free tour. 

YS Chan is master trainer for Mesra Malaysia and Travel and Tours Enhancement Course and an Asean Tourism Master Trainer. He is also a tourism and transport business consultant.

The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT 

-Focus Malaysia.