Tour Guides In Thailand Allegedly Abandon 16 Tourists For Protesting Itinerary
A group of 16 Chinese tourists in Thailand has alleged that their tour guides abandoned them at an elephant village in Chiang Mai.
They reportedly attempted to change the locations listed in their itinerary and when they refused to pay additional charges, their tour guides allegedly abandoned them.
Officers are now conducting an investigation into the matter.
Tour guides in Thailand allegedly abandon tourists
The Thaiger reports that the 16 tourists called the police after they were allegedly abandoned at Chiang Mai Elephant Village on Wednesday (22 Mar).
Source: 8world News
When the police arrived, the tourists told them that their tour guides had left them there and they wanted to return to their hotel.
Speaking to local media, one of them said the guides disappeared without informing them of any details.
“I don’t know why the tour guides left us,” she added. “They told us that they are Thai people. They communicated in Chinese very well… I also don’t know where my hotel is.”
The tourist also noted that she did not see if the tour guides had a licence card.
Tour group reportedly failed to pay additional fees
After making sure they got back to their hotel safely, the police contacted the travel agency for the tour group for more information, 8world News reports.
A spokesperson for the agency, a tour guide herself, said the tourists had bought a package from them.
Arriving in Thailand on 20 Mar, they stayed in Bangkok for two days before moving to Pattaya on 22 Mar, according to The Thaiger.
Following their itinerary, their tour guides then stopped at the elephant village before planning to return to the hotel.
At this point, one of the tourists told the guides that the program schedule was boring and requested a change to a different location.
When informed that it would cost them extra, they allegedly refused to pay. The next location on the itinerary had been Koh Larn, which they had been looking forward to, the spokesperson added.
Police officer Pitchaya Chiaopleung confirmed that they were going to investigate the incident further.
The travel agency has also been requested to release a statement on the situation as it has negatively impacted Thai tourism.
More measures to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future are in the works, Pitchaya said.
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Featured image adapted from 8world News.
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