'Korean government swoops in to help ripped-off tourists'
The Korean government has leapt into action following nationwide media coverage condemning Korean vendors who rip off tourists.
The Chosun Ilbo ran an exposé earlier this month on scams at pojangmachas (covered street carts) which was then picked up and bandied about by scores of media outlets up and down the country.
One of the foreign victims was Japanese tourist Nakamura Haru, who ordered a single kimchi jeon and two bottles of beer, and was told to pay ₩50,000 (US$44) at a Namdaemun pojangmacha. The standard cost for such fare at most pojangmacha is around ₩16,000.
“I couldn’t communicate so I just paid and left, but I didn’t know Korea’s standards were so low,” Nakamura told Chosun Ilbo. He said that he had been “nervous” about entering the pojangmacha, as its menu did not list any prices.
Chinese tourist Qu Fui Han, 31, was also being ripped off at a pojangmacha in Dongdaemun, according to the Korean daily. Qu, who speaks fluent Korean, said the owner yelled at him for complaining when he asked why he was paying four times as much as a Korean customer.
“This is the difference between Chinese and Japanese tourists,” the pojangmacha owner reportedly said. “Japanese tourists don’t complain but the Chinese do.”
In order to “eradicate such practices,” the Korean government will be strengthening the supervision of street vendors, The Korea Herald reported today.
Tourists will also be able to report rip-offs to the police in various languages by calling 1330, the tourism information phone number, as it will be linked to 112, the local emergency number for police assistance.
“We will tackle the issues seriously at the pan-government level to offer fair and dignified services to foreign travelers,” said Shin Yong-eon, head of the Culture Ministry’s Tourism Industry Department.
The government is also introducing a new law to regulate exaggerated advertisements and curb the operations of travel agencies that hire unlicensed travel guides.
Our advice to foreign travelers to Korea?
Don’t eat or drink in dodgy outlets that don’t display prices on the menu, for starters.
And that goes for any country really.
SOURCE:
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Teacher Mar