Govt must meet tourists' needs

Chaos ruled the Jiuzhaigou Valley nature reserve in Sichuan province during the National Day "Golden Week" holiday as thousands of tourists demanded refund for their tickets. Although regulations and measures have been in place for years to regulate people's behavior and safeguard tourists' rights, chaos and overcrowding seem to have become the order of the day at tourist sites, especially during national holidays, making visits to scenic and historical places more of a test of patience for tourists, says an article on xinhuanet.com. Excerpts:

Public holidays should be a time for leisure, a time when people spend money to enjoy a break from their humdrum life and, in the process, boost the economy. But the government's holiday arrangements seem to reverse the order by overtly emphasizing public consumption while neglecting the arrangements needed to ensure that people enjoy their holidays.

Tourists visit Nanjing Avenue in Shanghai, east China, Oct 1, 2013. China's 125 major scenic spots received 31.25 million visitors during the seven-day National Day holidays from Oct 1, up 6.8 percent from the corresponding period last year. [Photo / Xinhua] 

Because of the limited number of public holidays, the two "Golden Weeks" offer the only chance to ordinary people to take a long break from work. As a result, the two holiday weeks have become more of a nightmare given the massive traffic jams, poor public services, rising costs and overcrowding at tourist sites.

Moreover, because of the widening gap between employers and employees, and lax law enforcement, many workers cannot even get paid leave.

Getting paid leave is the right of every worker. Holidays for workers should be a pleasure, not a penance. The government has to make foolproof arrangements in order to ensure that everyone gets to enjoy a true (and much needed) break from work.

(China Daily 10/10/2013 page9)