BANGKOK, 21 February 2012 – Foreign diplomats to the Kingdom of Thailand are scheduled to meet with the Tourism Minister to discuss countermeasures for tourist swindles.
Tourism and Sports Ministry Spokesperson Watchara Kannika announced that the Head of the Delegation of the European Commission to Thailand and the ambassadors of 6 other countries, including Poland, Austria, Switzerland, Finland and the Netherlands, are scheduled to meet with Minister of Tourism and Sports Chumpol Silpa-archa to brainstorm a solution to the increasing problem of tourist swindles in Phuket province.
Mr. Chumpol stated that the situation of tourism swindles in Phuket has become an international issue which calls for an immediate action. The most common rip-off schemes which tourists face include overpriced products and services, low-quality products, low-standard services, and exaggerated damage claims on broken items.
Meanwhile, the Tourism and Sports Ministry will be blacklisting jewelry shops which sell low-quality items at inflated prices. The names of those shops will be put on the website of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports as well as that of the Department of Tourism. The Tourism Authority of Thailand has also been instructed to inform its overseas offices regarding this issue.
