《旅游法》施行一周年

More than 90 million passengers will travel by train prior to and during the national holiday golden week. Numbers are up 13 percent from last year. This indicates that more and more people are choosing to travel during the seven-day holiday.

Mr. He is the manager of a travel agency in Shanghai and says tourist numbers are higher this year.

"The number of tourists who have signed up for travel packages with our company has tripled from last year. Customers here are aiming higher and have greater expectations for travel and their overall impression of tourism has been improved."

China's first tourism law came into effect on October 1 last year. Under the law, measures are outlined to address key problems -- unfair competition, wanton price hikes, and forced goods purchases -- which have plagued the industry and aroused strong public discontent for the past years.

Ge Lei, marketing manager of China Youth Travel Service, one of the biggest travel agencies in China, says the market went through a chaotic period before the law.

He adds that all agencies made efforts to shut out price rivalry by lowering product prices, while consumers were keen for a bargain. That's why agencies lowered their prices to appeal customers and had to make a profit from mandatory shopping and other ways.

"Before the law, the agencies were in a disordered state and many business practices were in a legal grey area. Now that we have legal curbs on business operations, illegal operations will be phased out, so the whole industry has upgraded its service quality. Unfair competition will be deterred, and the industry's future is brighter."

With the enforcement of the law, most travel agencies raised their package tour prices by between 20 to 100 percent, which had caused a sharp decline in the industry. But after a year's adjustment, the tourist industry is now better regulated and travelers are enjoying better services.

"I accept the shopping arrangement during the tour. But the shopping activities should be separated from the tour in different dates."

"The market is now becoming aware of the needs of travelers, and I think this will bring us more benefits and help us have more comfortable trips."

Insiders say the Tourism Law has pushed the industry to improve the quality of its travel services, create a smooth path for the travel sector's sustainable development, and turn the sector into a pillar of economic growth.

Even though the country's tourism sector has undergone dramatic changes, some low-price package tours still exist. One insider says the price strategy can only work in the short term. Legislation is needed for specific aspects to curb some illegal operations.

With more people valuing the quality of travel services, the pricing game will soon lose ground.

For CRI, I'm Min Rui