Authorities in the Central Highlands city of Da Lat are taking measures to deal with the rising numbers of shopping scams targeting tourists.

Pestering tourists to buy products

Ho Hai Duong from Da Lat police department said they were completing procedures to a case in Ward 8. Owners of a strawberry garden had beaten Tran Ngoc Bich, a 44-year-old tourist when she refused to buy strawberry extract.

The police are also dealing with a case when Dao Ba Loc, a marketer for a specialities shop in Ward 9, assaulted Nguyen Nhu Vinh, a guard at the Valley of Love on April 27. According to the guard team, Loc brought a group of tourists to the site. When being asked to buy tickets, Loc got upset. When Vinh went outside, Loc and other co-workers beat him.

Nguyen Cuong Dung, head of Valley of Love and Mong Mo Hill tourism site, said, "About 20 jam and other food sellers and marketers gather at the site's entrance every day and cause annoyance to tourists, worsening the city's image. I have brought up this issue time and time again but no effective solution has been implemented."   

Driver Nguyen Van Tao from Binh Duong Province said in late May, he drove a group of tourists including teachers and pupils to Da Lat. Right after entering the city, a group of marketers on motorbikes invited them to buy strawberries at VND20,000 (88 US cents) per kilo. They were forced to buy the fruit immediately before they were allowed to visit the garden.

"But two men on a motorbike then led us to a... spinach garden and left us there," Tao said.

About a dozen touts aged from 15 to 40 often gather at the city's gardens and on Mai Anh Dao, Nguyen Tu Luc and Tran Quoc Toan streets. A marketer said each group has their own 'territory and the more customers they could get, the more commission money they would earn. Each day, they can get up to several millions of VND.

They travel on the street to find easy targets, persistently pursue them and use threat if necessary. Newbies are given 20-30% of the profit while veterans are given 45% with monthly tips.

However, a former marketer revealed that most food that is claimed to be grown in Da Lat are actually bought from China at cheap prices. Competition among the shops is high so they pay high for the marketers to find as many customers as possible.

Lam Dong People's Committee confirmed that many sellers and marketers used violent measures to force drivers, guides and visitors to buy their products. The committee has asked the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Department of Industry and Trade and localities authorities to increase inspections.

"Their actions badly affect the urban security and order, the safety of tourists and the image and reputation of Da Lat," Lam Dong People's Committee announced in a written document.

dtinews