When the tourist protested, saying: “I’ve paid to join this tour group. Why can’t I sleep on the bus?” the tour guide said: “We should show mutual respect. You respect me and I respect you, right?”
“Then you tell me what respect is,” the tourist replied.
The tour guide was angry because a woman on her bus dozed off as she imparted information about local attractions. Photo: Baidu
The guide is eventually heard to say: “We just stop here to discuss this issue. Our bus will move on after you are completely woken up.”
It is not clear how long the confrontation lasted or whether the guide ordered the bus to stop during the exchange.
When it became aware of the video, the Lijiang culture and tourism bureau launched an investigation.
On July 11, the bureau issued a statement saying that the guide, surnamed Zhang, was found to have no business practice licence and had organised the tour group illegally. Zhang faces a fine of 100,000 yuan (US$14,000), it said.
The bureau has also released a mobile phone number for tourists to call if they encounter any problems while travelling in the city.
Mainland internet observers have been abuzz over the tour guide’s no-sleep order, with most people denouncing her.
“The tourist spent money to travel and play, not to show respect to a tour guide,” said one person on Weibo.
“There is no necessity to investigate. The facts are so obvious. What gives the guide the right to stop tourists from sleeping?” said another.
One commenter, who described the guide as “unscrupulous”, said: “Instead of following the ‘customer is king’ rule, she behaves like a teacher while tourists are like primary school students who should obey her orders.”
The Yunnan guide is not the only tour leader to complain about tourists sleeping while they work.
It later transpired that the guide did not have a license and was running the tour illegally. Photo: Baidu
At the end of June, a snoring tourist angered a guide on a sightseeing bus in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.
The guide interrupted his commentary to wake the tourist and chide him for “not respecting” him. The incident prompted widespread attention and the guide apologised to the tourist the next day.
Also last month, another tour guide in Yunnan had her licence revoked by the local tourism authority after she called a tourist “shameless” and “without conscience” when the visitor did not buy any of the souvenirs she recommended.
Tour guide scandals have been trending on mainland social media as the country’s travel industry booms since China lifted its strict zero-Covid policies last year.