Travel Packages Still Being Sold
No Safety Guidelines Provided Regarding Crimes
Amid the issuance of a special travel advisory for certain regions in Cambodia where cases of disappearances and confinement crimes have continued, it has been revealed that domestic travel agencies selling trips to Cambodia are not providing adequate safety guidance.
According to the government on October 16, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a Level 4 travel alert, the highest level, for certain areas in Cambodia where incidents of employment scams and confinement have surged, effective from midnight on this day. Among these, Bokor Mountain in Kampot Province, Bavet City, and Poipet City have been designated as Level 4 travel ban areas. Sihanoukville Province has been placed under a Level 3 travel alert, which is a recommendation to leave the area. The regions of Oddar Meanchey, Preah Vihear, Banteay Meanchey, Battambang, Pailin, Pursat, Koh Kong, and Phnom Penh, which were already under a special travel advisory, will remain so, while areas previously under Level 1 (exercise caution) are now subject to Level 2 (refrain from non-essential travel).
Despite these circumstances, Cambodia travel packages continue to be sold. Most of these packages combine visits to major tourist cities such as Siem Reap and Phnom Penh. As of now, each travel agency offers about five to eight packages with departures confirmed through the end of November. Upon reviewing the detailed descriptions of each travel product as of October 15, not a single agency provided safety guidelines related to the current situation.
For example, at Travel Agency A, there was no information about the travel alerts issued for Siem Reap and Phnom Penh, and Cambodia was described as "a region not subject to any overseas travel alert level." The safety notices and announcements section, which should contain updates from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding Cambodia over the past six months, was empty. Similarly, Travel Agency B did not specify the regions in Cambodia for which travel alerts had been issued. Travel Agency C only mentioned that "detailed information can be found on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Overseas Safety Travel website" regarding the status of travel alerts. No additional precautions were provided in the itinerary or reference notes.
In the description section of Cambodia package tours, there are cases where it is indicated that the area does not correspond to an overseas travel alert level, or regions within Cambodia where travel alerts have been issued are not listed. Screenshot from a major travel agency's page.
Travel agency representatives maintain that it is safe for tourists to follow their guides. A representative from Travel Agency A stated, "For groups with confirmed departures, local guides will meet travelers and provide safety instructions," adding, "Otherwise, unless customers go through a consultation with an agent during the reservation process, they will depart without any separate guidance." A representative from Travel Agency B also commented, "If we receive new reservation inquiries, we plan to provide information on safety issues as an extra precaution, but we do not intend to include such precautions in the product itineraries or guidance notes."
However, under the current Tourism Promotion Act, travel agencies are required to provide consumers with safety information about their destinations. In addition, according to the standard guidelines for providing information on overseas travel products, agencies must specify the exact travel alert level in the product description section, not just provide a simple link to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
As a result, there are calls for safety information regarding Cambodia-related travel products to be provided in a more specific and clear manner. Jeong Ransu, adjunct professor at Hanyang University’s Department of Tourism, stated, "Travel agencies need to clearly announce the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ actions and the main regions under special travel advisories on their product information pages." He added, "One possible approach is for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to cooperate in communicating travel advisories to the Korea Association of Travel Agents, which can then notify travel agencies accordingly."
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