Tours Still Being Sold, But No Safety Guidelines Provided, Amid the issuance of a special travel advisory for certain regions in Cambodia due to ongoing incidents of disappearances and confinement crimes, it has been found that domestic travel agencies selling tour packages to Cambodia are not adequately providing safety information.
According to the government on the 16th, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a Level 4 travel warning for certain areas in Cambodia where employment scams and confinement crimes are on the rise, effective from midnight. Kampot’s Bokor Mountain area, Bavet City, and Poipet City have been designated as travel-restricted areas under this warning. Sihanoukville Province has been issued a Level 3 warning, advising against travel. Other regions, including Oddar Meanchey, Preah Vihear, Banteay Meanchey, Battambang, Pailin, Pursat, Koh Kong, and Phnom Penh, remain under the existing special travel advisory, with Level 1 (travel caution) areas elevated to Level 2 (avoid travel).
Despite this situation, tour packages to Cambodia continue to be sold. The packages predominantly include visits to major tourist cities like Siem Reap and Phnom Penh. Travel agencies have confirmed departures for 5 to 8 packages per agency until the end of November. An examination of the detailed descriptions of these travel packages revealed that as of the 15th, none provided safety guidelines regarding the current situation.
For instance, in agency A’s case, there was no information on the travel warnings issued for Siem Reap and Phnom Penh, and Cambodia was misleadingly described as a region not subject to any overseas travel warning level. The section meant for safety notifications and announcements about Cambodia’s recent updates from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was empty. Similarly, agency B did not specify the regions under travel warnings. Agency C merely suggested checking detailed information on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ overseas safety travel website with no additional cautionary notes available in the travel itinerary or related details.
Travel agency officials maintain that following a tour guide is safe. An official from agency A stated, “Teams with confirmed bookings will meet local guides and receive safety guidelines, but those in the reservation phase will depart without separate guidance unless they go through a counselor.” An official from agency B also mentioned, “For new booking inquiries, we plan to provide guidance on safety issues as a double-check measure, but there are no plans to include warnings in the itinerary or guide text.”
However, current tourism promotion laws require travel agencies to provide consumers with safety information about travel destinations. Additionally, according to the Standard Information Provision Guidelines for Overseas Travel Products, specific travel warning levels must be detailed in the product descriptions rather than just providing a simple link to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Thus, there is a growing call for clear and specific provision of safety information when selling travel products related to Cambodia. Jeong Ran-soo, visiting professor at Hanyang University’s Department of Tourism, noted, “It is necessary to inform travelers of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ measures and areas subject to special travel advisories on travel agencies’ product information pages. A cooperative approach between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism could involve conveying travel restraint details to the Korea Association of Travel Agents, which in turn, can prompt travel agencies to provide notifications to consumers.”