Inspectors from the Kiên Giang Provincial Department of Tourism checking tour operator licences. — Photo baokiengiang.vn

KIÊN GIANG — The Kiên Giang Provincial Department of Tourism is monitoring for potential cases of unlicensed tour guides on Phú Quốc Island, the department said on Tuesday, with one person allegedly found to be operating without a licence. 

The tourism department conducted unannounced inspections on Phú Quốc Island from February 18 to 26. The inspections included four Vietnamese tour guides leading a group of 80 international tourists, as well as two foreign nationals suspected of working as guides without licences. 

The inspection team said that there was not enough evidence for further action, but it will continue to monitor the situation.

The team also issued a violation report against an unlicensed local tour guide, identified by his initials as N.V.P., who was allegedly leading a group of South Korean tourists without a licence per regulations. 

P. was given a fine of approximately VNĐ17.5 million (US$690).

P. had a tour guide contract with Âu Lạc Tours and Investment Co., Ltd. in Hà Nội, according to the inspectors. His violation will be reported to the Hà Nội Department of Tourism to review issues related to tour guides from travel agencies within the capital city’s jurisdiction. 

Phú Quốc is one of Việt Nam’s tourism hotspots, with an estimated one million visitors in 2024. 

Reports have emerged about allegedly unlicensed tour guides on the island, both of Vietnamese and foreign nationality, raising concerns that they could provide inaccurate or misleading information that negatively affects Phú Quốc’s tourism sector. — VNS