Tour guides under zero-fare mode: evidence from China

Yueying Xu (Hazel) and Nancy Gard McGehee

Current Issues in Tourism, 2017, vol. 20, issue 10, 1088-1109

Abstract: The zero-fare tour is a common phenomenon in China that receives a great deal of attention from the popular press but little attention in the tourism literature. This qualitative study illuminates the previously unheard voice of the zero-fare group tour guides, examining their work attitudes and relationships with tourists, tour operators, and tourism administrators. A two-phase pre- and post-interview approach is used to examine the impacts of the 2013 tourism law on the tour guides. Findings indicate that tour guides struggle with conflicting feelings towards the zero-fare tour and their place within it. For instance, the informants describe themselves as scapegoats of the zero-fare tour mode, yet they also enjoy the freedom and opportunity it presents. The study concludes with a call for more thoughtful consideration of the policy and governance of the zero-fare tour.

Date: 2017
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DOI: 10.1080/13683500.2016.1149155

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