Editors and Readers
Dear Sirs,
I would like to tell about an unlikely experience, which would hopefully serve as a warning to visitors and residents of Beijing. Last Dec. 3, my uncle, granddad and I rented a taxi to drive us around Badaling Great Wall and the Ming Tombs. The driver was quite accommodating and informative. We were very impressed, until he brought us to a restaurant, which we thought was cheap since we informed him earlier to bring us to a cheap one.
The restaurant was located near the Dingling Tomb of emperor Wan Li. The waitress and the driver, whom we invited for dinner, kept on insisting on the food that we order. We even had to force them to show us the menu, which listed the food and the prices. So we agreed on the five dishes that they recommended. After the meal we were so surprised to see that we had to pay 1,940.00 RMB. We quickly asked for the menu, but in some way the food had higher prices and we just couldn't give any other explanation. My uncle was forced to pay for the meal. It was just unreasonable.
After paying, the driver went with the waitress and came back looking quite contented. When we complained to him, he simply said that he only ate one kind of dish and so I shouldn't scold him. During the trip home, I copied his license and that was the only time that he offered for our trip to be free and that he volunteered to drive my uncle and granddad to the airport the following day, which he did. But knowing the amount he gained from our meal is much more than the ride to Badaling and airport service cost.
I hope that this will serve as a warning to everyone. The restaurant is called Bar and Wine Restaurant and their signboard is blue and white. The taxi driver's name is Yuan Ting Zhu of Beijing International Travel Service with license number 026779. He drives a silver Santana. I've been trying to call the consumer complaint department in Beijing, but it's always busy. Maybe there are just too many people complaining about the way Chinese people deal with visitors here in China.
Sincerely yours,
Shella
Dear Shella,
We were very sorry to hear about this. We immediately forwarded this letter to the quality supervision bureau of Beijing Tourism Adminstration immediately and followed up with a letter urging their serious attention to your case. Such incidents, which can happen often to foreigners, greatly damage Beijing's image.
One month later, the Beijing Taxi Administration Bureau called Beijing This Month saying that they couldn't fine the taxi driver, as they didn't have enough evidence to show the driver asked for commission from the restaurant. And they denied the taxi driver had any connection with CITS Beijing. Then the Beijing Tourism Adminstration called to say they regarded the matter very seriously, but they could do nothing to the small restaurant, as that restaurant is not a BTA-designated one. BTA has sent the letter to the Beijing Industry and Commerce Administration Bureau for final resolution.
We will continue to pursue this case, but right now, we think this matter should serve as a valuable lesson to everyone. Here are our suggestions:
1. Unless you know the place and the taxi very well, don't even try to bargain with the taxi. Renting a taxi from an individual is not a good idea at all. If you hail a cab on the road, just go by meter.
2. Ask for receipts. (Qing gei wo kai zhang fa piao).
3. Don't ever let anybody you don't know to take you to restaurants or places you don't know.
For any tourism-related inquiries, call 65130828, the tourist hotline. They will help, and if they can't, they will transfer your complaints to the right department.
Write to: The Editor, Beijing This Month, Building 10, Fahuananli, Tiyuguan Lu, Chongwen District, Beijing, 100061
Fax:(86-10)67152381
E-mail: btm@cbw.comf