Khaberni - The Association of Tourism Offices and Travel Companies alerts citizens against dealing with unlicensed pages and people who promote and sell tourism programs inside and outside the kingdom via social media platforms, confirming that these practices expose citizens to scams and financial losses, and are conducted outside approved legal frameworks.
Bilal Rubi, the spokesperson for the association, said in a statement today, Friday, that the widespread use of social media platforms has contributed to the emergence of entities and individuals without any legal status or official licensing from competent authorities, marketing tourism programs and travel packages, in clear violation of the tourism law and the regulations governing the profession.
He explained that these practices pose a direct threat to citizens' rights, where many travelers fall victim to fake advertisements and misleading offers lacking the minimum standards of credibility and commitment, in addition to damaging the reputation of the organized tourism sector.
Rubi said: "Out of concern to protect the tourism sector and safeguard citizens' rights, and to control the increasing violations on social media platforms, the association calls for the formation of a permanent joint committee comprising stakeholders from the public sector and the association, aimed at tackling violations related to the promotion and sale of tourism programs, including Hajj and Umrah packages, by unlicensed entities and individuals."
He also emphasized the importance of the committee, once formed, to undertake tasks of monitoring and electronic follow-up of violating advertisements and pages, direct coordination between competent authorities to accelerate control and enforcement procedures, in addition to referring violators to the relevant legal authorities and taking deterrent actions against them, alongside organizing joint awareness campaigns for citizens regarding the risks of dealing with unlicensed entities.
