Hong Kong’s Quality Tourism Services Scheme: Good in Theory but No Longer Relevant as a Consumer Protection Strategy

A number of scholars have discussed the role of perceived risk as a significant factor in destination selection. In response to these concerns and in an effort to increase their competitiveness, a number of countries have introduced tourism quality schemes (TQSs) as a mechanism to build tourist confidence in the destination and the products and experiences that it offers and in so doing reduce the level of consumer risk. Existing TQSs run by national or regional governments vary greatly in terms of scope, assessment criteria and procedures and have received little attention by academic researchers. Indeed, in an era of increasing use of user-generated content, TQSs may become increasingly irrelevant. This paper examines Hong Kong’s Quality tourism Services (QTS) scheme and identifies a number of weaknesses that need to be addressed if the scheme is to be viewed as an effective tool to build consumer confidence. The findings are based on a survey of the views of QTS scheme members and tourists departing Hong Kong.