Too tall for a children’s ticket? Chinese consumer council sues over height restrictions
- Guangdong watchdog argues that determining entry fee by height alone – a common practice at tourist sites in China – is a violation of minors’ rights
- Defendant Guangzhou Chimelong Group says it is a widespread industry practice and the ‘laws and regulations are unclear’
A provincial watchdog in southern China has sued an entertainment venue operator in the country’s first public litigation concerning the protection of minors’ consumer rights.
The Guangdong Consumer Council filed the case against Guangzhou Chimelong Group for imposing height restrictions on visitors to qualify for discounted children’s entry fees – a common practice at tourist sites in China.
At the Guangzhou Intermediate People’s Court on Monday, lawyers for the consumer watchdog argued that determining the ticket price for a child by height alone was a violation of their rights, Southern Metropolis Daily reported.
They said all underage visitors should be entitled to the concessionary rate and that this should be determined by “effective and law-abiding” means.
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The consumer council also demanded that the defendant – a major operator of parks, hotels, high-end restaurants and tourist venues – publish an apology for the practice in mainstream media, according to the report, which was later pulled from the Guangzhou-based tabloid’s website.
When contacted by the Post, a staff member from Southern Metropolis Daily confirmed the report had been deleted, but it was not clear why.
Although theme parks and similar attractions commonly use height to determine whether visitors are eligible for discounted children’s entry fees, the practice is controversial.
The average height of a 12-year-old child across the country was 1.5 metres in 2012, according to government data. That would mean a substantial proportion of Chinese 12-year-olds would not be eligible for a discounted children’s ticket at many big tourist attractions requiring “minors” to be under 1.4 metres in height.
But according to Chinese law, a child is deemed to be a minor based on their age alone.
This is also the practice at tourist attractions in many other countries, where a child’s age determines the ticket price, not their height.
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Guangdong’s consumer watchdog wants this to be the standard in China, too. The lawsuit is the result of its months-long investigation into ticketing practices at tourist attractions in the province, which found that Guangzhou Chimelong Happy World, Chimelong Wildlife World, Chimelong Waterpark and Bird Park – all operated by Guangzhou Chimelong Group – applied height restrictions to minors’ tickets.
The consumer council argued that all minors aged under 18 were entitled to concessionary entry fees at zoos, parks and other tourist sites and that determining how much they paid by height alone discriminated against those who were taller.
Guangzhou Chimelong Group said it wanted to keep the height restriction in place since it was a widespread industry practice in China, and that the “laws and regulations are unclear”, according to the report.
A verdict in the case has yet to be announced.
