‘Don’t put your feet in the wash basins,’ Chinese tourists told
The authorities on the Thai islands of Phi Phi to put up signs to warn against the ‘cultural sin’
PUBLISHED : Friday, 13 March, 2015, 2:18pm
UPDATED : Friday, 13 March, 2015, 6:26pm
Stephen Chen
[email protected]
Tourists cleaning their feet on the islands of Phi Phi. Photo: Phuketwan.com
The authorities on the islands of Phi Phi in Thailand are to put up signs in public toilets telling Chinese tourists not to clean their feet in the wash basins, according to a local news website.
Photographs of travellers from China cleaning their feet in the basins have caused disquiet among local residents, Phuketwan.com reported.
Residents regard the behaviour as a “cultural sin” because in their tradition feet should only be washed in a separate basin to other parts of the body, according to the report.
Chaitat Boonpoopantanti, the director of Phi Phi national park was quoted as saying he hoped to have Chinese-language signs up as soon as possible to warn tourists not to clean feet “improperly”.
Tourists from China became the world’s biggest spenders on overseas travel two years ago, but some have created headlines for rude or culturally insensitive behaviour while travelling abroad.
The government’s State Administration of Tourism announced in January that it was creating a database of badly-behaved tourists that it will circulate to travel companies.
State media have also urged travellers new to foreign destinations to respect local culture and traditions.
