TREATMENT OF TOURISTS

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 261, 31 July 1929, Page 13

TREATMENT OF TOURISTS

Sir,—Sir Francis Bell’s tirade against making the country more attractive for tourists, makes one curious to know what could benefit the tourists without improving things for our own people, who take their holidays in their own country. I have known people from afar who have travelled in 'most countries of the world, and who have never had such treatment as they have received here. For instance, if their coach was late, they went to bed hungry. Surely, if this sort of thing goes op, it will hardly be in keeping with the friendly feeling and getting together of nations, etc.? I have lived for years in Switzerland, and have got to learn that every free and independent Swiss touches his hat to the tourist, and when they do, are not travellers often glad to have a friendly greeting and information when they are lonely and don’t know how to go about things? Sir Francis Bell talks about the publicans. These are unknown by the usual definition, as the hotels do not have bars; the men are not ashamed to drink their wine in public, and in comp’any of their womenfolk. As Switzerland’s prosperity is almost entirely due to tourists, why is it that New Zealand could not benefit by them?—l am, etc., „ COSMOPOLITAN. Masterton, July 25.