Destination hotlines
The safety of tourists in the destination is very important for the reputation, since the slightest incident can bring it down and nullify all the efforts of the DMO to attract tourists.
In order for tourists to always receive real-time assistance, they should be able to urgently contact emergency services that understand the specifics of tourism and can speak the same language with it.
A tourist who received help in time in a difficult situation will be very grateful to the destination and most likely will not fail to appreciate it and share his positive impression with others on the Internet.
As we know, positive feedback directly affects the position of any brand in tourism and the most positive and sincere feedback can be received when a tourist was helped in difficult times.
Here we collect examples of destinations that provide the ability to call for urgent help or an urgent appeal for any issue.
India
The tourist hotline is open 24 hours a day and receives calls in 12 languages. Link.
Japan
The hotline for tourists operates around the clock and receives calls in 4 languages. Link.
Korea
The hotline is available not only by phone, but also through the application, that is, for calls there is no need to have a SIM card. The hotline is also available as a chat on the website and in Facebook messenger. Link.
Macau
Hotline works in 5 languages. Link.
Baguio
The hotline allows you to check the legitimacy of a particular place of accommodation or tourist services. Link.
Smart tourism is essentially an information exchange between tourists and tourist organizations. It is all the more important that the tourist has the possibility of emergency communication with the tourist authorities. The given examples from different countries show different ways of solving this problem. We believe that any, even the smallest destination, should support some way of organizing a hotline for tourists.