Phu Quoc homestay suspended for lodging violations following foreign guests’ complaints

An interagency inspection team on Friday checked the homestay, Your House PQ 2, operated by Tran Phu Quoc Co. Ltd., after receiving complaints from the affected guests, leaders of the Phu Quoc Special Zone administration confirmed on Saturday, according to Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper.

At the time of the inspection, the company’s legal representative was not present, and Tran Duc Sy, a staff member of the homestay, was assigned to work with the inspection team.

Inspectors found that the establishment was operating without a certificate of eligibility for security and public order, had not publicly displayed its house rules, failed to list room rates at the reception desk, and had not carried out mandatory guest stay declarations as required by regulations.

The inspection team ordered the homestay to promptly rectify the violations and suspended its lodging operations from 5:00 pm on Friday until it presents a valid certificate of eligibility for security and public order.

Regarding the complaints, Sy told inspectors that the incident involved a 65-year-old Canadian tourist identified as Q. Pierre and two French travelers, all of whom had booked rooms at the homestay via Agoda, an online travel booking platform.

When the guests arrived on Wednesday to check in, the property was unable to provide the rooms as booked because no vacancies were available.

Sy said the homestay had already sold out but failed to update its room availability on Agoda in a timely manner, causing the platform to continue displaying vacant rooms.

The homestay offered to relocate the three guests to another property.

The two French tourists accepted a 50-percent discount on room rates, while Pierre was provided with accommodation free of charge and advised to cancel his Agoda booking to obtain a refund, to which he agreed.

However, Pierre, on his first visit to Vietnam, remained dissatisfied with the arrangement, the Voice of Vietnam (VOV) reported, citing Sy.

Pierre left on Thursday morning, and later that evening, Sy sent him apology messages via his phone and the Agoda app, expressing regret over the homestay’s mistakes and the unpleasant experience.

Regarding the incident, the inspection team reminded the establishment to publicly display its house rules and prices, and to ensure proper room allocation and timely responses to guests when accepting bookings through online platforms, news site VnExpress reported.

Huynh Thanh Trong, head of the Culture and Social Affairs Office of Phu Quoc Special Zone, said his agency was contacting the Canadian tourist to further clarify the case.

The office has also invited the legal representative of Tran Phu Quoc Co. Ltd., Tran Thi Kim Chi, to work with authorities.

Trong advised that after completing an online reservation, guests should proactively contact the accommodation directly to reconfirm details in order to avoid similar situations.

Pierre told VOV that he left Phu Quoc for Quy Nhon, a tourist destination in Gia Lai Province, on Friday, after encountering a similar booking issue at another accommodation on the island where he had planned to stay throughout January.

He hoped local authorities would take action to address booking-related problems so as to prevent similar incidents from affecting other tourists.