Taishan scenic area denies rumor of charging 80 yuan an hour for rain shelter
In short
The Taishan scenic area management committee issued a notice on Oct 6 denying online claims that visitors were charged 80 yuan an hour to shelter from rain, saying the reports were false information assembled by individual self-media accounts. The committee said that during the Oct 1-5 National Day holiday the area was clear to partly cloudy with no effective precipitation, so no sheltering took place and no sheltering fees were charged. It told visitors not to believe or spread the rumor and gave a 24-hour hotline to report any overcharging by businesses during severe weather.
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The Taishan scenic area management committee issued a notice on October 6 denying online claims that visitors were charged 80 yuan an hour to shelter from rain, according to Jiemian and China News Service. The notice said the claims were false information posted by individual self-media accounts. [ 1 , 2 ]
Jiemian reported that the committee said the accounts pieced together online videos and other material to publish the claim that a netizen had been charged 80 yuan an hour to shelter from rain at Taishan. The committee said it checked conditions during the National Day holiday from October 1 to 5 and found the area was mainly clear to partly cloudy with no effective precipitation, so there was no sheltering and no rain-shelter charging problem. [ 1 ]
The committee asked visitors not to believe or spread the rumor and to judge online information rationally. It also said that during severe weather businesses are required not to charge visitors for sheltering, and that anyone who finds a business levying charges while visitors take emergency shelter should call the 24-hour service hotline 0538-96008888 to complain. Verified cases will be dealt with seriously, the notice said. [ 1 ]
China News Service reported the denial in a shorter item attributed to the Taishan scenic area WeChat account, repeating that individual self-media accounts had published the false information. [ 2 ]
Why it matters
The notice is aimed at shutting down a holiday-season rumor about tourist overcharging at one of China's best-known scenic sites, and it restates the area's rules on fees during bad weather. It also points visitors to a complaint channel, which is the only enforcement mechanism the documents describe.
Key facts
- The Taishan scenic area management committee issued a notice on October 6 denying rumors about rain-shelter charges. [ 1 , 2 ]
- The rumor stated that a netizen was charged 80 yuan an hour to shelter from rain at Taishan. [ 1 , 2 ]
- The committee said individual self-media accounts assembled online videos and other material to publish the false information. [ 1 ]
- The committee said that during the National Day holiday from October 1 to 5, Taishan had mainly clear to partly cloudy weather with no effective precipitation, so no sheltering occurred and there was no rain-shelter charging. [ 1 ]
- In severe weather, businesses at the site are required not to charge visitors for sheltering, and visitors can complain on the 24-hour hotline 0538-96008888. [ 1 ]
- The committee said verified cases of businesses charging visitors during emergency sheltering will be dealt with seriously. [ 1 ]
Confirmed by several sources
Still unclear
- Which self-media accounts posted the videos, and whether any action was taken against them. The documents do not name the accounts or say whether the committee reported them to any platform or authority.
- Whether the committee's account of the October 1-5 weather was independently verified. The weather detail appears only in one document and is attributed to the committee itself.