刘老师, I saw the news: 16 people from Thailand went to Harbin to travel, spent a lot of money, and after returning home they even filed a police report. What happened?

They said the travel agency didn’t arrange things as agreed, and also had them pay an extra sum upfront, promising to refund it in three days, but it wasn’t refunded—so they were very upset.

Some people online thought it was the shops on the China side that messed up. Is that right?

The agency owner came out and said it had nothing to do with the Chinese partners. He even said people in Harbin had helped him before.

But then the police said this agency might not even have the proper licenses. That sounds more complicated.

Right, so we have to wait for the investigation results. No matter who’s at fault, money that should be refunded should be refunded, and people doing legal business shouldn’t be wrongly blamed either.

If I go to Harbin, I most want to see the ice sculptures and also walk along Zhongyang Dajie, but now I know I need to be more careful when traveling abroad.

Remember these three points and it’ll be clear: check the contract first, then check the agency’s business license, and keep your payment records. If something goes wrong, it can be resolved faster.