Eastern Province Gov. Muhammad bin Fahd, Tourism Development Council chairman in the region, has issued directives to implement a Saudi Commission for Tourism & Antiquities (SCTA) decision imposing penalties on 30 furnished facilities.
This was announced recently by Abdul Lateef bin Muhammad Al Bunyan, executive director of the SCTA branch in the Eastern Province.
The facilities being penalized have been operating in contravention to existing effective accommodation regulations.
Al Bunyan said the number of inspection visits last year and in the first half of 2012 totaled more than 1001, and 170 penalties were issued against as many facilities in the accommodation sector.
He said that the SCTA branch in the Eastern province adopted a plan to control licenses, prices and service quality, in addition to monitoring complaints during Eid.
The plan aims to monitor tourist accommodation facilities, travel agencies and tour operators, in addition to following up on complaints, and was executed by five inspection teams, which detect price violations and verify the possession of licenses to operate, in addition to the adherence to price lists and compliant panel forms.
The plan not only controls irregularities, but also aims to promote a culture of compliance with regulations.
Al Bunyan noted Prince Muhammad bin Fahd‘s attention toward strengthening the monitoring role in the tourism accommodation sector.
He said that the monitoring of accommodation facilities began more than two years ago across the province, and were conducted throughout the year in accordance with the directives of Prince Sultan bin Salman, SCTA president.
Al Bunyan added that the Eastern Province has witnessed a high growth rate in the accommodation sector, especially in the number of private hotels and furnished apartments, all with good operating standards.