Australian Travel Agency Reprimanded for Advertising Angkor Wat as Vietnam
The Ministry of Tourism is embroiled in a spat with Australian travel agency Wendy Wu Tours over advertising of Angkor Wat as Vietnam.
- Phoung Vantha
- September 22, 2020 12:21 PM
The company reportedly used an image of the iconic temple in part of their brochure for Vietnam, prompting anger from the Ministry of Tourism.
PHNOM PENH—Cambodia’s Ministry of Tourism on Sept. 22 called on Wendy Wu Tours, an Australian tourism company, to remove the image of Cambodia's Angkor Wat temple on its brochure for Vietnam.
Taking to their official Facebook page, the Tourism Ministry complained of the company’s mistake, arguing that it may lead to misconceptions that Angkor Wat is in Vietnam. The ministry subsequently contacted the company to alert them to their error.
However, rather than rectifying the mistake, Wendy Wu Tours responded saying that they would agree to change “Vietnam” to “Southeast Asia.”
Director of the Ministry’s Overseas Tourism Marketing and Promotion Department Prak Vuthy said that Wendy Wu Tours had claimed Angkor Wat is a symbol of Southeast Asia, given its status as a world-famous heritage site.
However, many social media users in Cambodia continued to call on the ministry to urge Wendy Wu Tours to change the image’s tagline from “Southeast Asia” to “Cambodia” for the sake of national pride.
The Tourism Ministry has confirmed it is in talks with the Australian company to ensure comprehensive corrections are made promptly.
