China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) has updated its list of rules aimed at curbing ‘bad behaviour’ among the growing number of Chinese travellers.
Officials say the ‘uncivilised behaviour law’ is a definitive list of acts that could get tourists blacklisted and potentially banned from travelling.
The updated list includes interfering or disrupting the operation of public transport such as air rage incidents, damaging areas of historical or natural importance, offending local customs and casuing damage to public facilities.
Travel agents and tour companies are also included, with rules forbidding travel industry employees from ‘beating up or threatening tourists.’
Falsifying prices or promoting distasteful destinations could also get a travel firm banned.
The CNTA also added pornography, drugs and gambling to the list of shame.
The latter is causing some anxiety especially in the gambling Mecca of Macau as authorities didn’t specify whether just illegal gambling is outlawed.
"It is hard to reconcile Beijing’s support for its Special Administrative Regions including the diversification efforts ongoing in Macau to make it a much more mass-market centric destination – with the CNTA’s warning against gambling while on vacation," brokerage firm Union Gaming Securities Asia Ltd said.
