China mulls strengthening management of border travel, indicating the regions where many tourists have taken part in gambling may have their border tourism activities suspended or even terminated.
The announcement came as five departments, including Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that they are collecting feedback for a revised draft policy on border tourism.
The draft encourages border areas to create distinctive tourism destinations, clarifies that border travelers can flexibly choose entry and exit ports, and simplifies past documents regarding border tourism, according to the announcement on the official website of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
It also clarified that the border agencies must not arrange tourism activities that involve obscenity, gambling or drug trafficking.
If a tour group member is punished for participating in gambling activities more than three times within a year, border tourism activities in the area would be suspended or even terminated, the draft document read.
If a member of a foreign tour group illegally enters an area beyond the tourism cooperation agreement or stays in China illegally, the border agency shall promptly report it to the public security and tourism departments, the draft said.
The previous regulations, which were launched in 1997, have not adapted to the needs of the new situation, and some new problems that have been exposed in border tourism need to be regulated.