China's National Tourism Administration (NTA) announced Monday that it has revoked the official ratings of 107 scenic spots, a large-scale crackdown believed to be a part of efforts to better regulate the country's tourism industry.
According to rating standards issued by the NTA in 2004, China's tourist attractions are given ratings that range from A-Class at worst to 5A-Class at best after being assessed on the quality of their facilities, overall security, management and services.
The administration announced at a press conference in Beijing on Monday that following the revocation of the ratings of 10 4A-Class scenic spots in October, another 45 have had their ratings revoked and are now unrated. So far, a total of 367 4A-Class and below scenic spots have been punished, among which 107 A-Class lost their ratings.
Tourist attractions in northern China received the severest punishment. The ratings of four 4A-Class scenic spots in Northeast China's Jilin Province were revoked in October while another eight in Heilongjiang and Liaoning provinces lost their ratings.
Among those 4A-Class scenic spots which had their ratings revoked are China Ethnic Museum in Beijing's Chaoyang district, Tianjin's Binhai tourist resort, and the Tibet Autonomous Region Museum.
Moreover, six scenic spots in Beijing including the Shichahai scenic area and the Great Wall's Badaling section received warnings.
The scenic spots were punished due to their poor management and services. For example, some were found to have security problems, be lacking fundamental facilities, failing to provide sufficient sanitary services or not protecting resources well, said the NTA, adding that the authorities will release revised regulations on the ratings of scenic spots and a national standard.
"Although this is not the first time that the NTA has revoked the ratings of A-Class scenic spots, this large-scale crackdown shows that tourism authorities are becoming more serious about regulating the industry and are determined to implement harsh punishments on violators," Su Haopeng, a tourism law expert at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, told the Global Times.
Echoing Su, Liu Simin, vice president of the China Society for Future Studies' Tourism Research Institute, said that the campaign is necessary to renew the authority of the rating standard. Their ratings serve as advertisements for tourist attractions and the revoke may lead to a loss of visitors.
The NTA has been conducting an ongoing campaign against malpractice in the tourism industry in recent years. Previously, the administration has focused on businesses that monopolize the market, operate illegally and force tourists to do excessive shopping. In April 2015, 34 travel agencies were ordered to suspend their operations and improve their services.
