Hainan Free Trade Port's new tourism regulations come with five keywords to understand new changes

Recently, the 20th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Seventh People's Congress of Hainan Province reviewed and approved the "Hainan Free Trade Port Tourism Regulations"(hereinafter referred to as the "Regulations"). The regulations will come into effect on December 1, 2025, and the "Tourism Regulations of Hainan Province" will be repealed at the same time.
The "Regulations" have a total of 9 chapters and 68 articles, focusing on systematic regulations focusing on tourism planning and resource protection, tourism development and promotion, tourism opening and internationalization, tourism operations and rights protection, tourism safety and emergency response, and industry supervision and management. The Legal Affairs Committee of the Standing Committee of the People's Congress of Hainan Province and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Radio, Television and Sports of Hainan Province interpreted the "Regulations" and together understood the "Regulations" through several keywords.
Key points: Hainan will implement a more open and convenient duty-free shopping policy and a broader visa-free entry policy
The "Regulations" have a special chapter on "Tourism Opening and Internationalization", focusing on the goal of building an international tourism consumption center, and taking the lead in implementing a series of high-standard opening policies in the tourism field.
The first is to gradually relax or eliminate restrictions on foreign investment in tourism, allow qualified Sino-foreign joint venture travel agencies and wholly foreign-owned enterprises to engage in outbound tourism business other than Taiwan, and allow the establishment of Chinese-controlled foreign-invested cultural and artistic performance groups to attract more international capital participates in the development of Hainan's tourism industry.
The second is to implement a more open and convenient duty-free shopping policy for outlying island passengers in accordance with relevant national regulations to create a duty-free shopping destination with international influence.
The third is to promote open innovation in cruise and yacht tourism, promote the construction of cruise home ports and develop international cruise routes, and develop international cruise business. Simplify the entry procedures for yachts and improve the level of convenience for yachts 'customs clearance.
The fourth is to support the high-level construction of Hainan Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone, implement measures to facilitate overseas patients to visit the Hainan Free Trade Port for diagnosis and treatment, and build a world-class international medical tourism destination.
Fifth, implement a wider tourism visa-free entry policy in accordance with relevant national regulations, and implement tourism visa-free entry for qualified foreigners.
Sixth, encourage the introduction and training of international tourism talents, support the introduction of high-quality overseas educational resources to cooperate in running schools or independently running schools in Hainan Free Trade Port in accordance with the law, and allow qualified overseas tour guides to obtain overseas personnel skills certification certificates in accordance with relevant regulations and work in Hainan Free Trade Port Engage in tour guide work, allowing overseas people to apply for swimming lifeguard professional qualifications at Hainan Free Trade Port and practice in Hainan Free Trade Port.
Key points: enrich tourism formats and promote tourism development across the region
The "Regulations" give full play to the advantages of Hainan's tourism resources and ecological environment, deepen the integration of tourism, culture, and sports, tap local cultural resources such as historical culture, revolutionary culture, marine culture, and folk culture, enrich tourism formats, and promote the development of tourism in the region.
The first is to highlight Hainan's characteristics and actively promote new tourism formats such as marine tourism, forest tourism, health tourism, rural tourism, cultural tourism, performing arts tourism, festival and exhibition tourism, sports tourism, low-altitude tourism, study tourism, and self-driving RV camping tourism.
The second is to encourage the development of night tourism products, promote the extension of business hours of shopping malls, restaurants, and cultural venues, and allow the establishment of all-night bars and entertainment venues in key tourist areas.
The third is to encourage the development of specialty tourism products and food brands, promote the upgrading of the tourism product system to high quality and diversification, further enrich tourism supply, and expand tourism consumption space.
Key points: Promote the construction of integrity in the tourism industry, and "breach of trust in one place" will be "restricted everywhere"
The quality of tourism services is the lifeline of tourism development. In order to solve the problems existing in the quality of tourism services in Hainan and comprehensively improve the quality and image of Hainan's tourism services, the "Regulations" have launched a series of measures.
The first is to establish and improve the tourism quality standard system, promote the construction of international standardization of tourism quality, and organize the formulation of a tourism standard system that conforms to internationally accepted rules and has Hainan characteristics.
The second is to promote the construction of a tourism integrity system, establish and improve credit files for tourism operators and tourism practitioners, and implement hierarchical and classified supervision. Travel agencies and tour guides that violate regulations will be included in the list of seriously dishonest entities in accordance with the law and face disciplinary measures of "breaking trust in one place and being restricted everywhere."
The third is to improve the guarantee of tourism public services, strengthen the construction of public service facilities, optimize the tourism transportation system, and at the same time improve the internationalization level of tourism services in terms of entry customs clearance, financial payments, online communications, medical assistance, language identification, and consultation with tour guides.
The fourth is to improve the tourism complaint handling mechanism and establish a unified and efficient tourism complaint acceptance platform to ensure that "every complaint from tourists is settled and everything is answered."
Key points: Tour operators clearly set prices, operate with integrity, and are not allowed to make false publicity
In response to market chaos such as "zero-negative group fees" and "forced shopping", the "Regulations" adopt a series of measures to further standardize the order of the tourism market and protect the legitimate rights and interests of tourists.
The first is to clarify the legal red line, stipulating that travel agencies are not allowed to attract, organize, or receive tourism activities at prices lower than cost; they are not allowed to arrange for tourists to go to substandard shopping places that have not obtained business licenses in accordance with the law, do not meet fire, food, health and safety standards, and sell counterfeit and shoddy products; they are not allowed to induce, deceive, force or disguised to force tourists to enter into package travel contracts and supplementary agreements or participate in shopping activities or pay for travel items separately.
The second is to clarify the situation of inducing, deceiving, forcing or disguising tourists to consume, such as using language threats, insults, disparaging, etc. to exert pressure on tourists, refuse to provide contracted services, detain tourists, detain certificates or items, Refusing to arrange accommodation or meals and threaten tourists, reducing service items, lowering service standards or implementing discriminatory treatment because tourists have not purchased or participated in separately paid tourism projects.
The third is to increase penalties, increase the cost of illegal activities, and form a strong deterrent.
Key points: timely and accurate release of tourism safety warning information
The "Regulations" implement strict management of high-risk tourism projects, set high standards, promote industrial upgrading, promote industrial upgrading to specialization and high-end, and effectively protect the personal and property safety of tourists.
The first is to clarify that high-risk tourism projects should obtain business licenses in accordance with relevant regulations or implement a mandatory standard and filing system, and carry out activities within designated areas.
The second is to clarify that facilities and equipment should comply with relevant national safety standards, go through use registration procedures in accordance with relevant national regulations, and carry out regular safety inspections and maintenance.
The third is to clarify that employees in high-risk tourism projects should hold qualifications or skills certificates that meet the prescribed requirements in accordance with the law.
The relevant person in charge of the Tourism, Culture, Radio, Television and Sports Department of Hainan Province said that the promulgation of the "Regulations" will help further expand the opening up of the tourism consumption sector, promote the development of new business formats, improve the quality of tourism services, release consumption potential, and build Hainan into an international tourism consumption center with world influence provides solid legal guarantees.
New tourism regulations for Hainan Free Trade Port are here! 5 key words to understand new changes →