The government has decided to close down nearly 70 travel agencies for promoting low-quality packages to Chinese visitors as part of efforts to root out cheap tourism options for travelers.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said it assessed 170 travel agencies specializing in tours for Chinese tourists and withdrew licenses for 68 businesses that failed to meet the minimum requirements.
 
The evaluation is the first follow-up step to the government’s measures to improve the tourism industry that were announced on March eighth.
 
Of the 68 agencies, 63 were to be shut down due to problematic pricing policies, a lack of formal contracts with interpreters and the failure to attract more than 100 tourists over the last year.
 
The remaining five companies voluntarily decided to give up their business licenses.
 
The ministry will designate new travel agencies on Monday in order to dispel concerns that the latest decision could put a damper on the market for group tours.