If a tour guide takes you to an unagreed shopping stop and you buy something, ask the travel agency to arrange a return within 30 days after the trip and advance the refund

No monetary cost. Keep the contract and itinerary, obtain invoices and card receipts for purchases, and leave the goods unused and unopened. After returning, contact the travel agency and send the goods back. If negotiation fails, file a complaint; the process may take one or two months.

Article 35 of China's Tourism Law has three paragraphs. The first prohibits travel agencies from organizing tours at unreasonably low prices to deceive tourists and then collecting kickbacks through shopping arrangements. The second prohibits agencies from designating specific shopping venues, except by mutual agreement or at the tourist's request, without disrupting other tourists' itineraries. A supplementary “voluntary shopping” agreement generally counts as mutual agreement. The third says that, where the first two paragraphs are violated, tourists may, within 30 days after the tour ends, require the agency to arrange returns and advance the refunds. Refunds may also be requested for separately paid optional activities. This provision does not require proof that the goods have a quality defect. Article 9 also gives tourists the right to refuse forced transactions. In a case reported by China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism in 2025, a Chengdu agency took 15 tourists to Jiuzhaigou and charged just 6015 yuan in total. It paid the company recruiting tourists an 8220-yuan “group acquisition fee” and then received 13706 yuan in shopping kickbacks. The agency faced fines and confiscation totaling 80000 yuan and a 30-day suspension for rectification. Guangdong's culture and tourism authority published a complaint case in 2024. Two tourists on a Hong Kong–Macao–Zhuhai tour costing 800 yuan each bought jewelry and pillows worth over 20000 yuan at a duty-free shop. They complained to the district culture and tourism authority, reached a settlement, and received a full refund after the agency helped return the goods. (China)

全国人大常委会 (2018 修正). 旅游法（第九、三十五、九十二、九十三条）. https://flk.npc.gov.cn/detail?id=ff8080816f135f46016f1d08f6da12f6；文化和旅游部 (2026). 旅游投诉处理办法（文化和旅游部令第 14 号，第十一、十四、二十三条，2026 年 3 月 15 日起施行）. https://zwgk.mct.gov.cn/zfxxgkml/zcfg/bmgz/202602/t20260211_964700.html；文化和旅游部办公厅 (2021). 关于进一步优化文化和旅游系统政务服务便民热线的通知. https://www.gov.cn/zhengce/zhengceku/2021-11/19/content_5651873.htm；文化和旅游部 (2025). 旅游市场强制消费问题典型案例（第三批，案例十五）. https://www.mct.gov.cn/whzx/whyw/202509/t20250908_962084.htm；广东省文化和旅游厅 (2024). 广东省文化和旅游厅发布2024年旅游投诉典型案例（案例 1）. https://whly.gd.gov.cn/service_newscgldt/content/post_4385141.html

Contact the travel agency, not the shop. If it refuses, call 12345 in China to complain; the former 12301 hotline has been discontinued. A complaint must be filed within 90 days after the contractual tour service period ends, and mediation should be completed within 60 days after acceptance. Mediation requires both parties' consent; if it fails, the remaining options are arbitration or litigation. Ordinary first-instance proceedings must conclude within 6 months, with extensions permitted, and you pay your own legal fees. For small claims, see Section 8, Item 22 (being scammed in online shopping or secondhand transactions). If you signed a supplementary agreement, unless the tour price was unreasonably low, your argument generally has to concern a mismatch between price and quality. Cross-border enforcement against an overseas shop is difficult; rely on the Chinese travel agency. Older people are often drawn into “zero-fee” tours; for retirement scams, see Section 17, Item 5 (retirement investments). The beneficiaries are you and your family.