Chinese tourists, who are now the biggest-spending travelers in the world, have gotten a bad reputation in many countries for their uncouth behavior. Among other things, they’ve been criticized for spitting, littering, shouting and pushing their way to the front of lines.

These behaviors are common in China, but they’re frowned upon in  Western countries and many places in Asia. One of Thailand’s best universities has taken steps to crack down on unruly Chinese visitors, who have “clambered aboard student buses at Chiang Mai University, made a mess in cafeterias and sneaked into classes to attend lectures,’’ according to an AP story.

The school is a popular destination for Chinese tourists because it’s featured in “Lost in Thailand,’’ a road-trip comedy that has made more money in China than any other domestic film.

To control the hordes, the university now requires all tourist groups to enter through a single gate where Mandarin-speaking volunteers arrange for guided tours. Individual visitors are banned, according to the AP story, and Chinese visitors must show their passports.

Chinese tourists have developed such a bad reputation worldwide that Vice Premier Wang Yang said last year it was damaging the country’s image. The government has even issued a “Guidebook for Civilized Behavior,’’ which advises Chinese citizens to avoid things like picking their nose in public and slurping noodles.

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A lot of female students at Henan University of Technology have a crush on my colleague Darren, a baby-faced 28-year-old teacher from Scotland. Darren’s parents are from Hong Kong but he grew up in Edinburgh, so he’s an exotic specimen here – someone who looks Chinese yet speaks with a lilting Scottish accent.

My student Lucy is always asking me if Darren will be coming to English Corner, an informal weekly gathering where students can practice their English with Western teachers. Once, when I told her Darren wouldn’t be there, she looked at me like with the kind of brokenhearted expression you usually see when someone’s dog has died.

Lucy recently ran into Darren while walking to class and relayed the meeting to me with great excitement. “He is soooooo handsome,’’ she told me.

Darren takes the adulation in stride. “I think they like me just because I look like I could be one of their classmates,’’ he said.