Residents in the northeastern provinces wanting to take a dip at Jeju Island or visit the traditional Buddhist temples in Seoul or explore other sights in the Land of the Morning Calm may opt to consider vacationing somewhere else.
A total of 52 travel agencies in Northeast China can no longer file for visa applications for their clients who wish to visit South Korea, reported Yonhap News.
Eight travel agencies in Heilongjiang Province, 23 in Jilin and 21 in Liaoning were given until April 15 only to entertain requests for visa applications.
These agencies will temporarily cease filing applications starting April 16.
South Korean authorities did not give any specific reasons behind the cessation.
It is alleged that its enforcement relates to China’s ongoing selling of tour packages in North Korea in the light of the U.N. sanctions the latter faces.
The U.N. Security Council adopted Resolution 2270 on March 2, which condemns “in the strongest terms the nuclear test conducted by DPRK on 6 January 2016 and its ballistic missile launch of 7 February 2016, and demanding that it comply immediately with its international obligations,” according to a Security Council Report.
North Korea reportedly receives some 100,000 Chinese tourists every year, according to Yonhap News.
Its closest neighbor, South Korea also seems to be a favorite vacation destination by the Chinese. The number of Chinese who visited South Korea in February alone totaled 546,408, according to Korea Tourism Organization. Some 6,000 of them were locals from 24 cities who toured Incheon, according to JKNUS.
In 2015, about 6.11 million Chinese traveled to South Korea, contributing 1.6 percent to its gross domestic product, reported China Daily.
The South Korean government particularly widens its doors for China’s intellectuals.
According to South Korea’s Ministry of Justice, the country will grant a 10-year multiple-entry visa to China’s resident professors, lawyers and other similar specialized professionals, reported China Daily.