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Travel and tourism agencies that deal with foreign visitors are suffering because of the anti-U.S. beef protests which have continued for two months in downtown Seoul. A travel official whose agency provides school excursion trips for Japanese students says many Japanese parents who have sent their children to Seoul are calling to make sure of their safety. The Japanese Embassy in Seoul has issued an alert on its homepage advising Japanese tourists and residents not to be swept into the protests.
Another agency that deals mainly with Chinese tourists has changed accommodations for its clients to the outskirts of Seoul. A staffer said, "Some tourists who assumed the protests to be similar to the World Cup street cheering asked to include a visit to the rallies in their travel schedule. But as the protests increasingly turn violent, we are advising them to stay away from the area."
Many agencies are changing their one-day tour schedules that include the Gyeongbok and Deoksu palaces, the Donghwa duty free shop and Insadong to theme parks Lotte World or Everland or to the Demilitarized Zone. And the Seoul City Tour buses that set off from Gwanghwamun are often not operating these days due to a lack of customers, another casualty of the protests.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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