N.Korea Desperate to Lure Chinese Tourists

North Korea is desperately attempting to attract tourists from China by slashing the price of package tours to Pyongyang in half.

Travel agents in Dandong, China who specialize in tours to the North said officials in Pyongyang offered last month to offer major discounts on accommodation and transport.

The price of a four-day trip to Pyongyang fell from 7,000 yuan (around W1.23 million) to 3,000 yuan (around W530,000).

But one travel agent in China's Jilin Province said nobody is biting. "After the new sanctions the number of Chinese people seeking to visit the North dropped to 1/10 of last year's. The only package tours that generate some interest are casino tours to the Rajin-Sonbong free economic zone."