Promises, promises ... but still no end to China’s ban on group tours to South Korea
Beijing and Seoul have pledged to patch up their differences but there’s no sign of a return to business before the ban
A ban on sending Chinese tour groups to South Korea remains in place, more than a month after the two countries pledged to end a year of diplomatic tension over Seoul’s deployment of a US-backed anti-missile system, according to travel agencies.
A representative from South Korean operator Naeil Tour said on Wednesday morning that the ban on group tours into South Korea had not been lifted, Reuters reported.
“I was told by my boss this morning that our Chinese partners [based in Beijing and Shandong] said they won’t send group tourists to South Korea as of January,” the representative said, without giving reasons.
Another travel agent in Beijing told the South China Morning Post that bans on group tours to South Korea remained in place.
“We haven’t heard any updates from the National Tourism Administration so group tours to South Korea remain unavailable,” the agent said.
But package tours to individual Chinese tourists went back on sale last month, she said.