South Korean soldiers stand guard at the Demilitarized Zone
South Korean travel companies have welcomed reports that a new four-storey facility for tour groups will be built overlooking the DMZ bordering North Korea.
It is to replace the existing Dorasan facility which is now old and run-down. Officials also cited the old venue as being unable to handle the growing number of domestic and foreign visitors.
“Dorasan is always one of the most popular parts of the tours that we run at the DMZ every day,” said Amy Park, sales manager of Korea DMZ Tour.
“I believe (the new facility) would be a very good thing because the present observatory is quite old and too small for all the tourists who want to go there,” she said, adding that her company sends around 100 visitors to the facility daily.
Jenny Chun, spokesperson for DMZ Tours, also welcomed the news and emphasised the need for more viewing areas and parking lots for coaches.
“Yes, we think it will help solve some of those problems, but we are still waiting to hear the details of the plan, such as information on access,” she said.
Some 800,000 tourists visit the Dorasan observatory every year.
The new observatory will be built on a site 160m from Dorasan and covers nearly 3,000m2of space when completed. Officials hope to open the new observatory before the end of 2017.
