hankyoreh

Hyundai Asan Co., an affiliate of South Korean conglomerate Hyundai Group, said Wednesday it will begin tours of the western side of Mt. Geumgang on the eastern coast of North Korea in June.

The company has conducted tours of the mountain's eastern side, which faces the East Sea, since 1998 but the other side has been closed to outsiders so far for security reasons.

Hyundai Asan Chief Executive Officer Yoon Man-jun and North Korean tour officials reached an agreement Monday to start the tour program in June, the company said.

Hyundai Asan plans to carry out pilot tours of the mountain's western side for two days beginning May 27 and then open the tours to the public in June, it said.

The three-day, two-night program will be offered from April to November every year for 420,000 won (US$453) per person.

The planned program is expected to help the company get business rights for tours of Kaesong, a city near the inter-Korean border, a company official said.

In 2006, about 240,000 South Koreans visited the mountain's eastern side, far below the 400,000 targeted by Hyundai Asan.

Only 8,000 foreigners have taken Hyundai Asan's tour of the mountain since 1998, a tiny amount compared to the more than 6 million foreign travelers to South Korea in 2006 alone, due to poor promotion of the tour.
Seoul, April 25 (Yonhap News)