Arranged by tour agencies, trips to Pyongyang usually include visits to places of interest, including subway stations, Kim Il-sung Square and the China-Korea Friendship Tower. [Photo by Ke Haitian/For China Daily]

The Chinese border city of Yanji in northeastern Jilin province has opened a direct bus tour service to the neighboring Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), tourism authorities said Monday.

A journey into the past

Under Western Eyes

A total of 48 Chinese tourists and two Chinese guides ended their two-day tour to the city of Rason on Sunday completing the first batch of bus tours in Yanji, said Wang Yanbo, deputy chief of Yanji tourism bureau.

The group visited Rajin Port, greenhouses housing Kimilsungia and Kimjongilia, both flower species named after the late DPRK leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, the Korean Ethnic Cultural Park and the beachside of Pipa Island, said Lian Qinghua, general manager of Yanbian Northeast Asia Passenger Transport Group Co,. Ltd travel agency, operator of the tour.

The journey to the DPRK takes around four hours and will operate from Tuesday to Saturday, Lian said.P Compared with other travel methods to Rason, the nonstop trip avoids transfer processing at the China-DPRK border, he said.

Travel figures show about 10,000 Chinese tourists visit the DPRK annually.