The number of tourists from the Republic of Korea (ROK) to China reached 2.85 million last year, ranking the ROK the second largest source of tourism, according to China's National Tourism Administration (NTA) on Wednesday.

The figure is 46.23 percent more than that in the previous year, said Yu Kaifa, deputy director of the Tourism Promotion & International Liaison Department of the NTA. Yu said, in the first quarter this year, 820,000 ROK tourists came to China.

A survey shows that ROK visitors, aged between 40 and 60, have the strongest desire to visit China. Their favorite destinations include the Great Wall and the Forbidden City, or the Imperial Palace, in Beijing, China's leading metropolis Shanghai, Guilin in south China, and the Changbai Mountains in the northeast.

According to statistics from Shenyang Public Security Bureau and Shenyang Tourism Administration, of all ROK visitors to China, about 43.1 percent are for sightseeing and another 42.48 percent for business reasons. Tourists and businessmen make up the bulk of ROK visitors to China.

(Xinhua News Agency May 26, 2005)