The mayor of Seoul is visiting Beijing to help bring back tourists after the government declared a de facto end to the outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).
 
Park Won-soon, accompanied by several K-pop stars, launched the co-called “Seoul Day” event on Wednesday in Wangfujing, one of the busiest commercial areas in the Chinese capital.
 
During the event, Park named K-pop star Kangta an honorary tourist ambassador for Seoul along with popular Chinese actor Chen Xuedong.
 
Earlier in the day, Park visited major travel agencies to introduce Seoul’s policy of providing them with financial assistance worth up to 20 million won, depending on the number of Chinese tourists they attract to Seoul.
 
Park also visited a theme park in Beijing, which features the popular South Korean cartoon character Pororo, to discuss ways to increase exports of South Korean cultural content to China.
 
Park will hold a meeting with China correspondents from South Korean media outlets Wednesday afternoon before returning to Seoul in the evening.