By Alex Jensen
SEOUL
South Korea opened itself a little wider to potential visitors Wednesday, by offering to waive the cost of visas for tourists from select nations in a bid to overcome crushing losses associated with its deadly MERS outbreak.
The flu-like illness, which originated in the Middle East, has claimed 33 lives in the South since it was first confirmed in the country May 20 -- 182 people have been infected locally in total.
After announcing a fourth straight day without any new infections, the government made its plea to would-be travelers.
Having been warned that the tourism shortfall could amount to the best part of $2.5 billion, Seoul’s justice ministry issued a statement offering to waive its $15 visa fees for certain countries, while extending those already issued for three months.
Tourist groups from China, Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam will all benefit from the measure from next Monday until the end of September.
The popular South Korean tourist island of Jeju saw a near 50 percent on-year drop in Chinese visitors last month alone.
Hong Kong and Macau were among the first authorities to advise against visiting South Korea while the MERS panic was at its height last month -- despite the World Health Organization insisting that no travel restrictions were necessary.
Seoul is planning an additional budget worth nearly $13.5 billion to cope with the overall fall-out this year, which has also included a dramatic drop in domestic demand.
