The city of Yanjiin Jilin province saw its first group of tourists from Republic of Korea after declaring itself open to visas-on-arrival services, on April 11.

18 members of the group represent ROK travel agents, saying they plan to do some marketing research in Yanji for potential business.

The provincial public security statistics show that more than 70,000 foreign tourists visited the city, which sits on the border with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, last year via its nine international flights routes.

And that number, especially with people from ROK, Russia, Japan and DPRK wanting to visit Jilin province, is expected to surge thanks to the simplified visa procedures.

One ROK tourist, who has visited Yanji several times, said that these visas are so easy to apply for, and, "We used to go to China’s ROK embassy to apply several days ahead of time, but now I just take a flight and chat with friends for a while and find myself in Yanji already."

The visa office at Yanji airport can also provide a 30-day visa for individuals and group tourists because the city, which is located at the foot of Changbai Mountain, has been trying to improve its customer services to meet the increased tourist demands.