DMZ Tours

After what seems to have been an eternity, my wife and I are finally planning on taking an overseas trip. We haven't had the time or money to fly anywhere and have mostly been relegated to driving around Japan as a way to get away from this hectic city.

So we have decided that next month we will be taking a trip to Seoul. Out of the frying pan and into fire, I suppose.

My wife, a Japanese national, like many other Japanese, is absolutely crazy about North Korea. Any time the little communist country is mentioned on the news she is ready with the VCR to tape whatever scary, dumb, or just plain weird thing that comes out of there. So as a centerpiece to our short weekend trip she wants to visit the border at Panmunjom. Myself, I just want to eat some really spicy food.

There seems to be no lack of tour offers on the web, but it is unclear which, if any, are legitimate. I assume that the USO tour is probably a safe bet. The tour offered by what seems to be the official travel agency of Korea does not seem to be quite as interesting, though they promise to take us to a market in the afternoon. Market?

If you have any experience with JSA/DMZ tours, please comment.