A new observatory deck in the Demilitarized Zone that bisects the two Koreas will open to the public later this month, the city of Paju said Sunday.

Dora Observatory, situated in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, will be officially relocated to a spot 170 meters northeast of its previous location.
 

The relocation process started in late 2016 with an investment of 1 billion won ($884,000).

The new venue will be nearly double the size of the former observation deck, with more facilities to accommodate tourists and visitors. It will also be 11 meters closer to the border, giving visitors a closer view into North Korea.

The observatory is the only such venue in South Korea that provides visitors a panoramic view of North Korean areas near the border, including into the now-shuttered Kaesong industrial park.

The observatory receives about 600,000 visitors annually as part of DMZ-related tours. Civilian access is otherwise restricted in this area.

It is also near the Third Underground Tunnel, a massive secret underground passage North Koreans dug with the intention to infiltrate the South. Discovered in 1978, the underground tunnel stretches over 1.6 kilometers with a height and width of 2 meters, capable of mobilizing 30,000 troops per hour.

The old observatory, which first opened to the public in 1987, will be used for military purposes.

By Jung Min-kyung (mkjung@heraldcorp.com)