Tourism in South Korea

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The Deoksugung palace in Seoul, a popular visitor attraction
Gwangan Bridge in Busan
Hyangwonjeong Pavilion in Seoul, a hexagonal wooden pavilion
Economy of South Korea
History
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Tourism in South Korea and its industry caters to both foreign and domestic tourists. In 2019, 17.5 million foreign tourists visited South Korea, making it the 20th most visited country in the world.[1][2][3] Most non-Korean tourists come from other parts of East Asia such as Japan, mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. The recent popularity of Korean popular culture, often known as the "Korean Wave", in these countries has increased tourist arrivals.[4]

South Korea has 16 World Heritage Sites, including Changdeokgung Palace, Namhansanseong and Hwaseong Fortress.[5] Seoul is the principal tourist destination for visitors; popular tourist destinations outside of Seoul include the major coastal city of Busan, the Seorak-san national park, the historic city of Gyeongju and subtropical Jeju Island.[6]

History[edit]

In the past, South Koreans were not likely to travel overseas, due to the Korean War and subsequent economic difficulties, as well as government restrictions on overseas travel, with passports issued only for a narrow range of reasons, such as traveling abroad on government businesses, for technical training, and so on. Since the 1960s, overseas travel restrictions and regulations have been continuously reviewed to prevent foreign currency waste from traveling abroad. However, during the 1980s, the liberalization of international travel has begun to take place in catering to the globalization of the South Korea society. Since then, South Koreans have been able to travel freely abroad.[7]

The busy lifestyle of modern South Koreans, leading to difficulties in mediating vacations with family or friends, and the increase in one-person households, have contributed to the growing number of South Koreans traveling alone. Therefore, the popularity of destinations close to South Korea, where South Koreans can go for short vacations alone, are increasing. According to the results of a plane ticket analysis in 2016, the top foreign destination for South Koreans is Osaka, followed by Bangkok and Tokyo. Moreover, Osaka, Tokyo, and Shanghai have high re-visit rates for South Koreans. However European destinations such as London, Paris, and Rome have fallen in re-visit rating, due to geographical distances, expensive air fares and high costs.[8]

International tourists typically enter the country through Incheon International Airport, near Seoul, which was found to be the world's best airport in 2006.[9] Also international airports in Busan and Jeju are frequently used.

Korean tourism industry[edit]

See also: Korea Tourism Organization

The majority of the South Korean tourist industry is supported by domestic tourism. Thanks to the country's extensive network of trains and buses, most of the country lies within a day's round trip of any major city. International tourists come primarily from nearby countries or regions in Asia. Japan, mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan together account for roughly 75% of the total number of international tourists.[10] In addition, the Korean Wave has brought increasing numbers of tourists from Southeast Asia and India. The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) is targeting 100,000 arrivals from India in 2013.[11]

Travel destinations of Korean tourists[edit]

See also: Provinces of South Korea

The number of Korean domestic tourists has increased since 2010. The number of people who participated in domestic travel (which includes one-day trips) was about 238.3 million (in 2015). It increased by 4.9% compared to 2014 (227.1 million).[12] In 2014, Korean's domestic tourism expenditure was ₩14.4 trillion.[13]

Also, Korean oversea tourists keep increasing since 2010. From 2012 to 2014, the number of people travelling overseas has risen by about 8.2% on average. In 2014, number of Korean oversea tourists was about 16.1 million. And Korean oversea tourism expenditure was $19,469.9 million.[14]

Statistics[edit]

In 2013, travel and tourism (domestic and international) directly contributed KRW26.7 trillion to South Korean GDP and directly supported 617,500 jobs in the country.[15]

In 2018, travel and tourism based on international expenditure directly contributed KRW 16.7 trillion to the South Korean GDP and directly supported 1.4 million jobs, this represented 5.3% of the total employment in the country (OECD).

In 2019, the contribution of travel and tourism to the Korean GDP was up 4.2% of the total economy (KRW 81.4 billion). Which accounted for 4.8% of total employment (1.3%). The impact of international visitors accounted for KRW 26.5 billion (World Travel and Tourism Council).[16]

Spending habits include Leisure spending 82% vs. Business spending 18% Domestic spending 55% vs. International spending 45%

According to the numbers in the graph, leisure spending is 64% higher than business spending while domestic spending is only 10% higher than international spending.[17]

Arrivals[edit]

Visitors arriving to South Korea for tourism by nationality:[18]

Country 2/2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018
 China 1,009,776 2,019,424 227,358 170,215 686,430 6,023,021 4,789,512
 Japan 668,409 2,316,429 296,867 15,265 430,742 3,271,706 2,948,527
 Taiwan 307,592 960,607 72,925 4,130 166,716 1,260,493 1,115,333
 United States 251,956 1,086,415 543,648 204,025 220,417 1,044,038 967,992
 Vietnam 122,736 420,688 185,061 22,946 81,939 553,731 457,818
 Hong Kong 110,050 403,984 61,195 1,258 88,878 694,934 683,818
 Philippines 108,758 342,819 199,845 116,233 115,696 503,867 460,168
 Thailand 77,532 379,442 179,259 8,319 76,568 571,610 558,912
 Malaysia 71,841 259,872 70,449 4,488 48,550 408,590 382,929
 Singapore 68,272 347,814 165,272 7,525 18,009 246,142 231,897
 Indonesia 65,075 250,249 106,750 46,563 66,762 278,575 249,067
 Australia 51,271 198,604 65,502 3,503 23,172 173,218 153,133
 Canada 50,471 201,849 93,064 29,795 34,734 196,153 194,259
 Russia 39,315 158,775 60,019 32,897 73,086 343,057 302,542
 India 35,947 122,771 64,829 31,338 33,830 143,367 119,791
 Mongolia 33,687 135,216 62,670 5,769 21,476 113,599 113,864
 Germany 32,449 132,720 65,107 20,038 22,254 120,730 115,789
 United Kingdom 29,870 121,376 44,806 8,974 20,419 143,676 130,977
 France 27,147 133,406 62,619 15,700 19,371 110,794 100,096
 Uzbekistan 16,511 52,480 36,195 13,674 15,773 88,276 82,984
 Myanmar 16,486 56,717 65,957 56,728 43,406 73,722 71,094
 Kazakhstan 13,511 46,874 30,273 7,212 10,240 52,966 52,859
 Cambodia 12,203 40,935 24,901 5,414 10,725 41,734 33,395
   Nepal 11,199 37,344 27,168 2,457 6,430 26,313 25,926
 Italy 10,749 47,631 18,138 4,091 6,455 52,894 46,546
 New Zealand 9,285 39,956 15,722 1,660 6,598 38,954 34,205
 Netherlands 9,044 49,225 25,651 13,434 12,521 39,138 37,134
 Macau 8,692 27,528 440 36 5,905 52,462 52,831
 Spain 8,267 34,508 14,367 2,719 3,649 30,656 27,314
 Turkey 7,662 31,748 18,051 5,323 6,560 31,293 29,558
 Poland 7,115 29,192 11,732 4,114 5,563 23,913 21,971
 Sri Lanka 7,090 21,404 15,437 4,057 5,070 18,338 17,901
 Brazil 6,599 22,854 8,609 1,683 3,954 23,788 19,745
 Bangladesh 6,091 19,888 15,274 2,946 4,530 17,952 16,151
 Mexico 5,655 22,141 8,676 3,472 5,726 30,481 25,192
 Ukraine 5,421 15,976 13,305 14,206 11,568 27,667 25,608
  Switzerland 4,692 20,217 8,069 1,496 1,884 17,847 18,103
 Pakistan 4,247 12,197 9,511 2,564 3,603 13,721 14,188
 Sweden 3,885 18,974 7,455 1,525 2,188 19,709 19,503
 South Africa 3,823 12,646 5,516 1,195 3,143 13,144 11,795
 Austria 3,277 13,053 6,556 1,920 2,397 12,570 12,635
 Belgium 3,205 16,878 7,728 2,148 2,497 14,539 12,499
 Romania 3,191 11,785 5,872 3,295 3,200 12,781 11,372
 Finland 3,121 12,668 5,511 2,861 3,033 13,912 14,372
 Denmark 3,091 13,564 6,138 1,396 2,059 13,453 12,044
 Saudi Arabia 2,960 17,349 8,491 1,098 1,716 14,158 11,553
 Norway 2,698 10,690 4,574 921 1,507 11,770 13,615
 Ethiopia 2,691 8,209 4,895 3,686 3,004 7,107 4,280
 Czech Republic 2,494 8,808 3,118 726 2,536 11,527 10,759
 Ireland 2,471 9,244 3,962 875 1,631 10,211 8,723
 Portugal 2,471 9,536 3,827 1400 1,856 11,425 10,794
 Kyrgyzstan 2,346 8,404 5,388 2,115 1,439 7,659 7,305
 Greece 2,284 7,839 5,586 3,317 3,038 9,756 9,290
 Israel 1,945 13,425 6,266 1,039 1,445 17,102 15,328
 Colombia 1,714 6,643 2,654 570 975 7,384 5,876
 Hungary 1,707 7,413 3,356 998 1,154 6,178 4,754
 Chile 1,566 6,050 1,944 254 1,035 5,944 5,149
 Brunei 1,517 6,700 1,447 112 723 6,795 4,876
 Tajikistan 1,488 5,846 3,619 1,405 828 4,489 2,863
 Egypt 1,327 5,643 3,773 1,907 1,507 5,833 7,630
 United Arab Emirates 1,300 7,402 4,736 1,429 1,460 13,226 11,427
Total 3,454,942 11,031,665 3,198,017 967,003 2,519,118 17,502,756 15,346,879
Year Number of international visitor
arriving in S. Korea		 % change from
previous year
2003 4,752,762 -11.1
2004 5,818,138 +22.4
2005 6,022,752 +3.5
2006 6,155,046 +2.2
2007 6,448,240 +4.8
2008 6,890,841 +6.9
2009 7,817,533 +13.4
2010 8,797,658 +12.5
2011 9,794,796 +11.3
2012 11,140,028 +13.7
2013 12,175,550 +9.3
2014 14,201,516 +16.6
2015 13,231,651 -6.8
2016 17,241,823 +30.3
2017 13,335,758 -22.7
2018 15,346,879 +15.1
2019 17,502,756 +14.0

China[edit]

Chinese tourists to South Korea and year-on-year rate. From March 2017, tourists plummeted in retaliation for the installation of THAAD.

China has been South Korea's largest tourism source for years. In 2016, visitors from China made up 46.8% of tourists in South Korea. However China imposed the group tour ban after the US military started to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system in South Korea. From April 2017, Chinese tourists plummeted by more than 60% compared to the previous year.[19][20] In recent years, the South Korean tourism industry has made it a long term goal to reduce dependency on Chinese tourists.[21]

Japan[edit]

Japan–South Korea tourist comparison from 2005

Since Lee Myung-bak's visit to the Liancourt Rocks and his demand for an apology from the Emperor of Japan over Japanese colonialism in Korea in 2012, the Japanese public's image of South Korea deteriorated significantly. Japanese tourists to South Korea declined by half from 3.5 million in 2012 to 1.8 million in 2015, while South Korean tourists to Japan doubled from 2 million in 2012 to 4 million in 2015.[22][23][24]

Domestic tourist[edit]

Year Number of domestic tourist per year[25][26][27]
2015 38,307,303
2014 38,027,454
2013 37,800,004
2012 36,914,067
2011 35,013,090
2010 30,916,690
2009 31,201,294

Destination in Korea[edit]

Number of Tourist by Travel Destination 2015[26]
Administrative divisions Number of tourist
Seoul 12,451,891
Busan 7,158,553
Daegu 3,163,161
Incheon 4,407,063
Gwangju 2,135,332
Daejeon 2,984,929
Ulsan 1,632,410
Sejong 333,329
Gyeonggi Province 15,451,755
Gangwon Province 11,559,005
North Chungcheong Province 5,141,110
South Chungcheong Province 9,944,616
North Jeolla Province 6,760,830
South Jeolla Province 8,063,538
North Gyeongsang Province 8,822,201
South Gyeongsang Province 8,479,567
Jeju Special Self-governing Province 4,732,494

Departure[edit]

Year Number of overseas trip tourist[26]
2015 19,310,430
2014 16,080,684
2013 14,846,485
2012 13,736,976
2011 12,693,733
2010 12,488,364
2009 9,494,111
Number of Korean exit passenger by top destinations 2018[28]
Destination Number of Korean exit passenger
Asia mainland China 4,775,000
Japan 7,140,200
Thailand 1,372,994
Philippines 1,587,959
Hong Kong 1,421,411
Vietnam 3,485,406
Taiwan 1,019,441
Singapore 629,451
Macao 662,321
America United States 2,324,707

Tourist attractions[edit]

See also: List of World Heritage Sites in South Korea

South Korea's historical tourist attractions include the ancient capitals of Seoul, Gyeongju and Buyeo.

Some natural landmarks include the peaks of the Baekdudaegan, particularly Seorak-san and Jiri-san, the caves of Danyang and Hwanseongul, and beaches such as Haeundae and Mallipo.

Apart from Jeju island, there are many smaller islands. Excursion ferries are quite common along the south and west coasts and also to Ulleung-do Island, off the east coast. Limited tourism mainly by South Koreans to the Liancourt Rocks (Dokdo) has grown in recent years as a result of the political status of the rocks.

Many local districts hold annual festivals, such as the Boryeong Mud Festival and the Cheongdo Bullfighting Festival.

Major tourist destinations[edit]

Main article: List of South Korean tourist attractions

Seoul[edit]

See also: Shopping in Seoul
Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul
Bukchon Hanok Village in Seoul

Seoul is an attractive place because traditional Korean culture and modern culture co-exists, to foreigners.

The population of Seoul is 9,981,673 and it's the largest city in South Korea. As many people gather, there are many cultural spaces such as festivals, performances, shopping places, and tourist attractions in Seoul.

In addition, people in South Korea come to Seoul to enjoy various cultural activities.[29] Due to the metropolitan area centralization of the cultural infrastructure, there is a cultural gap between Seoul and other regions.[30] According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, 36.4 percent of the total cultural infrastructure such as public library, museum, and art galleries are concentrated in Seoul. Therefore, many people in South Korea travel to Seoul.

Busan[edit]

Haeundae Beach in Busan

Busan is the second largest city in South Korea. It is located in the southeastern coast in Korea, so Busan has abundant tourist attractions such as beach and hot spring. People in South Korea visit beaches in Busan in hot summer. Also, there are various festivals in Busan. 11 festivals are held annually, including local festivals and art events. Busan sea festival is held every August and Busan International Film Festival is held every October. Jagalchi Cultural Festival is developed into a representative cultural tourism festival in Korea. Because of these various festivals and places, many people travel to Busan. Also, the influence of Social Network Service made Busan a popular tourist attraction. The official Facebook of the Busan Culture and Tourism Ministry and official blog sites promote the tourist attractions in Busan.

Daegu[edit]

Incheon[edit]

Gwangju[edit]

Daejeon[edit]

  • Hanbat Arboretum
  • Yuseong Hot Springs
  • Expo Park
  • Daejeon Museum of Art

Gyeonggi Province[edit]

Hwaseong Fortress in Suwon

Gangwon Province[edit]

Seoraksan in Gangwon Province

Byeolmaro Observatory, Donggang Photo Museum, Bongraesan Mountain. Hanbando terrain in Soyanggang River

  • Taebaek — Taebaek Mountain, Manggyeongsa Temple, Taebaek Mountains Literature Park, Hwangji Pond
  • Cheolwon — Cheorwon Peace Observatory, Memorial Tower of the Baekma Goji (Korean War)
  • Hoengseong — Seong Sammum's Tomb, Noeundan, Baekyasa
  • Inje —
  • Yanggu —
  • Hwacheon —

North Chungcheong Province[edit]

Beopjusa Temple in Boeun

South Chungcheong Province[edit]

North Jeolla Province[edit]

Hanok Village in Jeonju
Mireuksa Temple Site in Iksan
Nagan Eupseong Folk Village in Suncheon

South Jeolla Province[edit]

North Gyeongsang Province[edit]

See also: Tourism in Gyeongju
Bulguksa Temple in Gyeongju
Seokguram in Gyeongju

South Gyeongsang Province[edit]

Jeju Special Self-governing Province[edit]

Mount Halla in Jeju Island
Cheonjiyeon Waterfall in Jeju Island

Events[edit]

See also: List of South Korean festivals

South Korea has hosted many international events, including the 1988 Summer Olympics, the 1993 Taejon Expo, the 2002 FIFA World Cup (jointly hosted with Japan), the 2005 APEC conference, the 2010 G-20 Seoul summit, the 2014 Asian Games, and the 2018 Winter Olympics.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

0. For entering South Korea, individuals must apply ETA “K-ETA” for visiting visa free program for tourists.

  1. ^ UNTWO (June 2008). "UNTWO World Tourism Barometer, Vol.5 No.2" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-08-19. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
  2. ^ "International tourism, number of arrivals - Korea, Rep". World Bank.
  3. ^ "30 Most Visited Countries in the World and their most visited places". Govisity.
  4. ^ "Korea Monthly Statistics".
  5. ^ "Properties inscribed on the World Heritage List". UNESCO.
  6. ^ "Statistics Korea: Resort island of Jeju is booming".
  7. ^ "1989년 1월 7일 경향신문, 네이버 뉴스 라이브러리" (in Korean). 1989-01-07.
  8. ^ "한국인이 가장 많이 떠나는 즉흥 여행 1위 '오사카'…2위 '도쿄'" [Korean's most favorite spontaneous travel destinations]. 국제신문(Kookje News) (in Korean). 2016-09-08.
  9. ^ Phillips, Don (March 7, 2006). "Travelers call Incheon best airport". International Herald Tribune.
  10. ^ Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, NATIONAL TOURISM POLICY REVIEW REPUBLIC OF KOREA, July 2002, Page 2, Table 2
  11. ^ "South Korea in hot pursuit of Indians". TTGmice. Archived from the original on 28 February 2014. Retrieved 14 March 2013.
  12. ^ "국민여행 총량" [Gross national travel amount] (in Korean). 2016-09-23.
  13. ^ 이 (Lee), 태훈 (Taehun) (2016-09-06). "국내 관광 5% 늘면 1조2000억 효과" [If domestic tourism increases by 5%, its effect makes 1.2 trillion won]. The Korea Economic Daily (in Korean). Retrieved 2016-10-31.
  14. ^ "2015년 12월 외래객입국·국민해외여행객 및 관광수입·지출 동향" [foreign entrance·nation outbound traveler and tourism income·expense trend December 2015]. 한국 관광 통계 (in Korean). 2016.
  15. ^ "2013 Travel & Tourism Economic Impact Report South Korea" (PDF). World Travel & Tourism Council. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-12-02. Retrieved 2013-11-27.
  16. ^ "OECD Tourism Trends and Policies 2020". Korea OECD Tourism Trends and Policies 2020 OECD iLibrary. OECD iLibrary. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  17. ^ "Travel & Tourism Economic Impact World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC)". Travel & Tourism Economic Impact World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). World Travel & Tourism Council. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  18. ^ "Visitor Arrivals". Korea Tourism Organization. Retrieved 2020-03-06.
  19. ^ "South Korea tourism hit by China ban". BBC. 11 July 2017.
  20. ^ "Home>Tourism Statistics > key facts on tourism > Korea, Monthly Statistics of Tourism". Korea Tourism Organization.
  21. ^ Foundation, The Korea International Broadcasting. "한국을 대표하는 글로벌 방송! The World On Arirang!". Korea works to diversify its tourists by offering convenient services and special exepriences : ARIRANG. Retrieved 2020-04-11.
  22. ^ "Aide's memoir tells why S. Korean president demanded apology from emperor". The Asahi Shimbun. January 6, 2016. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016.
  23. ^ "Foreign visitors to Japan" (PDF). Japan National Tourism Organization. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-01-27.
  24. ^ "Press release" (PDF). Japan National Tourism Organization.
  25. ^ "2012국민여행실태조사최종보고서" [Korean National Tourism Survey 2012]. Korea Tourism Organization (in Korean). Retrieved 2016-11-23.
  26. ^ a b c "2015국민여행실태조사보고서" [Korea National Tourism Survey 2015]. Korea Tourism Organization (in Korean). Retrieved 2016-11-23.
  27. ^ "2009년국민여행실태조사" [Korea National Tourism Survey 2009]. Korea Tourism Organization (in Korean). Retrieved 2016-11-23.
  28. ^ "국민해외관광객 주요 행선지통계(2016. 10월 작성)" [Nation overseas tourist's major destination survey(Oct. 2016)] (in Korean). Korea Tourism Organization. 2016-10-31.
  29. ^ 조 (Jo), 용철 (Yongcheol) (2016-10-10). "지역간 문화격차 '참담'" [Cultural gap between regions are big problem] (in Korean). The Financial News.
  30. ^ 김(Kim), 동민(Dongmin) (2016-10-13). "이종배 "문화 향유기회 확대 및 문화격차 해소해야"" ["Expand the scope of cultures and eliminate cultural gaps" Lee Jongbae] (in Korean). 충북일보(Chungbugilbo).

Further reading[edit]

  • Korean Overseas Information Service (2004). Handbook of Korea 4th ed. Seoul: Hollym. ISBN 978-1-56591-212-0.

External links[edit]

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for South Korea.
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