By Choi Kyong-ae
Chinese and Japanese tourists picked language barriers and high-pressure selling as the two major problems they face in Korea, according to an industry poll released Wednesday.
From April 2 to 9, the Korea Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI) conducted a survey on 150 Japanese and 150 Chinese tourists who were leaving Korea to see what complaints they had about their stay in the country.
In the poll, 57 percent of the Chinese respondents selected the language barrier as the biggest shortcoming during their visit to Korea, followed by the lack of travel signs (34 percent), inconvenient traffic (21.3 percent) and high prices (17.3 percent), according to the KCCI.
Twenty-nine percent of Japanese respondents picked forced purchases after some "free gifts" as the biggest problem, followed by the language barrier (22.7 percent), lack of travel signs (21.3 percent) and unfriendly employees (16.7 percent).
Both groups liked shopping in Myeongdong; but the former preferred Namdaemun market, while the latter chose Dongdaemun for additional shopping. Chinese people used credit cards to pay for things, but the Japanese preferred to use cash. They liked cosmetics and clothing the most.
Senior researcher Lee Eun-cheol at KCCI's Distribution Research Division called for changes in Koreans' recognition or attitude towards Chinese people in Korea. Some Koreans tend to look down on them as well as Southeast Asian workers here.
Looking ahead, Lee said, "The number of Chinese tourists visiting Korea will overtake that of the Japanese, helped by the government's visa-waiver program for transfer passengers from China." Seoul has recently allowed Chinese transfer passengers to enter the country without a visa for a brief tour or shopping.
To attract more Chinese tourists, the official said, "The government also has to make strategic efforts to provide more guides who speak Chinese, and information or guidebooks written in Chinese."
In the five-year period that ended in 2013, the number of Chinese tourists grew by an average of 34 percent each year to 4.33 million last year. During the same period, the number of Japanese tourists fell 9.8 percent to 2.75 million, according to KCCI data.
This is the first time the number of Chinese tourists exceeded their Japanese counterparts since the authorities began to collect data in 1990, said the Korean business lobbying group.
Korea had a total of 12.1 million foreign tourists, including those from Japan and China, in 2013, jumping 55 percent from 7.81 million in 2009. Most of them are from the two neighboring countries, Kim Kyung-jong, president of the KCCI Institute of Distribution and Logistics, said in a statement.
The KCCI asked the government to generate a shopping week or similar programs, such as a shopping festival like the "Mega Sale" in Hong Kong which is run twice a year. According to the KCCI poll, 91 percent of Chinese tourists and 67 percent of Japanese tourists said they would revisit Korea if there was a mega shopping promotion.
Chinese and Japanese tourists picked language barriers and high-pressure selling as the two major problems they face in Korea, according to an industry poll released Wednesday.
From April 2 to 9, the Korea Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI) conducted a survey on 150 Japanese and 150 Chinese tourists who were leaving Korea to see what complaints they had about their stay in the country.
In the poll, 57 percent of the Chinese respondents selected the language barrier as the biggest shortcoming during their visit to Korea, followed by the lack of travel signs (34 percent), inconvenient traffic (21.3 percent) and high prices (17.3 percent), according to the KCCI.
Twenty-nine percent of Japanese respondents picked forced purchases after some "free gifts" as the biggest problem, followed by the language barrier (22.7 percent), lack of travel signs (21.3 percent) and unfriendly employees (16.7 percent).
Both groups liked shopping in Myeongdong; but the former preferred Namdaemun market, while the latter chose Dongdaemun for additional shopping. Chinese people used credit cards to pay for things, but the Japanese preferred to use cash. They liked cosmetics and clothing the most.
Senior researcher Lee Eun-cheol at KCCI's Distribution Research Division called for changes in Koreans' recognition or attitude towards Chinese people in Korea. Some Koreans tend to look down on them as well as Southeast Asian workers here.
Looking ahead, Lee said, "The number of Chinese tourists visiting Korea will overtake that of the Japanese, helped by the government's visa-waiver program for transfer passengers from China." Seoul has recently allowed Chinese transfer passengers to enter the country without a visa for a brief tour or shopping.
To attract more Chinese tourists, the official said, "The government also has to make strategic efforts to provide more guides who speak Chinese, and information or guidebooks written in Chinese."
In the five-year period that ended in 2013, the number of Chinese tourists grew by an average of 34 percent each year to 4.33 million last year. During the same period, the number of Japanese tourists fell 9.8 percent to 2.75 million, according to KCCI data.
This is the first time the number of Chinese tourists exceeded their Japanese counterparts since the authorities began to collect data in 1990, said the Korean business lobbying group.
Korea had a total of 12.1 million foreign tourists, including those from Japan and China, in 2013, jumping 55 percent from 7.81 million in 2009. Most of them are from the two neighboring countries, Kim Kyung-jong, president of the KCCI Institute of Distribution and Logistics, said in a statement.
The KCCI asked the government to generate a shopping week or similar programs, such as a shopping festival like the "Mega Sale" in Hong Kong which is run twice a year. According to the KCCI poll, 91 percent of Chinese tourists and 67 percent of Japanese tourists said they would revisit Korea if there was a mega shopping promotion.
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