Online vote opens to select 10 best hallyu spots

By Lee Kyung-min

Online voting has been opened to select 10 tourist spots in Seoul that best represent hallyu, or the Korean Wave, the Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) said Thursday.

The move aims to help foreign tourists easily navigate popular hallyu-related places amid growing interest in Korean entertainment and culture that has gained worldwide recognition through TV dramas, movies, and K-pop.

According to a 2015 study by the Korea Tourism Organization, 75.8 percent of foreign tourist said they wanted to visit restaurants recommended by Korean celebrities and 75.6 percent wanted to visit filming locations of Korean TV dramas or movies, when multiple answers were allowed.

“We’ll promote the selected 10 places intensively as representative hallyu spots,” a city official said.

SMG shortlisted 20 candidate places out of some 250, including N Seoul Tower where the soap opera “My Love From the Star” starring Jun Ji-hyun was filmed; K-Star Road in Gangnam; Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP); Deoksu Palace; and Tongin Market.

Both Koreans and foreigners are eligible to vote until Sept. 20 on www.visitseoul.net.

A selected number of voters will be given prizes, such as a round-trip ticket to Seoul and tickets to the 2016 Melon Music Awards.

The 10 locations will be announced on Sept. 28 on the website.