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Tourists from Taiwan, Hong Kong boost foreigner card spending in Korea
Tourists browse cosmetic products at an Olive Young store in Myeong-dong, Seoul, in this undated photo. Courtesy of Olive Young
By Jun Ji-hye
Payments surge at drugstores, clinics as K-beauty, health care lead growth
Combined card spending by inbound tourists from seven major markets — the United States, Japan, China, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong and Thailand — increased 26 percent over the past year, supported by a sharp rise in visitor numbers, while spending by Taiwanese and Hong Kong travelers surged more than 50 percent, marking the fastest growth among them, according to Visa on Tuesday.
Consumption has also broadened beyond traditional shopping, with growing interest in K-lifestyle experiences such as health care and beauty.
The findings come from the global credit card and payment firm’s analysis of payments made with overseas-issued personal Visa cards at offline merchants in Korea between April 2024 and March 2025.
The top three — the U.S., Japan and China — kept their previous year’s rankings and together made up over half of total spending, continuing to dominate Korea’s tourism market.
Notably, Taiwan in fourth place and Hong Kong in sixth showed particularly strong growth, as their card spending jumped 54 percent and 50 percent, respectively, compared to the same period last year.
By contrast, card spending by tourists from Thailand declined by 14 percent, causing it to drop one spot in the rankings.
The decrease is linked to the controversy over frequent refusals of the Korea Electronic Travel Authorization (K-ETA) for Thai travelers.
Introduced in September 2021, K-ETA allows travelers from 112 countries to register their information online and gain entry permission to Korea. However, numerous refusals for Thai nationals were reported, fueling controversy over unclear approval standards and anti-Korean sentiment in Thailand.
Still, total spending from the top seven countries increased 26 percent year-on-year, driven by a surge in inbound tourists from 11.03 million in 2023 to 16.37 million in 2024.
Spending patterns also broadened, reflecting heightened interest in K-lifestyle experiences across various sectors.
The health care sector, which includes hospitals, generated the largest share of spending, accounting for 15 percent of total transactions. Payments rose 58 percent compared with the previous year, with dermatology clinics making up the majority. This surge highlights the growing appeal of cosmetic procedures, as K-beauty treatments are increasingly becoming a staple experience for travelers.
Tourists wearing hanbok, or traditional Korean clothing, walk around Gyeongbok Palace in Seoul, May 6. Korea Times photo by Park Si-mon
Beauty and health-oriented drugstores, a popular stop on tourist itineraries, also saw a sharp increase in payments. Spending in the discount store category, which covers these shops, climbed 63 percent year-on-year.
Pharmacies similarly recorded strong growth in spending, fueled by demand for acne treatments, recovery creams and other pharmacy-exclusive K-beauty products that have gained popularity among visitors.
Meanwhile, contactless payments made up 15 percent of all transactions, up sharply from 6 percent a year ago, largely driven by the wider adoption of payment terminals that use EMV, a global security standard for chip-based card transactions developed by Europay, MasterCard and Visa.
Tourists from Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan recorded especially high rates of contactless use, as tap-to-pay is already a common part of everyday transactions in their home countries.
“The continuous rise in inbound travelers eager to experience Korean culture, coupled with the diversification of their payment behaviors and spending sectors, holds important meaning for Korea’s tourism market,” Visa Korea Country Manager Patrick Storey said.