Seoul, Shanghai commit to expanded tourism collaboration

Koo Jong-won, right, director-general of Seoul Metropolitan Government’s tourism and sports division, shakes hands with her Shanghai counterpart at the Chinese visa application center in Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government

Seoul and Shanghai signed an agreement to deepen tourism exchanges, marking the first such pact between the two cities since establishing a sister-city relationship in 2014, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Thursday.

Representatives of the two cities' governments signed a memorandum of understanding to enhance collaboration in promoting tourism and other areas of culture, city officials said.

This agreement comes amid a surge in the number of travelers between Korea and China. According to data from the Korea Tourism Organization, 1.12 million Chinese tourists visited Korea during the first quarter of 2025, accounting for 28 percent of all foreign visitors here. Meanwhile, about 660,000 Koreans visited China during the same period.

As part of the new partnership, Seoul and Shanghai will launch a joint campaign to promote tourism and share relevant data. The cities also plan to collaborate on developing special tourism information and experiences.

Seoul city officials expect the agreement to accelerate cultural exchanges, which are already heightened by pent-up travel demand following the COVID-19 pandemic and Beijing’s visa-free entry policy for Korean nationals, in effect from November 2024 to December 2025.

“This agreement between Seoul and Shanghai represents a cooperative model where both cities seek to develop special tourism content together, aiming to establish themselves not only as leading tourist destinations in Asia but also as global tourism cities,” said Koo Jong-won, director-general at the city government’s tourism and sports division. “Both cities will continue cooperation, including practical exchanges and joint projects, so that they can lead global tourism trends.”