KTO turns to big data to draw 30 mil. tourists by 2028

Park Sung-hyeuck, president of the Korea Tourism Organization, speaks during the agency’s forum at the Nine Tree Premier ROKAUS Hotel in Yongsan District, Seoul, Tuesday. Korea Times photo by Baek Byung-yeul

The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) aims to achieve its goal of attracting 30 million foreign tourists by 2028, a year ahead of the government's target, by utilizing comprehensive big data to revitalize regional tourism and market strategies, KTO President Park Sung-hyeuck said Tuesday.

"Precise and timely data, along with sharp market analysis capabilities, are crucial tools to achieve this bold milestone," Park said during a forum held by the state-run agency in Seoul.

Korea attracted around 19 million foreign tourists last year, and the government has set its sights on bringing the number to 30 million by 2029.

KTO hosted the data seminar to address the rapidly changing travel environment, which is increasingly shaped by independent travelers. The agency emphasized that data-driven insights are critical to moving past conventional experience-based tourism marketing and toward a sustainable growth model.

To support the industry, KTO announced the launch of its new quarterly report, whose title translates into "Korean Tourism These Days."

The inaugural issue combines consumption, telecommunications and social media data from 26 countries to analyze shifting tourist demands, such as younger foreign travelers who visit cultural performances in Gwanghwamun and then move to famous cafes in Seoul's Seongsu-dong neighborhood.

"We cannot enhance the competitiveness of Korean tourism based solely on intuition and past experience anymore," Park said.

"KTO’s Korea Tourism Data Lab has grown into a world-class data hub, and we are currently upgrading the platform to provide natural language search functions powered by AI (artificial intelligence) to give the industry actionable insights," he added.

Kang Jung-won, head of the tourism policy bureau of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, speaks during the Korea Tourism Organization forum at the Nine Tree Premier ROKAUS Hotel in Yongsan, Seoul, Tuesday. Korea Times photo by Baek Byung-yeul

Kang Jung-won, head of the tourism policy bureau at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, welcomed the initiative, highlighting the importance of sharing public and private data to create new value.

"With technically advanced personalized services becoming possible, this data is a vital resource for our industry," Kang said.

He also said that inbound tourist numbers in the first quarter rose more than 22 percent year-on-year, maintaining strong growth momentum despite geopolitical uncertainties in the Middle East.

Kim Young-mi, head of the KTO’s Tourism AI Innovation division, explained the strategic background of the report, saying that the Korea Tourism Data Lab platform recently surpassed 100,000 members.

"The digital era requires us to analyze data swiftly and apply it directly to the field rather than spending too much time planning long-term strategies," Kim said, adding that overseas women in their 20s and 30s are currently leading the inbound trend with a strong interest in Korea's daily lifestyle.

Kang Jae-wan, a KTO researcher, presented an in-depth analysis on cruise tourism, which serves as the main theme of the report's first issue.

"While global cruise tourism is expanding and inbound cruise travelers to Korea are projected to reach 2 million this year, over 95 percent of these visits are currently limited to single-day port calls," Kang said. He suggested that Korea must develop overnight cruise products and customized regional content to extend tourist stays and boost local economic impacts.

The forum also dealt with the structural challenges of cruise tourism, focusing on the need for port infrastructure expansion and streamlined customs procedures during the panel discussion.