Korea sees strong growth in visitors from Americas, Europe as tourism market diversifies

A visiting father and son catch waves together at Yangyang's iconic Jukdo Beach in Gangwon Province, Tuesday. Yonhap

Korea drew 10.71 million foreign visitors in the first half of 2026, stemming from sustained growth from the Americas, Europe and Oceania as evidence that the country's tourism market is diversifying beyond its traditional base in Asia, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said Thursday.

Visitors from the Americas reached 1.08 million through June, up 12.7 percent from the same period last year, while arrivals from Europe rose 20.2 percent to 740,000, according to the ministry. Other markets, including Oceania, grew 11 percent to 210,000.

Among individual countries, visits from the United States rose 11.1 percent to 730,000, while Canada grew 17.1 percent, Brazil 22.1 percent and Mexico 16.3 percent.

In Europe, Britain and Germany each surpassed 100,000 visitors, growing 22.1 percent and 15.4 percent respectively, while France and Italy grew 17.2 percent and 29 percent. Even Russia saw a modest increase despite the absence of direct flights, a casualty of the war in Ukraine.

The ministry attributed much of the growth to improved flight access. New direct routes were launched last year between Incheon and Salt Lake City, Seattle, Canada and Denmark, followed by a new London route in March, while a new Newark, New Jersey, route is set to launch in September.

British carrier Virgin Atlantic began daily Incheon-London service in March, adding about 70,000 seats this year alone — a factor the ministry linked to the 22 percent rise in British visitors.

Marketing tied to Korean pop culture and major global sporting events also played a role. A Korea tourism promotional booth linked to a BTS concert in London drew roughly 50,000 fans, the ministry said.

During this year's FIFA World Cup, co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, the ministry ran a Korea tourism booth from June 9-21 at the Global Village fan zone in Mexico City's Chapultepec Park, an official fan engagement area set up around World Cup host cities, resulting in 1,480 tour package sales, 3,315 travelers and an estimated $16.13 million in revenue.

In France, the ministry is planning a Korea-themed special issue of the travel magazine Le Figaro Voyage this September to mark the 140th anniversary of Korea-France diplomatic relations, alongside hiking and regional-experience tour packages developed with a French hiking federation.

The ministry also cited an April symposium in Korea hosted by Virtuoso, a network of luxury travel agencies — the first such event held in Northeast Asia — as part of a broader push into high-end travel from Western markets.

The ministry also credited a network of 12 promotional outposts across 11 countries, mostly in Europe and Oceania, that it has operated in emerging markets without full overseas branches since 2024.

Visitor numbers from some of those markets rose sharply this year, including Sweden, up 57 percent, Poland, up 33 percent and Spain, up 26 percent.

"The steady growth in visitors from the Americas, Europe and Oceania reflects the combined effect of Korean culture's growing global recognition and wide-ranging marketing efforts, including new promotional outposts in emerging markets," a ministry spokesperson said, adding that tourism authorities will continue tailoring tourism products to Western markets and improving visitor convenience.

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.