Seoul Eyes 8.5 Mil. Foreign Tourists
By Do Je-hae
Staff Reporter
Korea is seeking to attract 8.5 million foreign tourists this year, the start of a three-year "Visit Korea" campaign.
Culture Minister Yu In-chon said the promotion will generate global interest in Korea and motivate more visitors to come back again.
A record high of over 7 million overseas tourists, mostly Chinese and Japanese nationals, travelled to Korea last year, despite the global economic downturn and flu scare.
The nation's main international airports celebrated the opening year of the campaign with welcoming events for the first tourists from China and Japan on the first day of 2010.
The "Visit Korea 2010-2012" campaign is the third such national promotion following two previous campaigns in 1994 and 2001-2002.
In November, Korea introduced a set of measures to facilitate Chinese entry through a visa waiver program for tourists staying for up to 30 days.
The campaign targets $10 billion in annual tourism revenue. Korea also wants to be among the top 20 countries in global tourism competitiveness. The drive was initiated to uplift the underdeveloped domestic tourism industry.
A recent survey by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) showed that tourism revenue accounted for only 6.6 percent of GDP in 2008, much lower than the global average of 9.6 percent.
The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) predicts another tough year for global tourism due to the slow economic recovery. In Asia, competition for tourism dollars among countries such as Japan, Singapore and China will grow fiercer, the UNWTO said, making it more difficult for underdogs like Korea to make substantial progress.
"It is important to raise Korea's general respect for the impact of tourism on the economy, particularly its role in creating jobs, boosting provincial economies and generating foreign currency," KTO President Lee Charm said.
"To that end, we need to make bold investments in expanding tourism infrastructures and ease entry regulations through visa waiver programs."
Despite the rise in the number of foreign tourists last year, there are still lingering issues that must be tackled. Foreigners have cited the general lack of English proficiency and high costs as some of the most glaring hindrances in travelling around Korea.
A general lack of attention on safety issues has emerged, particularly after a fire broke out at a Busan shooting range frequented by Japanese tourists in November 2009. Hyangilam, a well-known Buddhist temple in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province, was also severely damaged in a fire that broke out last month, ahead of hosting seasonal crowds for the New Year's sunrise.
Korea has also had problems in developing provincial areas to become more accessible for foreigners. Authorities are hoping that forthcoming provincial festivals, such as the 2010 Baekje History Expo in Chungcheong Province, will be a chance to show foreign visitors that there are places worth seeing outside Seoul. The province is aiming to globalize the cultural legacy of the ancient Baekje Kingdom (18 B.C.-660 A.D.), which has continued to fascinate historians and visitors.
Korea will promote major international events scheduled to take place here in the next three years, such as the 2011 Daegu World Championship in Athletics and the 2012 Yeosu Expo, as some of the compelling reasons to visit Korea. The committee will also focus on attracting visitors to provincial regions.
In cooperation with the Visit Korea Committee, Incheon International Airport held a lottery to select recipients of special gifts, such as business class tickets and hotel lodging certificates, among Japanese tourists arriving at Incheon aboard Asiana Airlines from Narita. Jeju International Airport handed out locally grown tangerines to foreign visitors arriving there on Jan. 1.
The committee installed a Visit Korea Year booth at Incheon, Jeju, and Gimpo airports to distribute souvenirs, including tourist maps, to about 25,000 foreign visitors.
The committee also held promotional events at some of the nation's favorite spots for savoring New Year sunrise, such as Haeundae Beach in Busan, and Homigot, Pohang and Jeongdongjin in Gangwon Province.