Weekly Tourism Update Korea (4 March 2014)
There have been some interesting events and changes in the Korean tourism market during the last two weeks.
First, there was a major travel conference held at the KOEX center in Seoul. This event was held from 27 February until 2 March 2014. It was called the ‘Naenara Travel Exposition’ that translates to ‘Own Country Travel Exposition’. It focused on travel opportunities within Korea. This event attracted over 100,000 visitors. This conference was well timed as it focused on the inbound (Korean Local) travel industry just prior to the start of the high season. High season in Korea starts in March.
Even prior to the high season, there has been a noticeable and continuous increase in Chinese tourism in Korea especially in Seoul. It is interesting to note a change in the travel pattern of Chinese tourists. Previously, Chinese tourism has been primarily group tours. This has changed to an increase number of individual couples travel (FIT travel) consisting of husbands and wife’s with family members or dating couples coming to Korea for a quick getaway. This trend has been noted as strengthening since the beginning of the 2014.
The outbound market of Koreans traveling overseas has also shown some changes. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has commenced reporting the security information related to the airline companies to the general public and is considering imposing restriction on the operations of airlines it considers less secure. This change will hopefully improve travel safety for customers however it will adversely impact the black listed airlines and could impact the cost of travel. The enforcement of these actions by the government comes after the consistent demand for the safety measures.
China continues to be the top destination for Korean overseas travelers due to proximity; however, the number of Koreans visiting China continues to decrease. Since November, the decrease in visitation has steadily declined with a 0.26% decrease in November; a 1.57% decrease in December; and a huge 8.82% decrease in January 2014. The total number of Koreans who visited China in 2013 was recorded at 3,960,000 that represent an overall 2.5% decrease from 2012.
The outbound tourist trade to Japan showed an unexpected increase last year. Despite earthquakes, concerns over radiation, and political and diplomatic conflicts between Korea and Japan, over 2,450,000 Koreans traveled to Japan in 2013. The increase in visitation again shows that a decrease in travel costs due to the Japanese Yen’s depreciation against the Korean won and increase airfare competition due to low cost carriers (LCC) entering the market are can be larger factors in the travel industry than other factors. Next year, the JNTO (Japan National Tourism Organization) projects 2,720,000 Koreans to visit Japan in 2014.
By Howard JC Lee President & CEO Innovative Marketing
