Tourist arrivals to Korea jump as spending tops 10 trillion won
Korea welcomed 10.71 million foreign visitors in the first half, with card spending rising faster than arrivals and regional destinations drawing more travelers.
People take selfies at Bukchon Hanok Village in Jongno District, central Seoul, on July 28.YONHAP
People are coming to Korea more and spending more. Korea drew 10.71 million foreign visitors in the first half of the year, up 21 percent from the same period in 2025, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said Tuesday. Their card spending also passed 10 trillion won ($6.8 billion), roughly three months earlier than it did last year.
In June alone, a total of 1,993,128 foreigners visited Korea, up 23 percent from the same month last year, according to government data released on Tuesday.
China not only stood at the top as the country with the most visitors to Korea, at 649,582 people in June, but the on-year growth was also the highest at 36.2 percent. Japan followed with 348,216, up 21.3 percent, and Taiwan with 223,127, up 35.3 percent.
Comparatively, arrivals from the Americas, combining Canada, the United States, Mexico and South American nations, stood at 219,948 while 119,445 from Europe visited Korea in June.
Six Southeast Asian markets sent a combined 230,000: Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.
Tourists also reported increased satisfaction with their experience in Korea. The satisfaction score, measured by a survey, rose 0.7 points from 89.8 in the second quarter of last year to 90.5 in the second quarter of this year. More tourists are also visiting areas outside the Seoul capital region, the same survey showed. This year's figures are provisional.
"The rise in overall travel satisfaction and their tendency to visit [places outside the Seoul capital region] over the second quarter of last year shows the increase in the quality of travel in Korea," the Tourism Ministry said.
Unsurprisingly, most visitors flew in, with air arrivals totaling 1.74 million in June. Notably, however, more foreigners used airports other than Incheon International and Gimpo International — the two nearest to the Seoul capital region — compared to the same time the previous year. The number of foreigners who used the two airports rose 18.2 percent on year while those who came to Korea through other regional airports rose by 42.5 percent.
While the number of people who traveled to Korea through ports in the capital region stood low at 55,243 in June, it experienced a notable increase of 87.3 percent on year. People who traveled through ports outside the Seoul capital region — like Busan — rose by 13.2 percent over the same time last June.
Tourists walk around the Myeongdong shopping district in Jung District, central Seoul, on July 28.NEWS1
Foreigners' spending grew even faster than the visitor numbers. Foreigners spent over 10 trillion won on cards in the first half of this year, 50.8 percent above the first six months last year, when card spending did not clear 10 trillion won until September. In June alone, they spent 2.05 trillion won on cards and cleared 2 trillion won for a second consecutive month in June.
"The rapid growth in the inbound tourism market shown in the first half is the result of the irreplaceable appeal of 'K-culture' on top of the efforts of the government and the tourism industry," Kang Jung-won, who heads the ministry's tourism policy office, said.
"The rise in arrivals and spending through regional airports is also an encouraging result, and the ministry will wholeheartedly support so that the whole of Korea can become a stage for 'K-tourism',"
