SEOUL: South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Feb 25 called for a sweeping overhaul of the country’s tourism industry, setting a goal of 30 million inbound visitors by boosting travel demand and spreading tourism beyond Seoul.
To meet that target, relevant government ministries rolled out a two-pillar strategy – expanding inbound demand and revitalising regional tourism – backed by reforms to immigration procedures, regional airports, lodging systems and higher value-added tourism content.
While presiding over the Expanded National Tourism Strategy Meeting at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Lee underscored that “the development of the cultural industry triggered by K-culture must ultimately lead to tourism”.
“Only then can the explosive energy of K-culture translate into growth that our people can feel, and into job creation,” Lee said during the session held under the slogan: “K-tourism embraces the world – a major shift in inbound tourism, a great leap in regional tourism”.
“A key task for the tourism industry’s renewed take-off is to boldly expand the horizons of tourism across the entirety of the Republic of Korea,” Lee added, referring to South Korea by its official name.
Lee underscored the need for a shift toward qualitative growth at a critical juncture, as South Korea welcomed a record around 18.93 million foreign visitors in 2025, putting the era of 20 million inbound tourists within reach.
“We must move beyond quantitative expansion and make a major transition to qualitative growth to usher in the era of 30 million foreign visitors by 2030 that we are aiming for.”
The number of inbound foreign visitors reached 18,936,562 in 2025, up 15.7 per cent from 16,369,629 the previous year, according to Korea tourism statistics released in February.
Tourist spending by these visitors has also been rising. Total foreign tourist expenditure in 2025 came to just over 17.4 trillion won (US$12.2 billion), up 21.1 per cent from nearly 14.4 trillion won the year before.
“If we are satisfied with the reality that 80 per cent of foreign tourists are concentrated in Seoul, the growth of the tourism industry is bound to hit a ceiling,” Lee said.
“For tourism-led growth to be sustainable, the opportunities and benefits must be shared by local alleyway commercial districts across the country and by small business owners in the regions.”
Lee underlined that the government should take a hard look at the visitor experience from end to end – from regional airports and cruise infrastructure to immigration and entry procedures – and scrutinise the system in detail from the demand side.
Lee also urged officials to spearhead innovation in regional tourism, using each area’s unique assets to turn destinations nationwide into compelling content and experiences.
“The thing we must be most wary of is unfair practices that cause travellers to turn away,” Lee said. “The price gouging, unfriendliness and excessive touting that we know all too well are malicious abuses that ultimately inflict great damage on local economies, and they must be rooted out in advance.”
The meeting on Feb 25 notably marked the first time since 2019 that the President has personally attended the tourism strategy meeting, as Seoul seeks to turn tourism into a larger growth engine.
The pan-governmental coordinating body was launched in 2017 and is typically chaired by the Prime Minister.
Participants from the private sector, including Hotel Shilla chief executive Lee Boo-jin, as well as related ministers and senior officials from Cheong Wa Dae, attended the meeting.
On the government side, key ministers included Prime Minister Kim Min-seok, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Koo Yoon-cheol, Education Minister Choi Kyo-jin, Minister of Interior and Safety Yun Ho-jung and Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Chae Hwi-young.
The culture minister presented measures for a major shift in inbound tourism and a leap in regional tourism, underscoring that “this is the golden time for us to make a decisive push to become a global tourism powerhouse”.
“Starting today, K-tourism will run harder and faster. We will first revise our target – bringing forward by one year the goal of attracting 30 million foreign visitors by 2030,” Chae said.
During the meeting, Vice-Justice Minister Lee Jin-soo laid out plans to improve immigration convenience.
Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Yun-duk outlined a strategy to turn regional airports into inbound tourism hubs, while the acting oceans minister presented measures to improve cruise tourism readiness.
Koo Yoon-cheol then briefed participants on steps to eradicate price gouging. - The Korea Herald/ANN
