The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, in cooperation with the Visit Korea Committee, announced that the “2025 Korea Grand Sale” has attracted the largest number of foreign tourists in its history.
The event was held for 45 days from January 15 to February 28, and was attended by over 346,000 foreign tourists.
This represents more than double the number compared to last year’s event.
The Korea Grand Sale is a representative shopping and cultural tourism festival of Korea, launched in 2011 to attract foreign tourists and boost spending during the off-peak tourism season of January to February.
This year, a record number of 1,680 companies participated, offering various discounts and benefits in sectors like aviation, accommodation, shopping, dining, and experiences.
Under the “K-Travel Promotion,” 34,600 airline tickets to Korea were sold with the participation of 10 domestic airlines and major global online travel agencies (OTAs), which is a 103.6% increase from last year.
In the tourism product fair, planned in collaboration with Konest, Trip.com, and others, more than 40,000 products such as accommodation and experiences were sold.
The benefits usage of the “K-Shopping Planning Exhibition,” which saw participation from major department stores, duty-free shops, and large supermarkets, reached approximately 185,000 transactions.
The sales revenue of large supermarkets and outlets increased by up to 185% and 27%, respectively, compared to last year’s event.
Through collaborations with various companies, such as Kakao Mobility (taxi call discounts), Catch Table (restaurant reservation discounts), Naver Map (store information and directions), and WowPass (point refunds), foreign visitor shopping convenience services were expanded.
The number of transactions using shopping payment promotions surpassed 41,000, marking a 429% increase from last year.
A variety of experience events were also held, focusing on different K-content themes like K-pop, food, beauty, cultural heritage, and local culture.
Kim Jeong-hoon, head of the Tourism Export Strategy Promotion Division at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, stated, “This year’s Korea Grand Sale has attracted more than double the number of foreign tourists compared to last year,” adding that “this success was achieved through high interest in K-culture and active cooperation between the public and private sectors.”
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