The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization held the “China Inbound Activation Forum” at the Westin Chosun Seoul in Jung-gu, Seoul on the 6th. This event, following a forum last month on strengthening international competitiveness for inbound tourism, focused on the Chinese market, Korea’s largest source of inbound tourists. It was divided into group tourists (Youke) and individual tourists (Sanke) to develop customized policy tasks.
Participants included Korean and Chinese tourism research institutions, such as the Korea Culture & Tourism Institute and the China Tourism Academy, as well as tourism industry representatives from associations like the Korea Association of Travel Agents and the China Association of Travel Services. Chinese companies like Trip.com, Meituan, and WeChat Pay also sent speakers.
The first session explored creating a fair market environment for the Youke market, discussing current trends, issues, and cooperation strategies. Kim Hyun-joo from the Korea Culture & Tourism Institute emphasized the importance of cooperation between the governments of Korea and China to create a fair environment for the Chinese group tourism market, suggesting initiatives like ethics codes and standardized contracts.
Professors from Sejong University and Kyungpook National University proposed measures such as visa-free entry for Chinese group tourists and the development of theme-based experience travel products unique to Korea. They also suggested expanding government support for dedicated travel agencies.
Li Zhuyuan from the China Association of Travel Services noted a trend toward small group family travel in China, recommending the development of high-value group products targeting clubs and companies.
The second session focused on individual tourism (FIT), highlighting marketing and travel convenience for individual tourists. Edison Chen, Vice President of Trip.com Group, noted a rapid shift towards individual travel among Chinese tourists, characterized by small, customized, and experiential preferences.
Hermann of Meituan Dianping analyzed reservation data, suggesting targeted marketing strategies based on the unique characteristics of Korea-bound travel products compared to neighboring countries.
WeChat Pay’s Dickson Tian emphasized improving the public transport reservation and payment system to diversify individual tourists’ routes beyond Seoul to regional cities. He also highlighted the potential for expanding small travel content that supports consumption, such as shopping, beauty, culinary, and cultural experiences.
Kim Jeong-hoon, Director of the Tourism Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, stated that China is the largest strategic market, accounting for the highest number of foreign tourists this year, and highlighted the importance of tailored strategies to attract high-value visitors, focusing on both group and individual tourists.