[Interview] "Jeju Tourism, A Time to Develop Demand-Oriented Infrastructure"

Kang In-cheol Acting President of Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Tourism Association
Need for Customized Programs Based on Nationality, Age, and Travel Purpose
Policy Expansion for Tourism Demand Discovery and Industry Promotion

"As travel demand, which had slowed due to COVID-19, is recovering, we will promote the maintenance of tourism infrastructure and the discovery of diverse tourism demands that are not biased by nationality, age, or travel purpose."

Kang In-cheol, Acting President of Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Tourism Association.
Photo by Kim Hee-yoon

After 6 years and 5 months since the 'THAAD retaliation' and the subsequent Hanhanryeong (ban on Korean tourism) in 2017, China has allowed group tours again, bringing new life to Jeju's tourism industry. Due to the impact of COVID-19, the number of Chinese tourists visiting Korea was only 170,000 in 2021, but it increased to 550,000 in the first half of this year, signaling a recovery trend. The industry expects a rapid recovery to the 8.07 million level seen in 2016 before the THAAD retaliation. One day after the decision to allow Chinese group tours, 53 cruise ship port calls were booked in Jeju.

Kang In-cheol, Acting President of the Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Tourism Association, stated that preparations are underway to stimulate demand following the recovery of Chinese tourists. In a recent interview with Asia Economy, Acting President Kang emphasized, "It is still uncertain how much Chinese-origin cruises will help Jeju's tourism recovery, but since domestic tourists make up a large portion of the 13 million annual Jeju visitors, it is necessary to stimulate demand evenly regardless of nationality."

He also mentioned that a comprehensive inspection of Jeju's tourism infrastructure should be conducted starting with the arrival of Chinese-origin cruises. Acting President Kang explained, “About 4,000 people disembark from each cruise ship, requiring around 100 buses for transportation. Currently, Jeju has about 1,700 charter buses in total, but to handle the influx of demand, it is necessary to review and inspect various tourism infrastructures, including buses.”

Earlier on the 31st, a cruise departing from China made the first-ever port call in Jeju nationwide. The number of cruises scheduled to call this year is 47, and as of the 18th, 264 Chinese-origin cruises (out of a total of 334 ships) have applied to call at Jeju Island by next year, according to the Jeju Tourism Association.

The cruise ship Shanghai Blue Dream Star (24,782 tons), carrying a group of Chinese tourists, arrived at Jeju Port on the afternoon of the 31st. The disembarked Chinese tourists are moving toward the terminal.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Acting President Kang also mentioned the need to diversify Jeju travel programs, which had been centered on group tours. He said, "Until recently, due to the Chinese economy not being as strong as before, the trend was that individual travelers outnumbered group tourists in Jeju. There is an increasing need to either group individual travelers in Jeju or develop customized programs, requiring more delicate approaches and planning.”

He added, "In the golf industry, golf-tel accommodation customers are preferred, and bus companies prefer student group customers, so preferences may vary. Nevertheless, from an overall perspective, it is important to attract various tourists to Jeju and conduct selective marketing accordingly.”

Jeju, where the proportion of domestic tourists is as high as that of foreign tourists, has recently faced criticism for its high prices. Tourists have been turning away, choosing overseas destinations over Jeju for the same price, deepening concerns in the local tourism industry. Regarding criticism of Jeju's prices, Acting President Kang said, “Related organizations and groups in Jeju held meetings, and in the case of the food service industry, they are struggling due to rising labor and material costs, so it is not a matter to focus solely on specific issues in expensive places.”

Additionally, he stated, "There have been cases where sashimi restaurants affected by the issue of contaminated water discharge from the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan have recently switched to black pork restaurants, so we are closely monitoring and responding to changes in the industry."

Acting President Kang said, "Through COVID-19, I felt that the policy perspective on the tourism industry as an industry was somewhat lacking. It is now time for more comprehensive tourism industry promotion policies targeting both foreigners and domestic tourists visiting not only Jeju but also Korea as a whole."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.