Incheon City Expands Incentives to 1 Billion KRW for Customized Strategies to Attract Chinese Group Tourists

Incheon City announced on the 12th that it will implement a customized response strategy to welcome Chinese group tourists following China's decision last August to allow group travel for its citizens to 78 countries, including South Korea and the United States.

This permission for group travel by China comes after approximately 3 years and 7 months since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The city expects that the influx of Chinese tourists visiting Incheon will revitalize the local economy and commercial districts. Accordingly, the city plans to actively pursue a tailored strategy that reflects the newly changed environment and trends in the Chinese tourism industry, such as the increase in individual travelers after COVID-19.

The city has selected three major project areas: ▲ Enhancing the brand value of Incheon as a tourist city ▲ Differentiated marketing to expand visitor demand ▲ Creating and supporting a sustainable tourism ecosystem. It will promote four key projects including targeting major markets and holding roadshows, expanding incentives for attracting Chinese group tourists, developing and attracting special-purpose tourism products for China, and strengthening cooperation for tourism industry readiness.

In particular, the city plans to increase incentives for attracting group tourists through corporate reward tours, sports exchange groups, and international cultural and artistic exchanges to 1 billion KRW. The strategy also involves attracting tourists to experience Incheon’s history and culture by linking accommodations, cultural experiences, festivals, and tourism resources, thereby invigorating local consumption.

Foreign tourists are enjoying beer at the '1883 Incheon Maekgang Party' held at Incheon Port Sangsang Platform, a complex cultural space. June 15, 2023
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Additionally, considering the acceleration of digital transformation in the tourism industry and the expansion of the regional tourism market due to government policies promoting local tourism, the city plans to focus on spreading content using media such as K-culture content creation, influencers, and overseas ambassadors. To this end, the city will collaborate with the Korea Tourism Organization and the Korea Visit Year Committee to discover cooperative projects related to medical wellness and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) sectors, and will also discuss developing linked products with the K-Culture Concert hosted by the Korea Tourism Organization next year.

Furthermore, the city will continue to coordinate with related organizations such as the Incheon Port Authority to ensure the normal operation of cruises and car ferries in preparation for the large-scale arrival of Chinese group tourists, and to promptly reopen tourist information centers, medical promotion halls, and convenience facilities within the Incheon Port International Passenger Terminal.

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