Blocking Entrances and Forcing "Buy Things"... Chinese Tourists Also Suffer in Korea

2017~2023 Tourist Complaints in China
Issues Including Forced Shopping and Optional Tours
"Need for Travel Agencies' Self-Regulation Efforts to Eradicate"

As group tours of Chinese tourists to Korea have resumed after more than six years, there have been calls to eradicate practices such as 'forced shopping' targeting Chinese group tourists.

In August, groups of Chinese tourists were arriving at Incheon International Airport Terminal 1. The photo is not directly related to the content of the article.

On the 18th, Kim Seung-su, a member of the People Power Party on the National Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee, analyzed data on complaints about inconveniences faced by Chinese group tourists (from 2017 to 2023) received from the Korea Tourism Organization. Out of a total of 30 complaints, 80% (24 cases) involved guides forcing shopping and optional tours.

The complaints revealed numerous cases where, when group tourists visited ginseng, liver protection supplements, or cosmetics stores, guides forced them to purchase above a certain amount or locked the store doors until a certain time had passed.

One Chinese tourist reported, "If we didn’t buy the products, they were determined not to let us leave the store. They locked the doors and blocked the entrance," adding, "When I didn’t purchase anything, the guide scolded me in the vehicle."

There were also issues related to the so-called 'optional' tours, which tourists were forced to join.

Another Chinese tourist said, "After visiting all the shopping locations, the guide said, 'Because the purchase performance is poor, it’s embarrassing, so you must participate in the optional tour,' demanding 400 yuan (about 74,000 KRW) per person," and added, "When I expressed my intention not to participate, they told me to pay a fine of 1,500 yuan (about 277,000 KRW), which was more expensive than the optional tour fee."

People Power Party's Kim Seung-su. [Photo by Yonhap News]

Rep. Kim said, "There is a risk that the image of Korean tourism could be damaged due to problems caused by some travel agencies," and added, "The number of Chinese group tourists entering Korea is expected to recover fully next year, so industry self-regulation efforts and measures such as implementing a certification system for high-quality inbound tourism products are necessary."

In March 2017, China effectively banned Korean tourism through travel agencies within China as retaliation for the deployment of the THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) missile defense system by the U.S. Forces Korea. As a result, travel agencies abruptly stopped selling group tour packages.

During that period, some Chinese tourists reportedly obtained individual visas and purchased group tour packages through unofficial channels such as the messenger app WeChat to visit Korea.

Subsequently, on August 10th, the Chinese government effectively lifted the ban on overseas group travel for its citizens, liberalizing group tours to Korea by Chinese tourists after more than six years.

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