Korean Tourism Fever in Taiwan... Korea Tourism Organization "75% Recovery Compared to Pre-COVID"

Participation in Taiwan's Largest 'Taipei International Travel Fair'
690,000 Taiwanese Tourists Visiting Korea as of September

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization announced on the 7th that they operated the Korea Pavilion at Taiwan's largest international tourism fair, the Taipei International Travel Fair (hereinafter ITF), from the 3rd to the 6th, promoting the charm of Korean tourism.

‘Taipei International Travel Fair (ITF)’ Korean Pavilion Booth Scene. [Photo by Korea Tourism Organization]

The number of Taiwanese tourists visiting Korea reached 690,000 as of September, recovering to 74.2% compared to the same period in 2019 before COVID-19, far exceeding the overall recovery rate of 59.2% for all inbound tourists.

Accordingly, the Korea Tourism Organization formed a Korea Pavilion with 65 booths under the main theme of ‘2023~2024 Visit Korea Year’ together with 40 organizations including domestic local governments, RTOs, and the travel industry to promote tourism products linked to K-culture and expand the attraction of Taiwanese tourists.

The Korea Pavilion was designed around motifs such as traditional markets, gourmet food, winter sports, and tourism hub cities. Non-verbal performance groups ‘Jump’ and ‘Doodle Pop’ were also invited to attract consumers’ attention. In addition, various experiences for visitors were prepared, including a stamp tour, street food stalls, photo booths, and tastings of gimbap and tteokbokki.

As a result of 18 Taiwanese travel agencies and 8 international airlines conducting on-site sales of Korean tourism products and airline tickets at the Korea Pavilion product corner, over 2,500 sales were recorded.

Moreover, a large-scale online promotion held in conjunction with the fair is underway with 17 domestic and international travel agencies and 10 airlines under the theme ‘A Surprise Gift Called Korea!’ Duty-free shop gift certificates and prize draws are being offered to customers who purchase Korean tourism products and airline tickets. This promotion, running from the end of September to early December, has already attracted over 50,000 page visitors and 3,500 product purchasers by October, showing high interest.

‘Taipei International Travel Fair (ITF)’ Korean Pavilion Booth Scene. [Photo by Korea Tourism Organization]

Online and offline advertisements focusing on promoting Korean tourism are also being implemented. In addition to SNS, promotional ads are being conducted through various channels such as bus wrapping ads on major transportation means in Taiwan. Image advertisements promoting the Visit Korea Year, including ‘100 K-Culture Events,’ started in November, mainly targeting the subway lines of Taiwan’s two major cities, Taipei and Kaohsiung.

Lee Jang, head of the Korea Tourism Organization’s Taipei office, said, “Taiwan is one of the important countries in the Korean inbound tourism market along with the United States, China, and Japan. Taking this year’s joint certification system with the Taiwan Travel Quality Assurance Association as an opportunity, we will put more effort into recovering the Taiwanese market through planning high-quality Korean tourism products.”

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