"Come Enjoy K-Culture" Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Announces Top 10 Projects for 2024 Korea Tourism Year

Ministry of Culture, Tourism Organization, and Visit Korea Committee Regularize Interagency Meetings
Strengthening Tourism Enjoyed Through Unique K-Culture and Local Experiences

The government is set to actively support the tourism industry with the goal of attracting 20 million foreign visitors within the year.

In May of last year, actor Cha Eun-woo (from the left), First Lady Kim Keon-hee, and Lee Boo-jin, Chairwoman of the Korea Visit Year Committee, attended the 'K Tourism Cooperation Group Launch Ceremony' held at Hiker Ground.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

On the 16th, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced that it will promote the top 10 major projects of the '2024 Visit Korea Year' in collaboration with the Korea Tourism Organization and the Korea Visit Year Committee, showcasing Korean tourism enjoyed regionally through new K-Culture experiences.

Going forward, the Ministry plans to hold regular meetings with the Tourism Organization and the Visit Year Committee to meticulously establish various inbound tourism strategies and develop them into policies.

Accordingly, through the first meeting held on the 15th, the Ministry reviewed the direction for promoting the top 10 projects of the '2024 Visit Korea Year.' It explained that it will continue to hold regular meetings with related agencies to monitor the progress of each institution’s projects, strengthen cooperation and linkage among agencies, and refine diverse inbound tourism strategies into policies. Additionally, it will expand the Visit Korea Year campaign and continuously monitor the status of foreign visitor arrivals and departures.

First, utilizing the Korea Tourism Organization’s 32 overseas branches in 22 countries worldwide, it will promote inbound tourism products linked to large-scale exhibitions and performing arts festivals such as '2024 KIAF Seoul·Frieze Seoul' and '2024 Welcome Daehangno' to attract high-value tourists. Efforts will also be made to recruit foreign enthusiasts by linking events such as marathon races held in Seoul and Gyeongju, as well as bicycle paths in Busan and Jeju.

Throughout the year across the country, a variety of diverse content aimed at captivating foreign tourists will be presented, including ▲100 K-Culture Tourism Events (year-round, nationwide) ▲K-Pop Playground (April in Seoul, May to October in Jeonju, Gyeongju, etc.) ▲Korea Beauty Festival (June in Seoul) ▲Large-scale Hallyu Festival (October in Seoul) ▲Korea Bucket List (September to October) ▲Special Promotion for Regional Tourism Revitalization ▲Invite You Invitation Project (May) ▲Korea Grand Sale (January to February) ▲Welcome Week (April, September) ▲K-Tourism Cooperation Group Promotion.

On the 11th, when the 2024 Korea Grand Sale opened, foreigners are taking commemorative photos in front of the Myeongdong Welcome Center in Jung-gu, Seoul. [Joint Press Corps] [Image source=Yonhap News]

In particular, the Ministry will develop and promote inbound tourism products called '100 K-Culture Tourism Events,' allowing visitors to enjoy Korea’s culture, arts, content, games, sports, and food in various regions nationwide by theme. It will promote regional tourism linked to the '100 K-Culture Tourism Events' at major overseas exhibitions to encourage genuine interest in Korea to translate into actual visits.

From April to October, large-scale events utilizing K-Culture will take place nationwide. Starting with a pop-up store at the Hiker Ground in Seoul in April, the '(tentative name) K-Pop Playground' will be held biweekly from May to October at major tourist destinations such as Jeonju and Gyeongju, featuring 'K-Pop dance events (random play dance)' and pop-up stores.

In June, the 'Korea Beauty Festival' will conduct a large-scale promotion where visitors can purchase and experience products and services related to K-Beauty, fashion, beauty, and medical wellness. An e-sports festival will be held in July. In October, the 'Large-scale Hallyu Festival' will promote inbound demand by combining K-Culture and tourism.

2024 Korea Tourism Year Top 10 Major Projects Graphic.
[Photo by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism]

From September to November, the 'Korea Bucket List' project will be promoted. This event aims to encourage foreigners to continue visiting Korea even after the summer peak season. Approximately 10,000 foreign visitors who purchase inbound flight tickets will be supported to freely enjoy and experience their 'bucket list.' Based on participant preferences, the campaign will diversify K-Culture experiential benefits, including limited-edition prepaid transportation cards from campaign ambassadors, Korean styling & makeup experience vouchers, and chicken and beer tasting tickets.

Recognizing that most inbound tourists visit Seoul individually, a 'Special Promotion for Regional Tourism Revitalization' will also be implemented to disperse these visitors to other regions. Special and diverse regional tourism products will be developed and operated targeting individual foreign visitors entering through Seoul. Support will be provided for planning, productizing, and promoting region-specific tourism products, and joint sales will be conducted through online travel agencies frequently used by individual foreign visitors.

The 'Invite You Invitation Project,' which invites fans of Korean culture worldwide, will also be held. About 30 foreigners with special ties to Korea will be invited to Korea for a 4-night, 5-day schedule in May, with customized inbound tourism programs planned for each invitee.

The ongoing 'Korea Grand Sale (January 11 to February 29)' is a shopping and cultural tourism festival offering benefits on airfare, accommodation, shopping, dining, experiences, and convenience services to attract more foreign tourists during Korea’s low tourism season. This year, with a record participation of approximately 1,650 companies, various discounts and K-Content experiential events exclusive to Korea are being provided.

This event, which has recorded about 50,000 sales based on four participating airlines and about 1,600 sales of K-Content themed products, has shown results such as major duty-free stores’ sales increasing by up to approximately 300% compared to the same period last year.

Last year, participants from Denmark and Norway who visited Korea for the World Scout Jamboree are enjoying content within the Hiker Ground.
[Photo by Korea Tourism Organization]

In April, linked with Japan’s 'Golden Week,' and in September, considering China’s National Day holiday, 'Welcome Weeks' will be held. Welcome booths providing multilingual tourist information, as well as information on tourist attractions, transportation, dining, and shopping, will be operated at major international airports (Incheon, Gimpo, Jeju, Gimhae). Additionally, in collaboration with private companies, various benefit information and 'coupon books' usable during travel will be provided to tourists.

A promotion utilizing the 'K-Tourism Cooperation Group,' which includes 113 participating companies, will also be conducted. The Ministry will encourage collaboration among participating companies to discover diverse tourism products and services and provide extensive marketing support.

Park Jong-taek, Head of the Tourism Export Strategy Promotion Division at the Ministry, said, "We plan to promote the 'Visit Korea Year' more systematically and distinctively than last year through cooperation with related agencies to maximize synergistic effects." He added, "We will also pursue multifaceted efforts such as marketing linked with overseas Korean Cultural Centers and Korea Tourism Organization overseas branches, as well as collaborative promotion of the 'Local 100 (Top 100 Regional Cultural Attractions)' project."

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