Sokcho City Accelerates Push to Become East Sea Rim Cruise Hub, Stepping Up Drive into Asian Market

Sokcho City Confirms Six Cruise Calls
Expected to Attract 12,500 Foreign Tourists
Deploying Multifaceted Revitalization Strategies Including Global Port Sales

Sokcho City in Gangwon Province has established the "2026 Sokcho Port Cruise Revitalization Project Promotion Plan" and, in cooperation with the Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province and the Gangwon Tourism Organization, will begin in earnest to strengthen robust tourism reception capacity and carry out strategic marketing to emerge as the leading cruise port in the East Sea Rim region.

Westerdam entering Sokcho Port. Provided by Sokcho City

A total of six cruise calls are scheduled at Sokcho Port this year. Starting with the Westerdam (82,862 tons) on April 17, the Costa Serena (114,261 tons) will call on May 12, followed by The World (43,188 tons) on September 17.

In October, the Westerdam will call on the 17th, and the Seabourn Encore (41,865 tons) will arrive on the 19th and 25th. In particular, The World and the Seabourn Encore will be calling at Sokcho Port for the first time. This is seen as the result of the city’s continued promotion of Sokcho Port’s excellent infrastructure and attractive tourism content through participation in global cruise exhibitions and port sales activities targeting cruise line officials.

In 2026, the city plans to take advantage of recent changes in the international situation and focus on a strategy of diversifying the Asian market through strategic marketing.

As a "balloon effect" is emerging in which demand from China-originating cruises that had been considering Japanese calls is shifting to Korea due to recent diplomatic tensions between China and Japan, the city plans to launch aggressive marketing efforts to attract this volume to Sokcho Port.

In fact, in relation to the increase in demand for calls by China-originating cruises, on January 19 the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries held a countermeasure meeting with relevant agencies at Busan Port, where call demand is rising, and Sokcho Port also received inquiries about calls by China-originating cruises earlier this month, indicating a high likelihood that cruise calls at Sokcho Port will increase.

In addition, in line with Japan’s expansion of new fleets (such as Mitsui Ocean Cruises), the city intends to secure demand for diversified ports of call in advance and actively explore the possibility of new calls by Russian-flagged cruise ships, for which concrete discussions such as berth allocation are underway, in order to create sustainable future demand.

To prepare for this growing demand for calls, Sokcho City, together with the Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province and the Gangwon Tourism Organization, will strengthen the detailed reception system at the port of call, provide warm hospitality and convenience for tourists, and implement systematic marketing support projects.

Costa Serena entering Sokcho Port. Provided by Sokcho City

The city will participate in major domestic and international cruise exhibitions and port sales events, such as Seatrade Cruise Global to be held in Florida in April and the International Cruise Forum to be held in Jeju in July, to promote the appeal of Sokcho Port directly. It also plans to organize familiarization tours inviting cruise lines and industry officials, and to operate a variety of welcome events and experiential programs for passengers and crew members.

In particular, the city will not stop at simply attracting cruises, but will strengthen its tourism reception capacity for qualitative growth of shore excursions by securing budgets and reinforcing cooperation systems.

Through close collaboration with relevant organizations such as the Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province and the Gangwon Tourism Organization, the city will secure additional budgets, including national funds, thereby enhancing its responsiveness to calls in the second half of the year and working to diversify tourism programs.

Based on the secured budget, the city plans to enhance the reception system at the port of call by developing Sokcho’s own distinctive tour courses and expanding experiential programs for passengers and crew members, with the goal of making Sokcho Port a "cruise port that visitors want to return to."

Sokcho Mayor Lee Byungseon said, "We will go beyond simple port calls and strategically leverage changes in the international situation to establish ourselves as a key hub for Asian cruises connecting China, Japan, and Russia," adding, "We will further enhance the brand value of Sokcho Port, which was proven by winning the 'Asia Best Cruise Port Award' at the Shanghai International Cruise Summit last year, and elevate Sokcho into a core hub of the cruise industry in the East Sea Rim region."

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