Virtuoso Symposium Held in Korea for the First Time in Northeast Asia... Full-Scale Push for Luxury Tourism

Korea Tourism Organization to Develop 50 Luxury Travel Products in Partnership with Virtuoso
Over 320 Virtuoso Member CEOs Attend the Event

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization announced on April 20 that, together with Conrad Seoul, they have hosted the "2026 Virtuoso Symposium," a major international event of the global luxury travel network Virtuoso, in Korea for the first time in Northeast Asia.

At the strategic business agreement (MOU) ceremony held on the 17th at Sebitseom, Seoul, to promote luxury tourism in Korea, Park Seonghyuk, President of the Korea Tourism Organization (left in the photo), and Matthew Upchurch, Chairman and CEO of Virtuoso, posed for a commemorative photo. Korea Tourism Organization

More than 350 top decision-makers from Virtuoso member companies across 58 countries attended the event. Virtuoso is a global network that includes over 22,000 luxury travel professionals from 58 countries.

The Korea Tourism Organization used this symposium as an opportunity to introduce Korea’s premium tourism content to international industry leaders and to expand demand for luxury travel to Korea. During the event, a luxury tourism presentation, a product development familiarization tour, a welcome dinner, and business meetings between domestic and international industry representatives were held.

On the 17th, a K-makeup and hair styling experience program was organized. On the 18th, a familiarization tour covering 17 courses—including Museum SAN in Wonju, Hwaseong Fortress in Suwon, and the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in Paju—showcased Korea's cultural and tourism assets.

At the welcome dinner, the Seoul Metropolitan Dance Theatre performed "Mimesis," and Master Monk Sunjae gave a demonstration of temple cuisine. The Korea Tourism Organization explained that these activities introduced Korea’s unique cultural content to the participants.

At the strategic business agreement (MOU) event held on the 17th at Sebitseom in Seoul to promote luxury tourism in Korea, Seonghyuk Park, President of the Korea Tourism Organization (left in the photo), and Matthew Upchurch, Chairman and CEO of Virtuoso, are responding to questions at a press conference. Korea Tourism Organization
Photo by Korea Tourism Organization

During the event, the Korea Tourism Organization also signed a strategic partnership with Virtuoso. Under this agreement, both parties will jointly promote the global campaign "Discover Luxury Korea" to invigorate luxury tourism to Korea through 2029. They also plan to collaborate on market analysis by sharing tourism data and to develop customized products for travelers.

Based on its collaboration with Virtuoso, the Korea Tourism Organization aims to launch more than 50 luxury-focused tourism products and, through the hosting of this symposium and the partnership agreement, expects to generate at least KRW 413.5 billion in economic benefits over the next five years.

Park Sunghyuk, President of the Korea Tourism Organization, stated, "Hosting the first Virtuoso Symposium in Northeast Asia and signing this strategic partnership will serve as a catalyst for the qualitative advancement of Korean tourism. We will strengthen our efforts to target the high value-added tourism market and enhance the competitiveness of Korea’s tourism industry."

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