Domestic Vacancies Filled by 'Youkeo'... 85,000 Arrivals During Lunar New Year Holiday

Chinese tourists visiting Myeongdong [Asia Economy file photo]

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The tourism authorities are conducting comprehensive marketing efforts to attract a concentrated influx of visitors from China during the Spring Festival (Chunje, the Chinese New Year), the largest holiday in China.

On the 6th, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization forecast that about 85,000 Chinese visitors will come to Korea during this year's Spring Festival holiday from February 10 to 17, which is one day longer than the usual 7-day holiday. Many visitors are expected to come with their families and relatives. The number of Chinese visitors to Korea surpassed Japanese visitors last December, reclaiming the top spot among foreign tourists in Korea.

The Korea Tourism Organization is attracting Chinese tourists by operating charter flights such as Shijiazhuang~Incheon before and after the Spring Festival in China. A total of 1,023 flights, including charter flights, will operate between Korea and China around the Spring Festival. So far, the organization has directly recruited about 9,000 people through promotions linked with local Chinese travel agencies and OTAs (online travel agencies) such as Feizhu. Among these, reservations for semi-free travel packages to Seoul, which has various flight options, and Jeju Island, which allows visa-free visits, have been reported to be popular. Additionally, festival-linked packages in Gangwon Province, the host of the '2024 Gangwon Winter Youth Olympic Games,' are also gaining popularity.

Since the 1st of this month, the Korea Tourism Organization has been running a mobile payment promotion for individual Chinese travelers for one month, offering up to 20% discounts at Alipay Plus affiliated stores located in Myeongdong, Seoul, and nationwide Zero Pay affiliated stores. Reflecting the trend of exchanging hongbao via WeChat in China, the organization plans to hold a digital hongbao social media (SNS) event distributing free hongbao featuring the Blue Dragon symbolizing this year and the Korea Tourism Organization’s character through the WeChat accounts of its seven Chinese branches. The digital hongbao service allows the traditional red envelopes used for New Year's money gifts and wedding congratulations in China to be used for mobile payment transfers.

Jo Hee-jin, head of the International Marketing Office at the Korea Tourism Organization, explained, "This year, we plan to focus on attracting not only medium to large groups such as youth school trips and lifestyle sports exchanges using region-specific specialized content, but also individual Chinese travelers, including the MZ generation who are highly interested in travel."

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