Korea Maritime Institute Announces Policy Impact Analysis Results of "Month of Going to the Sea" Campaign

The Korea Maritime Institute (KMI), led by President Cho Jeonghee, announced the results of a policy impact analysis on the marine tourism campaign "Month of Going to the Sea," which was jointly promoted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Korea Tourism Organization, and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.

"Month of Going to the Sea" was an inter-ministerial marine tourism revitalization campaign held throughout May 2025. Under the slogan "Endless Waves," the campaign offered discounts on accommodations, experiences, admission tickets, and tourism products, as well as regionally specialized content and events in coastal and fishing village areas nationwide.

According to a joint analysis by Dr. Choi Ilsun's team at KMI (Marine Tourism and Culture Research Division) and the Korea Tourism Organization, the number of domestic visitors to coastal and fishing village areas nationwide during the campaign period in May 2025 increased by 12.3% compared to the same month of the previous year. Notably, coastal areas in the Seoul metropolitan region and the East Sea region recorded double-digit growth rates, indicating that the campaign had a substantial effect in attracting visitors beyond simple seasonal factors.

During the same period, overall spending in coastal and fishing village areas also increased, though the rate of growth was more limited than expected. This is interpreted as a partial offset of the policy effect due to the domestic tourism market entering a stagnation phase. However, the spending growth rate in coastal and fishing village areas (2.3%) was relatively higher than the overall tourism market spending growth rate (0.37%) during the same period.

Spending and visits by foreign tourists also showed a noticeable upward trend. In the same month, foreign spending in coastal and fishing village areas rose by 17.5% year-on-year, while the number of visitors reached 9.62 million, an 18.0% increase. This suggests that, despite the campaign being targeted at domestic tourists, there was an indirect spillover effect on foreign tourism demand as well.

Consumption growth rates varied by region. The coastal areas of Jeonbuk (+10.8%), Gangwon (+10.7%), and Chungnam (+8.1%) showed marked increases, while Jeju (-8.7%) and Ulsan (-2.0%) recorded declines. In particular, Jeju experienced the largest year-on-year decrease, confirming a contraction in tourism demand.

Year-on-Year Change Rate of Domestic Tourist Spending by Coastal Local Governments: May 2024 vs. May 2025.

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