Seoul Welcome Week to return for first time since pandemic

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

National

Fri, December 8, 2023 | 14:34

Society

Seoul Welcome Week to return for first time since pandemic

Posted : 2023-09-26 16:50

Updated : 2023-09-27 15:07

Tourists enjoy the 2023 Seoul Music Festival held on Nodeul Island on the Han River, Seoul, Sept. 24. Yonhap

By Jung Da-hyun

An annual "tourist week" for foreign tourists will be hosted later this week for the first time in four years, during which various discounts, events and festivals will be offered, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, Tuesday.

The city government unveiled the schedule for the foreign tourist welcoming week that will run until Oct. 6. The Seoul Welcome Week, launched in 2014, was last hosted in 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The focus of this event is primarily on tourists from China because it is expected that a significant number of Chinese tourists will visit Korea. China’s upcoming long holiday season will coincide with the welcoming week.

The Chinese holiday season starts with the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival and extends to the National Day of China. It is the first long holiday after the Chinese government lifted its ban on group tours to Korea on Aug. 10.

According to Seoul’s statistics regarding tourism, out of 788,592 foreign tourists, approximately 22 percent were from China, totaling 171,751 visitors, thereby marking the highest percentage among all foreign tourists for July.

However, the events are not exclusively intended for Chinese visitors, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government.

During the event, the city plans to offer special discount coupons in collaboration with UnionPay, a Chinese state-owned financial service company. These coupons will be redeemable at various businesses including department stores, duty-free shops and convenience stores within the city.

Information about festivals such as the Seoul Street Arts Festival, scheduled to start on Friday to Oct. 1, will be available in multiple languages to ensure that foreign tourists can fully enjoy Seoul’s vibrant festivals.

Group tourists from China arrive at Incheon International Airport, Sept. 17, a month after the Chinese government lifted the ban on group tours to Korea. Yonhap

According to an annual report on China’s outbound tourism, Chinese tourists are keen on experiencing Korean culture in a native setting. This trend signifies a shift from attraction-oriented tourism to experience-oriented tourism. Inviting tourists to the festivals and events that Seoul hosts is a response to this evolving trend.

Gimpo International Airport, where a lot of tourists come into the country from around and Myeong-dong, a bustling shopping area in Seoul, will feature special booths. At Gimpo International Airport, a dedicated zone will allow visitors to experience "hanbok," or traditional Korean clothing, and a photo booth as well.

In Myeong-dong, tourists will have the opportunity to experience K-beauty through personal color tests and makeup sessions. Additionally, there will be an event where people can taste Korean traditional desserts like "yakgwa," a wheat-based Korean dessert made with honey.

The city anticipates that this welcome week event will reinvigorate the tourism industry. “We aim to create a positive perception of Seoul among foreign tourists, making the city a destination they wish to revisit,” said Kim Young-Hwan, the director general of the Tourism and Sports Bureau at the Seoul Metropolitan Government.

dahyun08@koreatimes.co.kr