‘K-Tourism’ sales in Shanghai for 2 consecutive years

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (hereinafter referred to as the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Minister Yoo In-chon), together with the Korea Tourism Organization, held the ‘K-Tourism Roadshow’ in Shanghai, China from May 17 (Fri) to 19 (Sun), targeting the peak summer vacation season in China. do. Second Vice Minister Jang Mi-ran visited the ‘Shanghai K-Tourism Road Show’ again this year, continuing in September last year, to directly sell K-tourism to the Chinese tourism industry and consumers.

  After the resumption of Chinese group tours to Korea in August last year, the recovery of China’s Korean tourism market accelerated this year, with the number of tourists visiting Korea exceeding 1 million in the first quarter of this year, ranking first in the Korean visiting market. Even during the Labor Day holiday, which is a holiday in China, the recovery of the Korean market is expected to be strong, and if this trend continues, the number of Chinese tourists visiting Korea in 2023 is expected to exceed 2 million in the second quarter of this year. Based on this upward trend, the ‘Shanghai K-Tourism Roadshow’ markets Korean tourism to the travel industry and consumers in their 20s and 30s, targeting the special summer vacation season when large numbers of Chinese people flock there.

5. 16.  Vice Minister Jang promotes  gastronomic tourism at a Korea-China food exchange event with 40 Korean and Chinese college students 

5. 17.  Meeting with CEO Sun Jie at the headquarters of Trip.com, China’s largest online travel agency.

  First, Vice Minister Jang Mi-ran attended the Korea-China intangible cultural exchange exhibition held at the Korean Cultural Center in Shanghai on Thursday, May 16, prior to the ‘K-Tourism Roadshow’. Vice Minister Jang visited a photo exhibition of traditional Korean and Chinese food under the theme of ‘Four Seasons in Food’ and talked with 40 Korean and Chinese college students in their 20s and 30s while making Korean ‘flower mountain pancakes’ and Chinese dumplings (yuhua stangyuan). In particular, she informed Chinese youth about Korea’s regional gastronomic culture and the appeal of gastronomic tourism that can only be experienced in Korea.

  On Friday, May 17, we met with CEO Sun Jie at the headquarters of ‘Trip.com’, China’s largest online travel agency (OTA), and discussed ways to cooperate with ‘Trip.com’ to introduce various local tourist attractions in Korea to Chinese people. Trip.com is one of the world’s three largest online travel agencies and exerts tremendous influence on the international tourism market by owning China’s No. 1 online travel platform, ‘Ctrip’, and No. 2, ‘Chunal’.

5. 17.~19.  ‘K – Tourism Roadshow’ held in Shanghai, leading China’s travel trend

  Next, Vice Minister Jang visits the site of the ‘Shanghai K-Tourism Roadshow’. China’s East China region, where Shanghai is located, is a region leading the flow of travel to Korea centered on individual tourists, with the largest number of flights to Korea and the highest number of individual visas issued. The ‘Shanghai K-Tourism Roadshow (May 17-19)’ was designed to target ‘Sanke’ (individual travelers) of China’s 2030 generation, taking into account the advantage of being close to Korea and the characteristics of a mature travel market based on high income levels. We introduce the latest tourist destinations representing ‘Korea Now’ and focus on promoting differentiated travel itineraries for each taste.

  On Friday, May 17, at the Bellagio Hotel, a Korea-China tourism industry seminar and corporate-to-business event was held, attended by 8 local governments, 27 organizations representing the medical, wellness, performance, and special purpose travel (SIT) sectors, and 63 local Chinese tourism industry organizations. We hold business-to-business (B2B) events such as consultation sessions. At the ‘Korea Tourism Exchange Night’ event, about 200 people from the Korean and Chinese tourism industry will exchange and strengthen cooperation. In addition, the diverse charms of Korean culture will be presented to local tourism industry officials through the National Gugak Center’s <Saturday Luxury> performance and the musical ‘Finding Kim Jong-wook’.

   * 8 local governments: Gangwon, Gyeonggi, Gyeongnam, Gwangju, Busan, Jeonnam, Jeonbuk, Jeju

  On Saturday, May 18th and Sunday, May 19th, a large-scale K-Tourism marketing event targeting Chinese consumers will be held at Shanghai Huanqiyugang Shopping Mall. We promote the latest trendy local tourist attractions and new tourism products by creating customized K-tourism content that can be enjoyed by various age groups, including those in their 20s and 30s. ▴’K Youth’, which stimulates the nostalgia of a nostalgic trip to Korea based on popular Korean dramas and music from the 1990s to the 2020s, ▴8 places including Gangneung Coffee, Badapuchae-gil, Jeonju Bibimbap, Hanok Village, and Busan Haeundae Blue Line Park. ‘K Local’ introduces the region’s representative travel destinations and popular festivals such as the Boryeong Mud Festival and Daegu Chicken and Beer Festival, and ▴With the theme of Korean supermarkets, it collaborates with Lotte Chilsung and Pulmuone to display Korean retro foods and the Korea Agro-Fisheries Trade Corporation. You can see ‘K-Supermarket’, which promotes the 33rd national food. ▴In ‘K Icon’, you can take pictures as if you were on a trip to Korea with ‘Luffy’, a character that is popular in China, and characters from the Korea Tourism Organization and local governments.

  In addition, along with various attractions such as Korean traditional music performances, musical showcases, and K-pop random dances, the outdoor plaza collaborates with Kyochon Chicken to create the Daegu Chicken and Beer Festival to promote visits to Korea. ‘Trip.com’s ‘Live Commerce’ stimulates Chinese people’s sentiment about visiting Korea by selling flights, festival and food products, and performance tickets live on site.

  Vice Minister Jang Mi-ran said, “Korea’s unique resources, such as e-sports and medical care, as well as the ordinary daily lives of Koreans, such as visiting beauty salons, supermarkets, and cafes, are attractive tourist resources for Chinese people. “This time, taking into account the demand of women in the East China region who are interested in Korean medicine, beauty, and fashion, we plan to directly introduce the ‘Korea Beauty Festival’ to be held in June and encourage them to visit Korea,” he said. “The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced the ‘2024 Visit Korea.’ “In celebration of the ‘Year of the Future,’ we will strive to prepare more diverse and new tourism products so that Chinese people can visit Korea more often.”

Editor Hye-min Moon