S. Korea's tourism revenue the lowest in 9 years: BOK
- 4 years ago
코로나19로 무너진 관광업계…3월 관광수입 9년만에 최저
With travel bans in place around the world due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the tourism industry in South Korea has been feeling the pinch.
Although there's been a dramatic drop in the number of foreign travelers visiting this country, there has been a pick up in domestic travel in recent weeks as South Korea saw its COVID-19 situation stabilize.
Jang Tae-hyun reports.
The tourism industry in South Korea is usually booming at this time of year but is experiencing its worst Spring in nearly a decade.
The Korea Culture and Tourism Institute announced Tuesday that, based on data from the Bank of Korea, the country's spending on tourism in March has plunged drastically.
South Korea's monthly tourism revenue in March was the lowest in nine years after being hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.
Revenue from visitors to Korea dropped to around 730 million U.S. dollars, which is a 67 percent plunge on year.
Spending by Korean travelers overseas compared to last year plummeted by 60 percent as well.
"We received data for the number of people entering and leaving the country from the Korea Tourism Organization. In March, there was a 90 percent drop... and in April, it was a 99 percent drop on year. This means that no one is coming or going."
But, people are traveling within the country.
An official from the online accommodation booking platform, 'Yanolja', said that during the last holiday, whilst the number of people traveling abroad plunged by 90 percent, the number of those traveling within the country rose by 49 percent.
"The independent travel industry is already big in Korea. People can rent cars and find their own way around using the Internet."
For now, the best option for travelers is to do so within the country. And then, when it's safe and people can travel abroad again, the tourism industry will bounce back.
Jang Tae-hyun, Arirang News
With travel bans in place around the world due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the tourism industry in South Korea has been feeling the pinch.
Although there's been a dramatic drop in the number of foreign travelers visiting this country, there has been a pick up in domestic travel in recent weeks as South Korea saw its COVID-19 situation stabilize.
Jang Tae-hyun reports.
The tourism industry in South Korea is usually booming at this time of year but is experiencing its worst Spring in nearly a decade.
The Korea Culture and Tourism Institute announced Tuesday that, based on data from the Bank of Korea, the country's spending on tourism in March has plunged drastically.
South Korea's monthly tourism revenue in March was the lowest in nine years after being hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.
Revenue from visitors to Korea dropped to around 730 million U.S. dollars, which is a 67 percent plunge on year.
Spending by Korean travelers overseas compared to last year plummeted by 60 percent as well.
"We received data for the number of people entering and leaving the country from the Korea Tourism Organization. In March, there was a 90 percent drop... and in April, it was a 99 percent drop on year. This means that no one is coming or going."
But, people are traveling within the country.
An official from the online accommodation booking platform, 'Yanolja', said that during the last holiday, whilst the number of people traveling abroad plunged by 90 percent, the number of those traveling within the country rose by 49 percent.
"The independent travel industry is already big in Korea. People can rent cars and find their own way around using the Internet."
For now, the best option for travelers is to do so within the country. And then, when it's safe and people can travel abroad again, the tourism industry will bounce back.
Jang Tae-hyun, Arirang News