In the first half of this year, foreign tourists' credit card spending in South Korea surpassed 10 trillion won, contributing to the revitalization of the domestic economy. The inbound tourism market is showing significant growth not only in terms of quantity but also in qualitative aspects such as tourism consumption and regional visitation rates.
According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on July 28, the cumulative credit card spending by foreign tourists from January to June reached 10.389 trillion won. This marks a 50.8% increase compared to the same period last year, which recorded 6.6559 trillion won. Notably, this achievement was reached about three months earlier than last year, when the cumulative spending exceeded 10 trillion won in September.
In June alone, foreign credit card spending amounted to 2.0544 trillion won, a 66.4% surge compared to the same month last year. This marks the second consecutive month that spending has exceeded 2 trillion won, following May.
It is also encouraging to see that the influx of foreign tourists, previously concentrated in the metropolitan area, is now spreading to regional areas. According to the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute's '2026 Q2 Foreign Tourist Survey (preliminary)', the regional visitation rate for foreign tourists reached 34.2%, an increase of 2.8 percentage points from the same period last year (31.4%).
The number of foreign visitors entering through regional airports has also seen a significant rise. In June, 395,246 foreigners arrived at regional airports such as Gimhae, Daegu, Jeju, and Cheongju, marking a 42.5% increase from 277,454 in the same month last year. In contrast, the increase rate for arrivals at metropolitan airports during the same period was 18.2%, indicating a sharp growth trend.
Meanwhile, the total number of foreign tourists visiting South Korea in June reached 1.99 million, a 23.1% increase compared to the same month last year. This brings the cumulative number of inbound tourists for the first half of the year to 10.71 million.
“The rapid growth of the inbound tourism market in the first half of the year is a result of the irresistible appeal of 'K-Culture' combined with the efforts of the government and the tourism industry,” said Kang Jeong-won, head of the Tourism Policy Bureau at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. “The increase in visitors and spending through regional airports is also a promising achievement. The Ministry will continue to provide policy support to ensure that all of South Korea becomes a stage for 'K-Tourism.'
* This article has been translated by AI.
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