Overseas travelers from 22 nations to be exempt from online travel authorization permission to reach 10 mil. travelers in 2023
일본 등 22개국 여행허가 면제 방한관광객 1천만명 유치 추진
If you're planning a trip to Korea, you might find this news intriguing.
Some visa systems will be renewed such as exemptions from the Korea Electronic Travel Authorization and bigger events await travelers, especially for K-pop fans.
Lee Rae-hyun has more.
South Korea aims to attract 10 million overseas travelers this year triple the amount of 2022.
During an emergency economy cabinet meeting on Wednesday, the government discussed ways to boost the travel industry as a way to drive up domestic consumption.
"The way to boost the travel industry is simple encourage more foreign travelers to visit South Korea and spend money. Also, finding ways to encourage Korean people to travel domestically instead of going overseas."
To do this, it will improve the country's visa system.
By the end of 2023, people from 22 nations, including Japan, Singapore, U.S., and Canada will be able to enter South Korea without needing a Korea Electronic Travel Authorization or "K-ETA" if they are traveling for sightseeing and attending events.
Transit visa exemption policy will also be resumed for transit passengers from 34 countries to allow them to stay in Korea for up to 30 days.
For Chinese tour groups, if they transit through the southern island of Jeju, they are now eligible to stay in a city where the domestic airport they use is located, or Seoul metropolitan area for up to five days.
Digital visa issuance for group visitors from Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia will also be eased as well.
New visas for high-income foreigners and young people will also be established.
The government also aims to increase the number of international flights to pre-pandemic levels.
Flights to and from China will increase to around 950 per week by September from the current 63.
Those from Japan will rise to over 1-thousand flights per week from the current 863.
To attract more domestic travel, the government also plans to encourage the working population to go on vacation while promoting special regional tourist spots.
More large-scale events was also brought up during the meeting.
There will be large K-pop concerts in major cities nationwide from May to October.
To boost consumption, the government will expand sales channels for duty-free products.
For the upcoming duty-free festival in May, shopping subsidies will be provided as well as 20-percent discount for major duty-free products.
The government also plans come up with a variety of medical tour programs and Korean food-themed travel packages as well.
Lee Rae-hyun, Arirang News.
#Travel #Traveler #여행허가 #관광객 #Arirang_News
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2023-03-29, 21:00 (KST)
