S. Korea moves to increase accommodations for tourists

SEOUL, Nov. 2 (Yonhap) -- The government will offer financial support to hotel
builders and considerably ease construction laws in order to cushion the critical
shortage of accommodations in and around Seoul, the culture ministry said
Tuesday.
The number of foreign tourists has increased 13 percent this year, and is
expected to hit the government's goal of 9 million by December, according to the
Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
"Guidelines to attract tourist accommodation facilities and properly position
them will be included in urban development planning" when 500,000 square meters
of land in Seoul are redeveloped or new towns are created in the future, Minister
Yu In-chon said in a press briefing.
Incentives include providing 40 billion won (US$36 million) in loans to five
hotel builders to expedite their ongoing construction. Construction laws will be
also revised to remove tourist hotels from the list of hazardous facilities whose
construction is banned around apartments and residential districts.
"We understand concerns that 'love motels,' not tourist hotels, already abound in residential areas," Yu said, referring to short-stay facilities primarily built for couples. "The government will continue its efforts to bring about positive changes."
The ministry is also working on transforming vacation resorts, high-end pensions and traditional Korean hanok houses into tourist accommodations, Yu said.
During the G-20 summit set for Nov. 11-12, the government will operate an accommodations support center for foreign visitors that will provide real-time information on places to stay and receive on-line reservations.