Number of foreign tourists hits record high

By Nam Kwang-sik
SEOUL, Nov. 23 (Yonhap) -- The number of foreign tourists to South Korea has
topped 7 million so far this year, hitting an all-time high, the state tourism
agency said Monday.

The figure was up 14 percent from 6.13 million a year ago, the Korean Tourism
Organization (KTO) said. It is the first time ever the number of foreign visitors
has topped the 7-million mark, it added.
A pickup in the number of foreign tourists stemmed from the combination of
increasing visitors from Japan and China and an aggressive overseas marketing
strategy, KTO said.
An estimated 3.5 million foreign tourists traveled to South Korea in 1994 and
more than 6 million visited the country in 2005.
About 2.75 million Japanese tourists have visited South Korea so far this year,
taking up 39.4 percent of the total, followed by Chinese tourists with 17.3
percent and American tourists with 7.9 percent.
KTO predicts that it could attract up to 7.8 million tourists to South Korea this
year, surpassing its target of 7.5 million set at the beginning of the year.
The tourism agency is aiming to attract about 10 million foreign tourists
annually by 2012.
ksnam@yna.co.kr
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