Skift Take
Anyone asking, “What is the Korean Wave?” is clearly not young! The Korean wave is huge, and the Ministry of Tourism is trying to capitalize on the trend to attract foreign tourists.
Peden Doma Bhutia
South Korea has announced that it has appointed K-pop girl group New Jeans as its tourism ambassadors.
South Korea’s global cultural influence, known as the Hallyu boom, is having a major impact on South Korea’s tourism industry. Driven by Korean pop culture, entertainment, music, TV dramas and films, this growing popularity is drawing young international tourists to the country.
Formed in 2022, the five-member band consisting of Daniel, Minzy, Hanni, Hyelin, and Haein has quickly gained attention after making history as the fastest foreign artists to headline the Tokyo Dome less than two years after their debut. They also became the first K-pop female group to win Group of the Year at the 2024 Billboard Women in Music Awards.
New Jeans joins a list of previous tourism brand ambassadors that includes K-pop megastars BTS, Squid Game star and Emmy Award winner Lee Jung-jae, K-pop sensations EXO, Premier League soccer star Son Heung-min, and singer and actor Cha Eun-woo.
South Korea’s Tourism Ministry is aiming to leverage the band’s influence among younger audiences.
Korean
According to data from the Korea Tourism Data Lab, of the 11 million foreign tourists that South Korea will welcome in 2023, about 4 million will be under the age of 30. A survey by the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute found that 32% of these young tourists visited South Korea primarily to experience Hallyu content, a trend that marks a marked increase from 2013, when only 27% of visitors were under the age of 30.
The global popularity of Korean culture has not only lowered the average age of visitors, but also diversified the demographics. This younger age group is dominated by visitors from Japan and China, but there are also significant numbers from France, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Mexico and the US. As a result, Korea has tailored its promotional campaigns to target this specific age group.
Earlier this year, the government announced the introduction of the K-Culture Visa, hailing K-pop as a powerful cultural export and an important part of the Korean Wave.
New Jeans Tourism Campaign
South Korea’s new tourism campaign aims to highlight unique local experiences with a focus on the global 2030 generation. Featuring New Jeans, the campaign takes up the theme “Korea for Koreans” and highlights an authentic local perspective.
Criticizing “the same old boring itineraries suggested by AI,” the video shows travelers how “Koreans are really having fun these days.”
![[FRK with NewJeans] Korea for Koreans: K-Experience #Koreans_Korea #K-Experience #VisitKoreaYear](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/H_2_jPT_jus/hqdefault.jpg)
Promotional videos released on the Korea Tourism Organization’s YouTube channel showcase food and local experiences. The videos will also be displayed on billboards in 12 major cities around the world, including New York, Tokyo, Shanghai, Bangkok, Dubai and Mexico City. Additionally, short videos will be prominently displayed during the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris.
The Korean wave is so strong that the Korea Tourism Organization has created a list of 51 specialized tourist destinations that focus on major Korean-themed attractions, including places featured in K-pop music videos, popular dramas and popular series such as Vincenzo and Hometown Cha Cha Cha.
South Korea tourist numbers
More than 11 million tourists are expected to visit South Korea in 2023, up 245% compared to 2022, the majority of whom are Japanese and Chinese tourists.
The country aims to attract 20 million tourists and generate $24.5 billion in tourism revenue by the end of 2024.
Between January and April 2024, South Korea welcomed 4.9 million international tourists, up 87% from the same period last year.
The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) expects spending by international tourists in 2024 to reach 2019 levels of about 32 trillion won ($24 billion), down from 24 trillion won ($18 billion) last year.
The WTTC predicts that the tourism sector will be a major contributor to South Korea’s annual GDP, reaching 131 trillion won ($100 billion) by 2034, accounting for around 5% of the national economy. The sector is expected to create more than 1.8 million jobs, highlighting its role as a backbone of the national workforce, supporting 6.8% of the country’s total employment.
Photo credit: NewJeans, a five-member K-pop girl band that debuted in 2022.
