Executive Vice President Min Min-hong, head of the International Tourism Strategy Division at the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) speaks at the 2016 Hangzhou Korea MICE & Culture Festival sponsored by the KTO at the Hangzhou Garden Hotel on May 20.

Participants of the 2016 Rotary International Seoul Convention, wearing their traditional costumes, pose together for a group photo session.

A throng of Rotary International members walk 3 km around Seoul City Hall Plaza and Gwangwhamun in downtown Seoul.

The following are excerpts of an interview with Executive Vice President Min Min-hong, head of the International Tourism Strategy Division at the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), in which he spoke of the Korean MICE industry and steps to boost the inbound travel industry.

Qusetion: What are some of Korea’s key goals for attracting more foreign tourists?

Answer: The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) is working to bring in over 16.5 million foreign tourists to Korea this year, and we are focusing on the China, Japan, and other countries in Asia and the Middle East. To draw more Chinese tourists, KTO is developing a new “88選” program, made up of various high quality tourism products, such as a tour package for viewing exciting soccer matches in Korea and also Hallyu themed cruises. 

The plan aims to improve the overall travel experience for Chinese visitors, especially in the area of shopping and related activities. 

Another goal is to kick off a new period of growth for the inbound Japanese market, with a goal of welcoming 2.3 million Japanese tourists this year. Recently, we launched a daily ‘Korea-Gotochi’ shuttle bus service, with 10 roundtrip courses to choose from: Buyeo, Andong, Pyeongchang/Gangneung, Mungyeong, Suwon/Incheon, Jecheon, Daegu, Suncheon/Yeosu, Taebaek/Jeongseon, and Boeun/Cheongju). To attract Japanese foreign independent travelers (FITs), we have also been utilizing the SNS platform minakoera.jp which has a membership of 9,385 as of early this year.

KTO is also working to make Korea even more accommodating for Muslim guests from the Middle East and Asia by improving and adding facilities and services. A number of prayer rooms have been created near tourist attractions and at convention centers. KTO has also published a Halal Food/Restaurant guide that provides information on Halal dining and also where and how to get Halal products in Korea. 

Korea is rapidly adapting to the changing tourism landscape by accommodating the increasing inbound FIT demand for smarter ICT (Information and Communication Technology) travel experiences and tools. In response, Korea has been developing a one-stop tourism information service platform that also assists with making travel-related reservations.

Several initiatives have been made to jumpstart this tourism infrastructure upgrade, such as establishing free Wi-Fi zones (150 places), Beacon service facilities (500), and improving other ICT infrastructure, such as incorporating internet banking into various travel services.

In addition, KTO is putting greater emphasis on creating new tourism products that will highlight Korea’s unique character and tourism experience. We are putting on a full-scale marketing effort to promote cultural content such as Hallyu, Korean food, traditional markets, and other products. We are also designating some provincial regions as special tourist zones to help develop them into competitive ‘glocal’ products.

These marketing activities are complemented with our other initiatives in medical tourism, cruises, MICE, and other tourism industries. 

Q: Recently the MICE (Meetings, Incentive travel, Conventions & Exhibitions) industry has been highlighted as a field that creates added value for the economy. Will you tell our readers about the current status of the Korean MICE industry and some major projects the KTO is working on?

A: International MICE event attendees in Korea have been observed to spend 1.8 times more than general tourists, which has led Korea to designate the MICE sector as a added-value industry.

Since the implementation of the Act on Nurturing of the International Convention Industry in 1996, KTO has been carrying out several important responsibilities in order to establish the Korea MICE Bureau of KTO as the representative convention bureau of the Republic of Korea. 

This includes marketing Korea to international conventions, supporting the hosting of various MICE programs, boosting international public relations, gathering relevant information, and more. 

A view of the House of Friendship, a must-see attraction of Rotary International conventions.

Major Achievements

Korea has been ranked 2nd in the word and 1st in Asia for the number of international congresses hosted in 2015, according to the most recent International Meeting Statistics report produced by the Union of International Association. The report also shows that Korea hosted 7.5% of all UIA-certified meetings held throughout the world in 2015. The result reflects continued strong interest in Korea, which has been bolstered by the great importance the government has placed in developing the country’s MICE sector.

International congresses hosted in Korea benefit from a wide range of customized support designed to boost the success of their event. This includes tour program, free mobile application development, on-site cultural experience booths, souvenirs, and many other services. 

Recent major events that benefited from KTO support include the 12th World Congress on Computational Mechanics and the 6th Asia-Pacific Congress on Computational Mechanics. These compelling support packages have helped KTO attract and win several bids, including the 37th International Geological Congress 2024, the 12th IOHA International Scientific Conference in Daegu, and the 12th World Biomaterials Congress. 

Notable gatherings that have contributed to 2016’s strong inbound tourism figures include this year’s Rotary International Seoul Convention, which brought in 21,000 overseas participants. Large-scale incentive trips from Chinese companies Aurance and Joy Main also saw 5,300 and 7,000 corporate visitors respectively enjoy Korea’s many attractions.

A welcoming ceremony for the visiting MICE group, Joy Main.

Major MICE Marketing Activities

The KTO works hard at its PR and marketing initiative to promote Korea as a premier MICE destination. Some of the main initiatives for promoting the country as a premier international business destination are:

* Executing regional marketing strategies through KTO’s overseas branch offices. This includes running local road shows, as well as online and offline marketing.

* Boosting many different regional MICE industries, and enhancing their competitiveness by nurturing their industry’s connection with their own culture, social, and strategic industries.

* Actively participating in top tradeshows such as the AIME, IMEX, IBTM, IT&CMA, and others to get in touch with the local business community, and also to hold consultation sessions to ramp up promotional activities to attract more international conventions.

* Operating familiarization tours for MICE event planners and media professionals to introduce and inform them of newly developed facilities and programs in Korea.

* Holding the annual Korea MICE Expo to stimulate the MICE demand in Korea and abroad.

* Increasing online presence through the official KTO homepage, online newsletter, and various social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter, and Linked In.

* Appointing notable Korean professionals from various industries as “Ambassadors” to attract international conventions related to their fields that are large-sized, significant, and highly feasible.

Currently, the number of inbound incentive travelers from Chinese is rather high, as they account for 60 percent of the total market. As part of our efforts to diversify the market, the KTO has strengthened marketing activities to attract corporate meetings and incentive tour groups from Japan and Southeast Asia.