The following is the second of three articles on the troubled Korean tourism industry. _ ED
By Kim Rahn
Staff Reporter
A survey showed that 44.4 percent of foreigners visited Korea for travel and 42.7 percent came for business in 2003.
The ratio, however, was reversed in 2005. About 42.3 percent of
visitors were tourists and 43.7 percent were businesspeople, the survey
conducted by the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) said.
The change shows that Korea is losing its tourist ``appeal,''
indicating the need to develop new attractions, both tangible and
intangible.
Tangible Attractions
Korea has no Rocky Mountains, Niagara Falls nor Palace of Versailles.
Tourist attractions such as Insa-dong, Myeong-dong and Namdaemun market
have remained the same for decades _ insufficient to bring repeat
visitors.
Building resorts like in Guam or the Philippines are not a viable
solution due to Korea's weather that includes a chilly winter, experts
say.
``The attractiveness of Korean tourism seems to have been weakened
compared to neighboring countries _ China is preparing for the Olympic
Games, Hong Kong set up Disneyland and Macau is raking in casino money.
Asian nations that used to be strict on the entertainment business are
becoming more open. Even Singapore will open casinos in 2009,'' Cho
Minho, a tourism professor of Hanyang University said.
He welcomes the plan to invite large-scale entertainment facilities such as Disneyland and Universal Studios.
``Setting up such theme parks is an investment and we need to invite
both domestic and foreign investment. But Korea's condition for
investment is not good due to numerous restrictions and regulations,''
Cho said.
``The government tries to control everything and its late response to
investors sometimes spoils the projects. The government needs to create
an environment conducive to investment, not trying to tell businesses
what to do. The Macau authorities made a bold move to remove
regulations to attract tourism investment,'' he said.
Intangible Attractions
There have been signs that ``hallyu,'' or the Korean Wave, is waning.
According to the Korean Broadcasting Institute, exports of soap operas
topped $102 million in 2005. But they decreased by 15.5 percent to
$85.8 million in 2006, with no monumental pieces such as ``Winter
Sonata'' and ``Jewel in the Palace'' being produced.
It is the first time for the figure to drop since 1998 when data
collection started _ the annual average growth rate of exports was 89.7
percent between 2002 and 2005.
A cultural phenomenon is categorized as a fad, fashion or trend
according to the period it lasts, Cho said. ``Hallyu seems to have been
a fad, which lasts one to two years. Korea failed to foster hallyu as a
mega trend,'' he said.
Another problem is that the country does not have unique and new images that represent contemporary Korea.
A recent survey conducted on 1,115 foreign travelers by Seoul City
showed that kimchi, a half-century-old item, is the most representative
image of Korea in tourism, with more than 20 percent selecting it.
Noting this, the KTO developed the tourism brand ``Korea, Sparkling''
in April, which will be used for tourism purposes like India's
``Incredible India'' and Japan's ``Yokoso Japan.''
Former KTO President Kim Jong-min said that image is an important
factor in boosting tourism competitiveness and that a tourism brand
should be able to generate an emotional response.
Niche Market
Surveys show 90 percent of foreign tourists visit Seoul, indicating
travel to Korea is travel to Seoul. ``We should make use of Seoul's
resources. We can provide more shopping opportunities to inbound
tourists through a tax refund system,'' Cho said.
Seoul City is also coming up with various urban development projects
with the aim of attracting 12 million foreigners by 2010. For example,
under the Han River Renaissance project, improvement of accessibility
and strengthening of tourism infrastructure will help make the area a
major tourist attraction.
Cho also said Korea's medical science, which is famous for technical
excellence and low prices, could become another tourist attraction.
Last month, 80 Chinese doctors visited Korea to learn plastic surgery
skills as many Chinese women come to Korea for double eyelid and nose
surgery.
According to KTO's survey in May, 19.9 percent of 207 Korean-Americans
in Los Angeles said they visited their motherland for medical
treatment, and 46.3 percent said they did so because of low medical
fees. They said Korea has competitiveness in implant surgery, plastic
surgery and Oriental medicine.
Based on the survey, KTO plans to develop ``medical tourism'' programs.
Tourist programs that connect Korea with neighboring nations are being promoted to increase the size of the Asian travel market.
Ahead of the Beijing Olympic Games next year, it is expected that
travel agencies will develop packages that combine China and Korea, so
the nation should take advantage of increasing the number of visitors
to Korea, Cho said.
``But it doesn't need to always be Korea-China-Japan. It can be
expanded to other Asian nations, like Korea-Vietnam-Thailand. It could
be better to form alliances with countries which are not Korea's
competitors,'' Cho said.
rahnita@koreatimes.co.kr
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