The number of foreign tourists to South Korea is expected to flirt with 20 million in 2019 on the strength of a sharp rise in Chinese visitors, the state tourism agency said Sunday.
Despite an expected drop this year due to the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome outbreak, the number is project to surge 14.6 percent on-year in 2016 and grow at an annual average rate of over 7 percent for the next three years to reach 19.35 million in 2019, according to the Korea Tourism Organization.
During the cited period, the number of Chinese visitors to South Korea is projected to expand at an annual average rate of more than 10 percent.
Since exceeding the 1 million mark in 2007, the number of Chinese tourists had been on a steady increase before spiking more than 40 percent on-year in 2013 and 2014.
But the MERS outbreak made a big dent in the number of Chinese visitors to South Korea this year, with the figure forecast to drop 6.3 percent on-year.
First confirmed in late May, MERS has claimed 36 lives and infected 186 people. No new cases have been reported since July 4, with the last person to have contracted the illness testing negative for the virus early this month.
The MERS outbreak prompted foreign tourists, especially Chinese, to cancel their visits to South Korea in droves, pounding the local tourism and retail sectors.
The agency also said the number of Japanese visitors, which is expected to sink 19.2 percent on-year in 2015 due to MERS, will likely recover next year and reach 2.2 million in 2019.
Considerably more visitors from Thailand, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam are expected starting in 2016 thanks to the high popularity of South Korean pop culture in those countries, the KTO said. (Yonhap)
行业动态
Foreign tourists to S. Korea forecast to near 20 mln in 2019
The number of foreign tourists to South Korea is expected to flirt with 20 million in 2019 on the st
1.本站遵循行业规范,任何转载的稿件都会明确标注作者和来源;2.本站的原创文章,请转载时务必注明文章作者和来源,不尊重原创的行为我们将追究责任;3.作者投稿可能会经我们编辑修改或补充。
相关文章
-
iPhone 16 Pro new color will reportedly be Desert Titanium
2024-09-22 15:19
-
[Newsmaker] Lawyer aiding fake refugee applications gets suspended jail term
2024-09-22 15:15
-
中国组织人事报关注!江门创新开展农村党组织书记分级分档管理工作
2024-09-22 14:14
-
S. Korea reaffirms commitment to implementing inter
2024-09-22 14:10
网友点评
精彩导读
热门资讯
- Discover Secret Swimming Holes and Hidden History in Crystal River, Florida
- What Andrew Sullivan gets wrong about our tribal times.
- Irish PM raises doubts over crowds as Euro 2020 deadline looms
- 2018 is already off the rails thanks to Donald Trump
- Netanyahu’s Inferno
- The Supreme Court’s conservatives just ensured that Latino votes still won’t count in Texas.
- Trump again says white nationalists not solely responsible for Charlottesville.
- Mitch McConnell says Senate will vote on Graham
- 50 Places to Eat and Drink Before You Die
关注我们
关注微信公众号,了解最新精彩内容