The first Korea-China travel industry exchange will be held in Incheon on Thursday, followed by a regional tourism briefing and business-to-business travel market in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province, on Friday.
The program is hosted by the ministry and organized by the Korea Tourism Organization and the Korea Association of Travel Agents.
About 200 people are expected to attend the Incheon event, including executives from the China Association of Travel Services, around 50 Chinese outbound travel agency officials and 50 Korean inbound tour operators.
The event will include business meetings aimed at developing and selling group tour products for Chinese visitors to Korea.
The Korea Association of Travel Agents will present 68 selected travel products covering themes such as family trips, K-beauty, wellness, leisure sports and regional tourism.
The second day will shift to Andong, where Chinese travel firms, media representatives, airline officials, Korean local governments and regional tourism organizations will discuss new tour routes.
Seven local governments, Gangwon, South Gyeongsang, North Gyeongsang, Daegu, North Jeolla, North Chungcheong and South Chungcheong, will introduce regional tourism products linked to nearby international airports.
The travel mart will focus on packages designed to keep visitors longer in regional areas, rather than limiting trips to Seoul and other established stops.
Separately, 120 Chinese travel agency officials and journalists are taking part in familiarization tours from Sept. 8 to 15, covering routes through Jeju, Busan, Daegu, Andong, Gyeongju, Daejeon and Danyang.
Culture Minister Choi Hwi-young will attend a Korea-China tourism industry networking event in Andong on Friday.
He will also inspect tourism sites in Andong ahead of the Chuseok holiday, including Andong Old Market, Byeongsan Seowon, Hahoe Village and the Hahoe Seonyu Julbulnori fireworks event.
The ministry said the program is part of a broader effort to attract repeat foreign visitors to regional destinations and encourage longer stays.
The government has proposed a record 1.76 trillion won ($1.31 billion) tourism budget for 2027, up 19 percent from this year.
The plan includes funding for tourism zones centered on regional airports, loans for tourism businesses and local travel vouchers for rural areas facing population decline.
AJP Takeaways
- Korea and China are holding their first travel industry exchange this week.
- The program is aimed at turning Chinese travel demand toward regional destinations outside Seoul.
- About 200 people will attend the Incheon event, including Chinese travel agencies and Korean tour operators.
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