"2 Trillion Won Spent": Chinese Tourists Flock to Korea, Splurge Across Shopping Hotspots

Foreigner Card Spending Surpasses 2 Trillion Won
Chinese Tourist Spending Surges 214%
Growth in Pharmacies, Fashion, and Limited-Edition Goods

Last month, the domestic card spending of foreign tourists visiting Korea surpassed 2 trillion won for the first time in history. In particular, high-end luxury consumption increased, especially among Chinese tourists, and spending also rose in sectors such as pharmacies, department stores, and duty-free shops.

In May, foreign tourists' domestic card spending surpassed 2 trillion won for the first time in history.

The Korea Tourism Organization announced on the 17th that, according to its analysis of Foreign Tourist Card Spending Big Data from the Korea Tourism Data Lab, spending reached 2.1222 trillion won. This represents a 67.1% increase compared to the same month last year, when it was 1.2702 trillion won. It is the highest growth rate since 2023.

Notably, spending by Chinese tourists surged by 214% year-on-year, driving the overall growth trend. Card spending by Chinese tourists has been rising every month this year.

By industry, shopping increased the most, up 77.8%. This was followed by transportation (70.6%), medical & wellness (65.8%), and food & beverage (64.9%).

By detailed sector, pharmacies saw the highest rate of increase at 206.1%. This was followed by toys & amusement devices (191.4%), skin care & massage (153.9%), department stores (89.2%), duty-free shops (87.6%), accessories (87.0%), dermatology clinics (85.5%), and sports goods & apparel (84.5%). In transportation, railways grew by 79.9%, while in accommodation, condominiums increased by 72.2%.

In particular, the toys & amusement devices sector stood out for its growth. The Korea Tourism Organization attributed this to concentrated purchases of limited edition goods based on global character intellectual property (IP), such as pop-up stores for Line Friends and BT21 collaborations, as well as Pokemon cards.

Seongsu-dong continues to attract tourists in their 20s and 30s who enjoy fashion and lifestyle consumption.

Myeong-dong and Seongsu-dong in the Spotlight... 'K-Pharmacies' Thrive

In this analysis, the Korea Tourism Organization noted that foreign inbound consumption trends have become distinctly polarized between lifestyle spending among global tourists in their 20s and 30s, and high-end luxury shopping led by Chinese tourists.

By region, the strength of Seoul’s Myeong-dong and Seongsu-dong stood out. In particular, in the sports goods & apparel sector, distinctive characteristics were observed by commercial district. In Myeong-dong, Korean limited edition custom apparel such as ‘Nike By You’ gained popularity as experiential shopping content, resulting in a 162% increase in spending.

Seongsu 2(i)-ga 1-dong also saw spending rise by 141.9%, attributed to an influx of tourists seeking Korean-style ‘gorpcore’ (outdoor apparel worn as everyday fashion) brands spreading mainly through social network services (SNS).

In Seongsu-dong and Haeundae, Busan, 'K-pharmacy' consumption linked to dermatology procedures stood out. It was found that linked consumption is spreading, with tourists purchasing pharmaceutical-grade recovery creams and other products at pharmacies after undergoing beauty treatments.

Premium pharmacies in the Seongsu-dong area, such as Seongsu 2(i)-ga 1-dong (15,249%) and Seongsu 2(i)-ga 3-dong (2,877%), posted exceptional growth. A similar trend was seen in U 1-dong, Haeundae-gu, Busan (12,828%), indicating that related consumption is also expanding to regions outside the capital.

Luxury Accommodation in Jeju and Designer Accessories... Chinese Tourists Drive Big Spending

High-end spending led by Chinese tourists was also noteworthy. In Jeju, luxury resort consumption increased. In Dae-ryun-dong, Seogwipo-si, Jeju, demand for private pool villas and high-end townhouses drove a 193.1% surge in condominium sales.

At the same time, sales for high-end luxury products such as watches & jewelry (70%) and accessories (87%) rose sharply. In Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, which is home to clusters of luxury stores, sales of watches & jewelry increased by 135% year-on-year, while accessories soared by 198%. The average payment per transaction in the watches & jewelry sector reached 12.15 million won.

In Yerae-dong, Seogwipo-si, which offers a five-star resort environment, the accessories sector grew by 589% year-on-year. The average payment made by Chinese tourists was 6.32 million won, far exceeding the overall average price of 530,000 won. The Korea Tourism Organization analyzed this as a result of the expanding trend of combining high-end accommodation with shopping.

Lee Misuk, head of the Tourism Data Hub Team at the organization, said, "This analysis demonstrates that foreign tourist consumption in Korea is not just recovering, but is becoming increasingly segmented by commercial area, industry, and country. We will continue to provide data-based insights so that local governments and businesses can detect these changes early and respond proactively."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.