Korea Tourism Group targets Japanese under-40s

As travel restrictions in various countries are gradually lifted and the introduction of vaccinations in Korea gains momentum, the tourism sector, which has been hit by the pandemic for more than a year, is preparing to attract foreign travelers.

The Korea Tourism Organization hosted a two-day online travel promotion event in May. 28, specifically for Japanese under 40s – Millennials and Generation Z – who are interested in Korean culture. A number of live streaming events were broadcast on Nikoniko Live, Japan’s leading video service provider.

The event marked the start of KTO’s Korea Fair 2021 #Dakara Korea. “Dakara” is a Japanese word and means “therefore”.

On the first day of the online event, Tomorrow X Together, a boy band from Big Hit Entertainment interacted with fans through a speed quiz about the Korean tourist centers of Busan, Jeonju, Gangneung, Andong and Mokpo.

Lee Ka-eun, an actor and former member of the K-pop girl group After School, appeared on the New Hallyu online trip, cooked Korean dishes and demonstrated idol makeup expertise. Wooseok, Yuto and the Pentagon boys’ group Kino attended the event and showcased Korean handicrafts.

On the second day of the event, K-pop boy band Enhypen introduced well-known Korean tourist attractions. Members chose Gangneung as the place they would like to visit with fans when the pandemic is over and introduced some charming places in the city. It also featured travel-related content such as K-pop dance classes and an online streaming visit to Seoul’s Mangwon-dong.

The event attracted up to 45,000 concurrent users and has had around 100,000 accumulated views to date. For the online event to recruit 200 participants, more than 2,000 applied within two days.

The Japan Tourism Organization offices hosted “Korea Fair In Japan” online and offline events at the same time, broadcast live on their social media.

Co-sponsored by a Japanese online travel agency, the #Dakara Korea campaign plans to sell bespoke products such as Korean cultural experiences and lecture series, as well as early bird discounts on trips to Korea, including hotels.

“The interest of the Japanese MZ generation in Korea has been aroused since childhood and naturally meets Korean culture. This has a significant ripple effect,” said Kim Yong-jae, head of KTO’s Northeast Asian team.

The number of visitors from Japan fell in the first half of last year by 74.7 percent compared to 2019, according to the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute.

By Kim Hae-yeon (hykim@heraldcorp.com)