Tourism Domestic Demand Washed Away by July's Heavy Rainfall: 100 Billion Won Loss

Heavy Rain Causes Sharp Drop in Visitors to Popular Tourist Spots
Tourism Spending Last Month Down 107.6 Billion Won Year-on-Year
Number of External Visitors Also Decreases by 5 Million

On the 15th of last month, Gongsanseong Fortress in Gongju-si, Chungnam was submerged due to heavy rain. Photo by Cultural Heritage Administration

Last month's heavy rains caused a decline in domestic tourism consumption. Despite it being vacation season, tourism spending dropped by more than 100 billion KRW compared to the previous year before the end of COVID-19, and the number of tourists decreased by 5 million. There are forecasts that the domestic demand revitalization policy, which the president has been emphasizing, will inevitably be impacted.

According to the Korea Tourism Organization on the 14th, domestic tourism expenditure last month was recorded at 3.5892 trillion KRW. This is 107.6 billion KRW less than the 3.6968 trillion KRW recorded in the same month last year. Typically, tourism spending tends to increase in July due to the vacation season. Compared to June, it increased by 8.01 billion KRW, but it is still lower than April (3.6195 trillion KRW) and May (3.8039 trillion KRW).

Among tourism expenditures, food and beverage spending, which accounts for the largest share, fell from 1.9216 trillion KRW to 1.8826 trillion KRW. Golf course sales, which boomed during the COVID-19 period, also decreased from 216.1 billion KRW to 181.1 billion KRW, a drop of 35 billion KRW.

In particular, the decrease in tourism expenditure was notable in Jeollabuk-do and Jeju-do. Jeollabuk-do's tourism expenditure dropped from 73.7 billion KRW to 58.2 billion KRW, a decrease of 15.5 billion KRW (21.0%), the largest decline. In Jeju-do, a representative tourist destination, it shrank by 23 billion KRW (20.1%) from 114.2 billion KRW to 91.2 billion KRW.

The number of visitors from outside the region also showed a declining trend. The number of visitors from outside was 2.7259 billion, down by 5.35 million from the same month last year, totaling 2.6724 billion. Although foreign tourists increased from 1.6 million to 2.68 million, domestic tourists decreased from 2.7099 billion to 2.6456 billion.

Heavy Rain Causes Tourist Visits to Plummet... Domestic Demand Revitalization Disrupted

Interest in popular tourist destinations by region also declined. In July last year, the most searched tourist spot was Sokcho Tourist Fishery Market in Gangwon-do, but this year, the indoor shopping mall Starfield Hanam took first place. Major popular tourist spots such as Sol Beach Samcheok and Tongyeong Central Traditional Market mostly dropped out of the rankings. Their places were replaced by indoor facilities in the metropolitan area such as Starfield Goyang and Hyundai Premium Outlet Gimpo.

This change is attributed to the heavy rains last month. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration, Seoul recorded 434.6 mm of rainfall last month, with rain falling on 17 days. In Jeju-do, the number of rainy days reached 19.3 due to the monsoon rains and frequent showers. This is the third highest figure since statistics began. On the 15th of last month, a flood accident occurred at Gungpyeong 2 Underpass in Osong-eup, Cheongju-si, Chungbuk, resulting in 14 deaths.

Deputy Prime Minister for Economy Choo Kyung-ho is announcing measures to revitalize domestic demand at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on March 29. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

Some setbacks are expected in the government's domestic demand revitalization measures. On February 27, President Yoon Suk-yeol instructed to "prepare comprehensive measures for domestic demand revitalization." Accordingly, the Ministry of Economy and Finance announced measures centered on discount events on March 29. A ministry official explained, "When it rains heavily during the vacation season and related incidents and accidents are reported, tourism sentiment inevitably worsens," adding, "Domestic demand is bound to be affected."

Meanwhile, to boost domestic demand in the second half of the year, the government plans to distribute 300,000 accommodation coupons worth 30,000 KRW each in November, the low travel season. Seven cities, including Busan, have been selected as night tourism specialized cities and will offer KTX and SRT discounts linked with accommodation.