'National Leisure Time Increased, but Wallets Remained Closed'

Ministry of Culture and MKOF '2024 National Leisure Activity Survey'
Average Monthly Leisure Expenses Down 14,000 KRW YoY
54.9% Engage in Solo Leisure Activities... "Impact of Inflation and Online Leisure"

This year, the average monthly leisure time of our citizens increased, while the average expenditure on leisure decreased compared to last year. This is mainly attributed to reduced consumption due to rising prices and an increase in non-face-to-face online leisure activities.

Bicycle riding.
Photo by Korea Tourism Organization

According to the '2024 National Leisure Activity Survey' released on the 27th by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute, the average monthly leisure time was 3.7 hours on weekdays and 5.7 hours on holidays, showing a slight increase compared to the previous year (3.6 hours on weekdays, 5.5 hours on holidays).

On the other hand, spending on leisure activities averaged 187,000 KRW per month, a decrease of 14,000 KRW from last year (201,000 KRW).

Notably, media-based leisure activities such as watching TV and online/mobile videos and listening to music increased, and the proportion of solo leisure activities exceeded half at 54.9%. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism analyzed this phenomenon as reflecting reduced consumption due to inflation and a preference for non-face-to-face online leisure activities.

The number of leisure activities participated in at least once annually per person was 16.4, slightly up from 16.1 the previous year.

Overall leisure satisfaction reached 61.6%, the highest since 2016. In particular, participation in leisure activities among the elderly was notable, with those in their 60s participating in 15.1 activities annually (an increase of 0.8 from the previous year) and those aged 70 and above participating in 12 activities (an increase of 0.7).

In the concurrently released 'National Culture and Arts Activity Survey,' the direct attendance rate at cultural and arts events rose by 4.4 percentage points to 63% compared to the previous year. By category, attendance was highest for movies (57%), followed by popular music and entertainment (14.6%), and musicals (6.4%).

Meanwhile, according to the 'Worker Vacation Survey,' the annual leave utilization rate was 77.7%, up 1.5 percentage points from the previous year. The indicator reflecting autonomy in vacation use also rose by 7.7 points to 77. Especially, annual leave used for travel and leisure purposes was the highest at 45.5%, followed by rest purposes at 30.6%. Workers who responded that they can use annual leave whenever they want scored 77 out of 100, an increase of 7.7 points from the previous year.