Wando Chiyu Pay Proves Effective in Boosting the Local Economy

"Wando Chiyu Pay" Generates 270 Million KRW in Spending Over One Month

The tourism incentive policy 'Wando Chiyu Pay', which has been implemented by Wando County, Jeonnam since last March, is revitalizing the local economy.

According to Wando County on the 8th, 'Wando Chiyu Pay' is a system that provides coupons or 'Wando Cheongjeong Market' points worth up to 200,000 KRW, depending on the amount spent by tourists at designated establishments such as accommodations, restaurants, cafes, and specialty product stores. Starting from a minimum spend of 100,000 KRW, benefits are provided from 50,000 KRW and increase according to the total amount spent.

Wando Healing Pay, implemented by Wando County in Jeollanam-do, is providing a significant boost to the local economy. Photo by Wando County

From the 1st of last month for one month, a total of 3,269 tourists registered their advance travel plans for 'Wando Chiyu Pay', and among them, 870 teams (2,204 people) actually received coupon or point benefits. Their total spending amounted to 268.8 million KRW, with approximately 85% (229.65 million KRW) used within the local area.

By sector, restaurants accounted for the highest proportion at 48.29%, followed by accommodations (22.53%), specialty product stores (24.91%), and cafes (4.26%). The average spending per tourist was about 121,997 KRW. Looking at the distribution of visitors by region, Jeonnam (171 cases), Gwangju (139 cases), Gyeonggi (134 cases), and Seoul (95 cases) showed the highest utilization of 'Wando Chiyu Pay'.

Wando County plans to further increase the utilization of the program through various means such as sending informational text messages and expanding discount benefits, and aims to link this to increased sales for local businesses by attracting more tourists.

A county official stated, "'Wando Chiyu Pay' is a policy that provides real support to local small business owners," and added, "We will continue to supplement and expand the program so that it can become a successful model for tourism revitalization."