Korea Tourism Organization's Incentive Travel Status Survey Designated as National Approved Statistics

Sophisticated Analysis of the MICE Industry Now Possible

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization announced on July 25 that the 'Incentive Travel Status Survey,' which aims to grasp the scale of incentive travel and the current status of related businesses, has passed the Statistics Korea’s national approval review. This development will allow for more sophisticated analysis of the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, Exhibitions) industry.

Incentive travel refers to reward tourism for groups of at least 10 inbound foreigners who stay for at least one night in Korea, with the purpose of rewarding organizational performance and motivating employees.

Incentive travel is a complex form of travel that combines tourism, corporate meetings, and education, and it has a greater economic ripple effect than general tourism. According to the 'MICE Industry Statistics Survey and Research,' approximately 780,000 incentive travelers visited Korea in 2023, and their per capita expenditure was $2,804, which is about 1.49 times higher than that of general foreign tourists.

With the national approval of the Incentive Travel Status Survey, three out of the four MICE categories?Meeting, Incentive tour, Convention, and Exhibition?have now received national approval.

Since 2009, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization have been producing 'MICE Industry Statistics' to understand the current status of the MICE industry and analyze the effects of attracting events. However, the previous Incentive Travel Status Survey was classified as a non-approved statistic, which limited its use and public disclosure.

Now that the incentive travel survey has passed the national statistical approval review, the restrictions on the use of these statistics have been reduced, and a foundation has been laid for more precise analysis of the scale and ripple effects of the MICE industry in the future.

The 'Incentive Travel Status Survey' targets all businesses registered as 'comprehensive travel agencies' under the Tourism Promotion Act, and it will collect and analyze basic data needed for policy-making, such as the scale of incentive travel and the operational status of businesses. The results of the survey will be released at the end of December through the National Statistical Portal and the Korea Tourism Data Lab.

Kim Sungeun, Director of the Tourism Data Office at the Korea Tourism Organization, stated, "With the designation of both the International Convention Status Survey and the Incentive Travel Status Survey as national approved statistics, the credibility of MICE statistics has been further enhanced," and added, "Based on highly reliable statistics, we will accelerate the development of special classifications for the MICE industry and strengthen the policy foundation for fostering the MICE sector."