Gyeonggi Tourism Organization Launches Efforts to Attract Chinese Group Tourists Targeting October National Day Holiday

The Gyeonggi Tourism Organization has officially begun efforts to attract group tourists from China.

The Gyeonggi Tourism Organization announced on September 4 that, in line with the temporary visa-free entry for group tourists from China scheduled to be implemented at the end of September and the Chinese National Day Golden Week in October, it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on September 3 in Chengdu, Sichuan Province. The agreement was made with the Chengdu Mountaineering Association and Chengdu Overseas Tourism Co., Ltd. to collaborate on attracting group tours.

The Chengdu Mountaineering Association has 126 affiliated institutions, companies, and organizations, as well as approximately 1.1 million individual members. It hosts various domestic and international trekking events every year. Chengdu Overseas Tourism Co., Ltd. is one of the major travel agencies in Sichuan Province and has consistently sent group tourists to destinations such as Korea, Japan, and the Middle East annually.

Gyeonggi Tourism Organization visited Chengdu, China on the 3rd and signed an agreement with local tourism-related companies to attract tourists to the province. Photo by Gyeonggi Tourism Organization

Through this agreement, the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization plans to work together in a wide range of areas, including: attracting trekking and wellness trips to Gyeonggi Province for members of the Mountaineering Association and their families; conducting joint marketing to attract group tourists from China’s western inland region during peak travel seasons; developing new tourism products using diverse content favored by inland Chinese regions, such as the DMZ, Peace Nuri Trail, and the sea in Gyeonggi Province; and making joint efforts to promote sustainable tourism industry development and lead global trends in both countries.

In addition, the organization will strengthen online and offline sales promotions for Gyeonggi tourism through its promotional offices in China (Qingdao and Shanghai), hold promotional events targeting Chinese consumers using popular Chinese social media platforms such as Xiaohongshu, expand marketing for group tour products in collaboration with online travel agencies (OTAs), and support the travel industry in product development and promotional campaigns. These efforts aim to further increase the number of Chinese group tourists in response to the implementation of the visa-free policy.

Cho Wonyong, President of the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization, stated, "Factors contributing to the expansion of tourism exchanges between Korea and China, such as the announcement of temporary visa-free entry, the hosting of APEC, and the global popularity and spread of Korean Wave content, continue to grow." He added, "We will actively strive to expand our share of the inbound Chinese market, which ranks first, by building partnerships in China’s western inland region, launching diverse marketing initiatives, and leveraging the National Day Golden Week in October."