South Korea shifts tourism focus to regional airports, pledges W410b

Government holds emergency economic meeting

Target of 5 million regional arrivals by 2029

Cross-ministry budget of 410 billion won planned

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lee Hyung-il speaks at the Emergency Economic Headquarters meeting, also held as the Economic Ministers' Meeting and Service Industry Development TF, at Government Complex Seoul in Jongno-gu on Wednesday. [Yonhap]

The government plans to invest 410 billion won ($306 million) next year across five major tourism zones centered on regional airports, in a bid to reduce the country's heavy reliance on Greater Seoul as the primary destination for inbound visitors. The goal is to double arrivals to those five zones to 5 million by 2029.

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lee Hyung-il announced the plan Wednesday at Government Complex Seoul during opening remarks at the Emergency Economic Headquarters meeting, which was held jointly as the Economic Ministers' Meeting and the Service Industry Development TF. "We will designate five broad regional tourism zones centered on local airports, provide support through fiscal investment, regulatory exemptions and AI pilot programs, and achieve 5 million arrivals to the five zones by 2029," Lee said.

A conceptual map of the five regional tourism zones centered on local airports. [Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism]

The five broad regional tourism zones selected by the government are the Gimhae Airport zone (Busan, Gyeongju, Ulsan, Geoje and Tongyeong), the Daegu Airport zone (Daegu, Gyeongju and Andong), the Cheongju Airport zone (Cheongju, Gongju, Buyeo, Iksan and Jeonju), the Yangyang Airport zone (Yangyang, Gangneung and Sokcho), and the Muan Airport zone (Muan, Mokpo, Gwangju and Yeosu). The government plans to develop each zone as a major tourism growth corridor by linking gateway cities — those with international airports — to nearby cities via regional transport networks.

"We will invest about 410 billion won in national and local government funds in connection with the five tourism zones next year, and will also review applying regulatory exemptions in conjunction with the Mega Special Zone Act, which is set to be introduced," Lee said. The 410 billion won figure represents the combined budget proposals of relevant projects across multiple ministries and agencies, including the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the Cultural Heritage Administration and the Korea Forest Service.

The government's 2027 budget proposal also includes 27 projects aimed at improving arrivals through regional airports and ports — including cruise terminals — as well as enhancing transportation, accommodation and payment convenience, and developing distinctive tourism content.

An AI pilot project supporting parking congestion analysis and multilingual translation will receive 3 billion won in national funding in 2027. "We will also push forward with pilot projects that use AI technology to solve problems inbound tourists encounter on the ground, such as transportation and language barriers," Lee said.

The plan is being pursued alongside a strategy for developing the five regional airport-centered tourism zones that the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism finalized on Sept. 10. The ministry has set a policy of allocating a total of 93.5 billion won — comprising 65.9 billion won in national funds and 27.6 billion won in local government funds, based on the 2027 government budget proposal — to develop the tourism zones and shift inbound tourism away from its concentration in Greater Seoul toward the regions.

Of that total, 18.7 billion won will go toward identifying and developing distinctive tourism content, 18 billion won toward overseas marketing centered on the regional tourism zones, 14.9 billion won toward expanding transport networks and improving shopping and payment convenience, and 14.3 billion won toward projects linking regional airports and cruise port calls.

Culture Minister Choi Hwi-young said the ministry would focus on raising the international profile of regional areas centered on local airports to draw inbound visitors beyond the capital, while also improving reception conditions covering transportation, shopping and accommodation, and identifying and developing tourism attractions. "By developing these tourism zones, we will usher in an era of 30 million total arrivals and 5 million regional arrivals by 2029," Choi said.

terry@heraldcorp.com