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One of the hallmark Korean dining experiences is enjoying samgyeopsal -- raw pork belly grilled at your table, followed by wrapping it up in a lettuce leaf with garlic cloves, grilled chili peppers and other goodies. You can wash it all down with a shot of soju; South Koreans drank three billion bottles of the hard liquor in 2012.
The national dominance of pig meat and alcohol (Koreans drink more hard liquor than any country in the world) would hypothetically stymie Muslim tourism to South Korea. However, Muslim tourism has become a key area of growth for Asia's fourth-largest economy. The government wants to attract 1.2 million Muslim tourists in 2017, according to Yonhap News. That’s a 22% bump from last year’s 986,000 visitors.
Attempts to attract Muslim tourists
One initiative to attract more Muslims is Halal Restaurant Week Korea, which will actually last two months. From Sept. 1 to Oct. 31, 107 halal restaurants are offering discounts for diners. The KTO also published a free e-book of halal restaurants around the country.
Finding halal food can be one of the biggest frustrations for Muslim visitors. KTO deputy director Shin Min-kyu, who leads the Asia and Middle East Team, told Yonhap News Agency on Sept. 8 that these measures were “to enhance the convenience of Muslim visitors.”
Korea already has a strong focus on Muslim visitors from Southeast Asia, like Indonesia and Malaysia, and in the Middle East. It's growing its tourism push in Central Asia, too; the KTO opened a tourism office in Almaty, Kazakhstan in July.
The focus may seem unexpected for a country that has eight mosques, but it’s quite obvious for industry insiders. According to a 2014 Thomson Reuters report, Muslims spent $142 billion on travel (not including religious pilgrimages). It was just slightly less than Chinese travelers that same year ($160 billion) and U.S. travelers ($143 billion).
Korea is on a mission to recuperate some of this year's devastating tourism losses. Chinese tourists previously comprised almost half of all visitors to Korea. In March, reacting from Korea’s deployment of the the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), China began "boycotting all things Korean." One such retaliation was the ban of all group tourism packages to Korea.
Numbers of Chinese tourists drop
As a result, only half as many Chinese have visited Korea this year compared to the same period in 2016. Overall tourism has fallen by 23%, or almost three million people, and tourism receipts have also shrank by 24%.
In part thanks to its new Muslim focus, Korea has boosted tourism from some niche countries. Twenty-two percent and 25%, respectively, more visitors from Kazakhstan and Iran have visited Korea this year. Uzbek and Middle Eastern tourism has increased by 8% each, and Pakistan by 4.5%.
But these boosts won't recuperate the losses from the Chinese travel ban, according to Lawrence Bendle, assistant professor in the College of Hotel and Tourism Management at Kyung Hee University in Seoul, Korea.
“Given the high numbers of Chinese tourists it is unlikely any other country will replace it," Bendle said in an interview.
Malaysians, the largest group of Muslim travelers, have been just 2% of all visitors to Korea this year. The entire Middle East region has comprised a puny .2%. Meanwhile, China’s 5.6 million tourists were 49% of all travelers to Korea last year.
And these efforts haven't helped Korea's $10.8 billion duty-free market, reported business intelligence outlet Moodie Davitt Report in July. The market will experience its first annual sales decline in 14 years. "It’s a gloomy season for duty free in Korea," an unnamed industry insider told the Moodie Davitt Report.
Still healthy compared to earlier years
Despite the recent setbacks, inbound Korean tourism is quite healthy compared to the past. The number of visitors to Korea has more than doubled in the past decade, and their spending has tripled. The increase is thanks largely to the increasing popularity of Korean food, TV shows, movies and other cultural facets.
In addition to China and Japan, Southeast Asia is a major focus area for Korean culture marketers. This region has a particularly young population, who naturally are more receptive to Korean heartthrob boy bands, teary dramas and colorful lip stains. Indonesia and Vietnam are the fastest growing Hallyu markets, reported the Korea Times in February.
“Hallyu has supported and increased awareness of Korea in Southeast Asia,” Bendle said. “Korean TV and K-pop show a positive and 'hip' side (of Korea).” In response, folks from this region are traveling here to glimpse their favorite celebrities, buy sheet masks and, in the case of Malaysian and Indonesian visitors, experience the beginnings of Korea's halal food market.
