Korea Coaxes Tourism Investors
SEOUL, South Korea, November 8, 2006. With record numbers of high-spending Koreans travelling abroad, the Korean Government is opening its purse strings to encourage tourism infrastructure investment and improve its tourism trade balance, according to PATA Director-Strategic Intelligence Centre Mr John Koldowski.
On Monday, Mr Koldowski gave a PATA regional update to the Asia Pacific Tourism Investment Conference, hosted jointly by the Korean Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization in Seoul. "The conference confirmed the Korean Government's commitment to local travel and tourism development, encouraging investors to help create a series of new tourist centres throughout the destination," Mr Koldowski said.
More than 200 conference delegates were told that a record 10.6 million Koreans travelled abroad in the 12 months to July 2006, often spending more than double their Asian counterparts and making Korea (ROK) one of the highest yielding tourism source markets in the world.
"By boosting investment in tourist facilities at home, the Korean Government hopes to encourage more domestic travel as well as pique the interest of more international visitors. This is yet another demonstration of the importance of Total Tourism," said Mr Koldowski.
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