Korea is just around the corner

More than 15 exhibitors are set to meet the Indian travel trade at the first virtual ‘Korea Travel Expo’ from June 22-24, 2021. Young-Geul Choi, Director, Korea Tourism Organization, New Delhi office, talks about the objective behind the event.

Nisha Verma

Young-Geul Choi says that currently as the second wave of COVID is getting under control and many countries have started opening, this is the right time to reconnect with the industry and introduce the latest products and offerings in South Korea. “South Korea is preparing itself to reopen for inbound tourism this year and we want Indian travel companies to start focussing on South Korea tour products for outbound travel in the future,” he said.

Sharing details about exhibitors he said, “Currently we have 16 confirmed exhibitors. The exhibitors are a mix of Regional Tourism Organisations (RTOs), Destination Management Companies (DMCs) and tourist attractions. Regions represented by RTOs are Seoul, Busan, Incheon, Gyeonggi, Jeju, Gyeongsangbuk-do. Amongst the DMCs, quite a few of them are participating for the first time in the India market. For tourist attractions we have the famous Lotte World that will showcase their collection of Theme-Park, Aquariums and Observatories. They are also exhibiting in India for the first time. In fact, a third of the delegation is coming to explore the India market for the very first time or after many years.”

While there is no official communication for when South Korea will reopen, Choi feels that they will open for inbound tourism by the last quarter of 2021. “Currently, the planning is going on regarding the re-opening of tourism in South Korea globally and a roadmap is being prepared related to COVID vaccine passport to welcome the tourists again in the country,” he said.