(image: KobizMedia/ Korea Bizwire)
SEOUL, May 3 (Korea Bizwire) — Most international tourists who visit South Korea via foreign cruise ships want to experience venues of tradition and history on their next visit to the country.
This is according to a survey carried out by the Korean Tourism Organization targeting over 2,000 foreign tourists and 300 crew members who visited Korea between May and November of 2017.
As the market for cruise tours has been growing continuously over the years, there’s been a call to meet demand to boost the satisfaction of tourists.
According to the survey, 73.2 percent of tourists were interested in visiting Korea on a cruise again, which was twice as high (26.7 percent) as those who said they weren’t. In response to the type of tour programs preferred, 55.2 percent voted for a “free and easy” tour.
Venues of “tradition and history” received the most votes for being the theme of interest at 41.5 percent, followed by “theme park and aquarium visits” at 14.4 percent and visits to “local traditional markets” at 13.4 percent.
When asked about the respondents’ perception of Korea as a tourist destination before their visit, 7 out of 10 people said that they already had an inclination towards the nation. Of those surveyed, 55 percent said that they had selected Korea as one of the destinations within the cruise package.
The average amount of money spent on shopping at a port of call stood at $110 per person and miscellaneous money spent was around $32. The average total amount spent per visit was $137 per person. The most popular shopping destinations for tourists were traditional markets at 32.5 percent.
The satisfaction level of tourists stood at 3.67 points (out of 5 points), and 68.4 percent of respondents said that their visit to Korea had made them think favorably of tourism in Korea.
Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire.com)
