South Korea Sees Jeju Tourism Spending Surge Past Over Three Trillion Won as Foreign Visitors Drive Growth

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South Korea Sees Jeju Tourism Spending Tops 1.3 Trillion Won as Foreign Visitors Drive Strong Growth Foreign visitor spending is becoming an increasingly powerful force in Jeju Island’s tourism economy, with international travellers spending 44.4 per cent more during the first half of the year than in the same period a year earlier.

Total tourism expenditure across the South Korean resort island reached approximately 1.31 trillion won, or about $969 million, between January and June. This represented year-on-year growth of 6.4 per cent and added roughly 78.5 billion won in visitor spending compared with the previous year.

International tourists generated around 305 billion won during the six-month period. Domestic visitors remained responsible for the majority of expenditure, spending approximately 1.01 trillion won, although their contribution fell by 1.5 per cent year on year.

Foreign tourists accounted for 23.2 per cent of total tourism expenditure, highlighting the growing importance of overseas markets to Jeju’s wider visitor economy.

First Quarter Delivers Strong Tourism Momentum

The first three months of the year produced the strongest spending growth.

Tourism expenditure reached 609.5 billion won between January and March, representing a 13.9 per cent increase from the same quarter a year earlier.

International spending surged by 63.1 per cent during the period, significantly outperforming domestic tourism expenditure. Spending by Korean travellers still increased by 6.1 per cent, helping Jeju begin the year with broad-based growth.

The strong first-quarter performance played a major role in lifting overall expenditure for the first half.

International tourists emerged as the fastest-growing source of visitor revenue, supporting hotels, restaurants, retailers and other tourism-related businesses across the island.

Spending Growth Moderates in the Second Quarter

Jeju’s tourism spending momentum weakened during the April-to-June period as domestic visitor expenditure declined.

Foreign tourist spending remained strong, increasing by 34.5 per cent compared with the previous year. However, spending by domestic travellers dropped by 7.7 per cent.

Combined tourist expenditure consequently reached 704.6 billion won during the second quarter, representing only a 0.6 per cent year-on-year increase.

The difference between foreign and domestic spending trends shows how international tourism helped cushion Jeju’s visitor economy against weaker expenditure from Korean travellers.

Although domestic tourism remained the island’s largest source of revenue, overseas visitors increasingly provided additional spending across several major sectors.

Restaurants and Cafes Capture the Largest Share

Food remained the largest spending category during the first half.

Visitors spent approximately 497.2 billion won at restaurants, cafés and bakeries across Jeju.

Retail followed closely with 466.4 billion won in spending. The category covered convenience stores, cosmetics shops, souvenir outlets and duty-free businesses.

Accommodation attracted approximately 227.6 billion won, while arts, sports and leisure activities generated 79.9 billion won.

Other tourism-related services, including rental cars, received about 43 billion won.

These figures show that Jeju’s tourism economy extends far beyond accommodation, with visitor expenditure flowing into food businesses, retail outlets, transport providers and recreational services.

Domestic and Foreign Tourists Spend Differently

Clear differences emerged between domestic and overseas visitor behaviour.

Korean travellers spent heavily on food and shopping. Domestic visitors generated approximately 424.5 billion won in restaurant expenditure and another 388 billion won at retailers.

Their spending on accommodation stood at 97.4 billion won.

International travellers followed a different pattern.

Foreign tourists allocated their largest share of expenditure to accommodation, spending approximately 130.2 billion won.

Retail businesses received 78.4 billion won from international travellers, while restaurants attracted 72.7 billion won.

The figures indicate that foreign visitors provide particularly strong value to Jeju’s accommodation sector, while domestic travellers continue to support the island’s food and retail industries.

Greater China Leads International Visitor Spending

Travellers from Greater China, including mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, were Jeju’s largest international spending group during the second quarter.

Their expenditure reached approximately 85.1 billion won, accounting for 45.8 per cent of total foreign tourist spending during the period.

Retail demand was especially strong.

Spending by Greater China travellers at cosmetics, soap and fragrance retailers increased by 51.3 per cent year on year.

Their expenditure at Korean restaurants climbed even faster, rising 55.8 per cent.

Much of this activity was concentrated in Jeju City’s Yeon-dong and Nohyeong-dong districts.

Yeon-dong attracted stronger restaurant and retail spending, while Nohyeong-dong captured more expenditure from accommodation and leisure activities.

Other International Markets Expand Jeju’s Tourism Base

Foreign visitor spending was also supported by travellers from other parts of the world.

Tourists from other Asian markets, excluding Japan, spent approximately 33.1 billion won during the second quarter, representing 17.8 per cent of international expenditure.

North American travellers generated around 31 billion won, accounting for 16.7 per cent.

European visitors spent 22.8 billion won, equivalent to 12.3 per cent of overseas tourist expenditure.

Japanese tourists contributed approximately 8 billion won, while travellers from Oceania generated about 4 billion won.

The spread of spending across Asian, North American, European and Oceanian markets points to a broader international visitor base.

Foreign Tourism Gains Greater Economic Importance for Jeju

Jeju’s first-half tourism performance shows that overseas visitors are becoming increasingly important to the island’s tourism economy.

Foreign spending growth helped push total expenditure higher even as domestic tourism spending weakened.

International visitors also supported multiple sectors, from accommodation and restaurants to retail and leisure.

Greater China remained the dominant overseas market, but travellers from North America, Europe and other parts of Asia also contributed substantially.

With foreign tourist expenditure climbing 44.4 per cent during the first half, Jeju is seeing a stronger international spending footprint that is reshaping how tourism revenue is distributed across the island.