Seoul ranks fourth on Airbnb's list of most searched travel destinations

A hanok in Bukchon Hanok Village in Jongno District, central Seoul, on April 26, 2022. [NEWS1]

Seoul was ranked as the fourth most searched travel destination on Airbnb over the past year.

Following Bangkok, Sydney and Malaga, Seoul landed fourth on the list of places travelers searched for on the travel and booking app, excluding searches for destinations in the United States, according to Airbnb on Nov. 30.

“The following locations became the top trending global destinations that caught travelers’ attention,” wrote Airbnb while introducing the destinations.

Airbnb complied the data based on searches across its app between the first and third quarters of this year. Airbnb made the analysis that the peaking interest in Korea is mostly due to the rise in popularity of Korean culture.

Airbnb is running various campaigns to keep up with the high interest in Seoul as a travel destination. In the winter upgrade of the app last November, a hanok (traditional Korean house) category feature was added to the accommodation category. The company also cooperated with the Seoul Tourism Organization on a campaign to promote hanok experiences.

Airbnb is a travel destination information and accommodation app that individually matches hosts with guests. It currently has more 4 million hosts and has welcomed 1 billion guests in almost every country across the globe, according to the company.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]