U.S. tourists top spenders in Korea on Visa cards

A street in Myeong-dong, central Seoul, bustles with pedestrians including foreign tourists on January 11, during the 2024 Korea Grand Sale shopping and tourism festival. [NEWS1]

U.S. tourists were the biggest spenders among foreigners visiting Korea over the past year, according to a report published by Visa on Monday.

Japan and China ranked second and third, rounding out a top three that together accounted for more than half of all tourist card spending.

The U.S. card network operator's analysis of card spending data from last April to this March showed that the top spenders among foreign tourists were from the United States, Japan, China, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand and Hong Kong.

Visa did not release spending figures, but did provide a breakdown of spending by industry.

Retail establishments including restaurants and duty-free stores accounted for some 15 percent of the total spending, while hospitals and department stores claimed about 10 to 15 percent each. Accommodation, apparel stores and discount stores each accounted for 5 to 10 percent.

U.S. tourists spent the most money in the food-related sector, with restaurants accounting for 21 percent and food product stores responsible for 5 percent of their total spending. Transportation costs, including taxis, made up 4 percent, a higher proportion compared to other nations, according to Visa.

For Japanese tourists, on the other hand, 17 percent of their total expenditure was on medical services. Notably, they spent comparatively less money at restaurants and department stores, each coming to 11 percent and 8 percent.

Retail stores took up 21 percent of Chinese tourists' spending, department stores were at 15 percent, and clothing stores, 11 percent.

Meanwhile, 55 percent of the total card transactions by tourists from the seven countries were made in Seoul. Incheon came in second, accounting for 10 percent of the total, followed by Busan with 9 percent, Jeju Island with 7 percent, and Pyeongchang with 2 percent.

Jeju turned out to be a particularly popular destination for Chinese tourists, with their preference for the island second only to Seoul as spending there came to 19 percent of their total transactions.

Taiwanese tourists preferred Busan, where 16 percent of their total transactions were made, likely due to the Busan-Taipei route.

BY SHIN HA-NEE [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]