Seoul named Best MICE City by magazine Global Traveler for 10th consecutive year

Home > National > Social Affairs

Seoul named Best MICE City by magazine Global Traveler for 10th consecutive year

Published: 02 Dec. 2024, 17:00 Updated: 02 Dec. 2024, 17:59

CHO JUNG-WOO
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

The exterior of Coex Magok Le West, a seven-story convention center located in Gangseo District, western Seoul, which officially opened on Nov. 28 [COEX]

The city of Seoul was named the Best MICE City for the 10th consecutive year by Global Traveler, a U.S. magazine for business travelers.

MICE stands for meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions, a type of tourism that brings together large groups for business events or retreats.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Monday announced that the city will join the Hall of Fame this year, celebrating its decade-long streak of receiving the award at the Global Traveler Tested Reader Survey Awards. Around 300,000 people participated in the voting process for this year’s honors.

Global Traveler has hosted the awards annually since 2014, recognizing excellence across various travel-related categories, including MICE cities, airlines and hotels.

The latest accolade follows Seoul's recognition as Favorite Worldwide City for three consecutive years by Trazee, an international travel and lifestyle media outlet, and its selection as the Best Exhibition City in Asia at the M&C Asia Stella Awards held in Macau this year, a key MICE media platform in the Asia Pacific region.

Seoul enters the Hall of Fame this year after being named the Best MICE City of 2024 for the 10th consecutive year by Global Traveler, a U.S. magazine for business travelers. [SEOUL METROPOLITAN GOVERNMENT]

The Seoul government attributed the achievements to hosting major international events this year, such as the League of Legends World Championship and the city's SeoulCon, which helped enhance the capital’s global visibility through influencers and other channels.

This year, the city also secured bids to host 31 international conferences, including the 2026 World Conference on Lung Cancer, which is expected to attract around 8,000 attendees.

“With Seoul gaining global attention for its trendiness, driven by K-pop and K-food, it has also earned a reputation as an attractive destination for MICE tourism,” said Kim Young-hwan, director general of the city’s tourism and sports bureau.

The city government added that its domestic and international marketing efforts have also been pivotal. It has been hosting and subsidizing MICE events through its own initiative, the Plus Seoul program. Additionally, it conducted business consultations abroad, with city officials attending IMEX trade shows in the United States and Germany to attract more events to Seoul.

Earlier this year, the Seoul government unveiled plans to invest 9 billion won ($6.4 million) into the MICE industry throughout the year to attract around 1.2 million tourists.

In November, Seoul inaugurated a new convention center in Gangseo District, marking the first such facility in the western part of the capital.

A bird's eye view of the Jamsil Sport MICE Complex project [SEOUL METROPOLITAN GOVERNMENT]

The city government also plans to enhance MICE infrastructure by renovating the Jamsil Sports Complex area in Songpa District, which is expected to be completed by 2031.

The development is anticipated to facilitate the hosting of more fairs and exhibitions in advanced fields such as biotechnology, medicine, AI and robotics, addressing the city’s previously limited capacity for large-scale events.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [[email protected]]