The Korea Tourism Organization has set a goal of attracting more than 20 million foreign tourists by 2020 as part of its proclamation marking the state tourism organization’s 50th anniversary this week.
The KTO is aiming for Korea to be the most competitive country in tourism in the Asia-Pacific region, and for the number of days locals use for domestic travel to rise from eight to 30, also by 2020.
The number of foreign tourists has surged from 15,000 when the tourism organization was founded in 1962 to an estimated 10 million this year.
A total of 143 million tourists have visited Korea over the past 50 years and the tourism revenue generated during the period stands at $160 billion, they said.
The KTO, formally known as the International Tourism Organization, was established to earn foreign currency crucial for economic development in the 1960s and ’70s.
It also aimed to lay a firm foundation for the development of the local tourism industry.
To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the tourism organization is holding a photo exhibition and concerts this week.
A photo exhibition featuring pictures portraying KTO history continues through June 27 in front of the organization headquarters building in Jongno, Seoul. Concerts are scheduled to be held on Thursday and Friday at the outdoor venue in front of the building.
By Lee Woo-young (
wylee@heraldcorp.com)
