With record numbers of high-spending
Koreans travelling abroad, the Korean Government is opening its purse
strings to encourage tourism infrastructure investment and improve its
tourism trade balance, according to PATA Director-Strategic Intelligence Centre
Mr John Koldowski.On Monday, Mr Koldowski gave a PATA regional
update to the Asia Pacific Tourism Investment Conference, hosted jointly by
the Korean Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization
in Seoul.

    “The conference confirmed the Korean
Government’s commitment to local travel and tourism development, encouraging
investors to help create a series of new tourist centres throughout the
destination,” Mr Koldowski said.

    More than 200 conference delegates were told
that a record 10.6 million Koreans travelled abroad in the 12 months to
July 2006, often spending more than double their Asian counterparts and
making Korea (ROK) one of the highest yielding tourism source markets in the
world.

    “By boosting investment in tourist
facilities at home, the Korean Government hopes to encourage more domestic travel as
well as pique the interest of more international visitors. This is yet
another demonstration of the importance of Total Tourism,” said Mr
Koldowski. 
 
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