A tourist visits Yongjoosa, a temple of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism. It is located on the slopes of Hwasan in Taean-eup, Hwaseong, in the province of Gyeonggi. — VNS Photo Minh Thu

It’s an attempt to boost tourism after the serious consequences caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, Park Jong Sun, KTO Vietnam director, said on Tuesday in Hanoi.

“During the first half of the year, the tourism industries of both Vietnam and South Korea were seriously influenced, leading to big economic losses,” he said.

The number of Vietnamese tourists to South Korea counted to the end of May was 73,490, decreasing 195 per cent in comparison with the same period last year.

“It’s the deepest drop of Korean tourism that I have seen,” he said and affirmed that KTO will host various events to promote Korean tourism.

The first one is a photo contest “Relive your Korea trip” launched worldwide in April. The first round ended with 53,000 entries sent from tourists around the world. The voting round will take place on June 19-30 to find winners.

A dance contest will be launched specifically for Vietnamese participants. Korea Tourism Yoona Dance Cover Challenge is scheduled to take place in August. Contestants will cover dances of Yoona, member of Girls’ Generation (SNSD) group, performed in videos promoting Korean tourism of KTO.

A Korea Travel Experience Booth will be held in Hanoi from August to October to introduce Korean tours with attractive mini games. Visitors will experience Korean tourism through various themes K-pop, K-Beauty, K-Drama, nature, gastronomy and destinations.  

The biggest event of the year is Korean Days in Hanoi, which will be held in November following the success of the events in Hanoi and HCM City in 2017 and 2019, respectively.

KTO will co-ordinate closely with Vietnamese travel agents to boost the sales of tours and air tickets to South Korea.  VNS

South Korea eyes more MICE tourists from Vietnam

The Korean Tourism Organisation (KTO) held a conference on MICE (Meeting, Incentive, Conference and Event) tourism of the Republic of Korea (RoK) in Hanoi on July 11.

RoK restricts five-year visas for Vietnamese citizens

The Republic of Korea (RoK) has decided to restrict five-year visas to only permanent Vietnamese residents, instead of both permanent and temporary residents, in Hanoi, Da Nang city and Ho Chi Minh City.