Search volume nearly doubles as foreigners flock... 'Busan travel craze' surpasses Seoul

/Photo = Yonhap News [Financial News] Busan is emerging as a new hub for domestic tourism. Following a significant increase in overseas searches related to Busan, the number of actual foreign visitors has also surged, leading to a rise in popularity so high that a new term, "Busan Fever," has even emerged.
According to Google Trends on the 25th, interest in the English search term "Busan" increased by approximately 50% over the past year compared to the previous year. Search volume for "釜山," the Chinese character spelling of Busan, also increased by about 40% during the same period.
Interest in Busan was particularly pronounced in Northeast Asian countries. Search volume for Busan in Japan surged by 190%, while in Taiwan it increased by 80%. In a survey conducted last year by the Taiwanese travel platform KKday, Busan was selected as the second most preferred travel destination, following Osaka. Posts by foreigners introducing the night view of Hwangnyeongsan Beacon Tower and Gamcheon Culture Village are steadily appearing on social networking services (SNS).
The actual increase in visitors is also continuing.
9% increase compared to the same month last year (322,474). The cumulative number of foreign visitors this year reached 1,936,572, an increase of approximately 40% year-on-year.
2% last year.
8%). 1%), the proportion of tourists from Greater China has exceeded 40%.
The tourism industry attributes Busan's tourism competitiveness to marine tourism resources, convenient transportation networks, and cultural content such as the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF). In addition, excellent accessibility via Gimhae International Airport and Busan Port, as well as the fact that it is an international cruise port connecting Shanghai, Jeju, and Busan, as well as Nagasaki, Japan, and Keelung, Taiwan, were cited as factors driving the increase in foreign tourists.
[email protected] Seo Yoon-kyung Reporter