Race to host 2028 G20: Jeju discusses accommodation and meeting facilities with 13 five-star hotels

【Financial News, Jeju = Reporter Jeong Yong-bok】 Talks on cooperation over accommodation and meeting facilities have begun with 13 five-star hotels across Jeju Province participating, as the province bids to host the 2028 Group of Twenty (G20) Summit. With experience hosting international conferences and tourism infrastructure as key elements of its bid strategy, Jeju is working to determine in concrete terms the capacity of guest rooms and meeting spaces that could actually be used for the summit.
According to Jeju Special Self-Governing Province, a meeting to discuss Jeju’s bid to host the G20 Summit was held that morning at Baengnok Hall at the provincial government office, chaired by Vice Governor for Climate and Economy Lee Chang-heum and attended by representatives of 13 five-star hotels across the province.
The meeting shared updates on efforts to secure the 2028 G20 Summit and discussed ways to work with the hotel industry. Participants particularly reviewed the hotel rooms and meeting venues that could be used for the summit, as well as areas where facilities may need improvements.
They also discussed ways to publicize Jeju’s bid to domestic and international guests visiting hotels. The aim is to explain the need for and advantages of holding the summit in Jeju to hotel visitors, including tourists and international conference participants, and build broader support for the bid.
This move follows Jeju Province’s expansion and reorganization of its task force dedicated to the G20 bid on the 6th.
Jeju Province expanded its existing task force, centered on a working-level team, into a collaborative structure involving 15 related departments and four related organizations. With Vice Governor Lee Chang-heum as its head, the province is developing bid strategies across seven areas: overall coordination and planning; accommodation and meeting facilities; tourism and culture; policy and industry; airports and transportation; ports; and publicity.

The accommodation and meeting facilities sector involves tourism-related departments of Jeju Province, the Jeju Tourism Organization, International Convention Center Jeju (ICC JEJU), and the Jeju Tourism Association, among others. Their role is to analyze capacity for accommodating summit participants and the potential use of international conference facilities, and to develop any necessary improvement measures.
The 2028 G20 Summit will be hosted by South Korea, which will hold the presidency. It will be the first G20 Summit held in the country in 18 years, since the 2010 Seoul Summit.
The G20 is a forum where major countries, the European Union (EU), the African Union (AU) and others discuss international issues including the global economy, finance, trade and development. Because the summit brings together not only national leaders but also government delegations, international organization officials and journalists, infrastructure capable of supporting a large-scale international conference is essential.
However, confirmation that South Korea will host the summit is separate from the selection of Jeju as the host city. Jeju, Incheon, Busan, North Gyeongsang Province and the South Jeolla-Gwangju Integrated Special City, among others, have expressed interest in hosting it. Competition among domestic candidates is gathering pace as each highlights its experience hosting international conferences, transportation and accommodation facilities, and industrial and cultural assets.
Jeju Province is promoting as a strength the concentration of meeting and accommodation facilities at the International Convention Center Jeju and the Jungmun Tourist Complex.
When the Pan-National Promotion Committee was launched last September, Jeju presented its capacity to host international conferences, including 20 high-end accommodation facilities and 132 meeting rooms in and around the Jungmun Tourist Complex. The province also cites its island geography and experience hosting international events as advantages in its bid.

Jeju hosted the Korea-ASEAN Special Summit in 2009. At the time, international events including the summit, business events and bilateral meetings were held mainly at the International Convention Center Jeju.
However, hosting the G20 Summit in Jeju would require a comprehensive review not only of the capacity of existing facilities but also of accommodation arrangements for leaders and their delegations, the operation of meeting venues, travel between the airport and event sites, and security and protocol arrangements.
This is why the hotel industry’s practical cooperation is particularly important. Concrete plans are needed to determine how many rooms can be secured during the summit, how the meeting facilities at each hotel can be used, and what improvements are required to host an international event.
On September 16, Jeju Province launched a Pan-National Promotion Committee that includes Jeju Governor Wi Seong-gon and Yang Mun-seok, chairman of the Jeju Chamber of Commerce and Industry, among others. Following the expansion of its task force, the province has now also begun discussions with the hotel industry, broadening the basis for local community participation.
Jeju Province Vice Governor for Climate and Economy Lee Chang-heum said, “It is important to widely publicize Jeju’s strengths and its commitment to hosting, and to bring together the interest and participation of the local community,” adding, “We will work closely with the hotel industry to broaden support for bringing the G20 Summit to Jeju.”


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