Tourism deficit narrows 71% as visitor numbers and per-capita spending rise

With both the number of foreign tourists visiting Korea and tourism receipts per visitor rising this year, Korea’s tourism deficit narrowed by at least 70% from the same period a year earlier, according to the analysis. However, the annual balance may not turn to a surplus, as growth in tourism receipts slowed in the third quarter.
According to Yanolja Research’s analysis of Korea’s inbound and outbound tourism performance for January–September 2026, 17.11 million foreign visitors came to Korea during the first nine months of the year, up 21.5% from the same period last year. That was a record high, 32.3% above the figure for the same period in 2019.
Tourism receipts during the same period rose 31.8% to $21.18 billion. The tourism balance consequently posted a deficit of $2.21 billion, 70.9% smaller than the $7.59 billion deficit recorded in the same period last year.
Tourism receipts grew faster than the number of visitors to Korea because receipts per visitor also increased. Per-capita tourism receipts rose 8.5% from the same period a year earlier to $1,237.80.
China was the largest source of visitors to Korea, with 5.473 million, followed by Japan with 3.119 million and Taiwan with 1.864 million. Visitors from Taiwan were up 32.4% from the same period a year earlier, the highest growth rate among the major visitor markets.
Arrivals through regional airports also rose rapidly. A total of 3.246 million visitors arrived through regional airports, up 37.4% from the same period a year earlier and far exceeding the 17.3% growth rate at airports in the Seoul metropolitan area.
Spending on medical care, beauty and wellness stood out among tourism spending categories. Medical spending by foreign visitors rose 57.9% from the same period a year earlier to 1.8398 trillion won. By contrast, sales to foreign customers at duty-free shops fell 61.1% from the same period in 2019 to $5.03 billion. This was due to declines in both the number of duty-free shoppers and their average spending per person.
The number of South Koreans traveling overseas reached 22.081 million, up 2.0% from the same period a year earlier. Japan was the destination for 8.263 million travelers, accounting for 37.4% of all departures, while the number visiting China also rose 14.3% to 2.581 million.
Overseas tourism spending in dollar terms fell 1.1% from the same period a year earlier to $23.39 billion. But as the won-dollar exchange rate rose, spending converted into won increased 2.4% to about 34.2 trillion won.
The tourism balance posted a surplus of $980 million in the second quarter, but swung to a deficit of $950 million in the third. The number of visitors to Korea continued to grow, but tourism-receipt growth slowed from 38.5% in the first quarter and 34.8% in the second to 24.3% in the third, while overseas tourism spending by South Koreans also rose again.
The report projected that the number of visitors to Korea this year would exceed 20 million for the first time, but said the country would need to post a surplus of more than $2.21 billion in the fourth quarter to turn the annual tourism balance positive.
Jang Su-cheong, head of Yanolja Research, said, “The tourism deficit narrowed not because South Koreans traveled overseas less, but because foreign visitors spent more in Korea.” He added, “Policy and industry need to broaden their focus so that growth in the number of visitors to Korea leads to more regional accommodation stays and high-value-added spending during their trips.”
[email protected] Sun-Min Jung Reporter