As of May this year, the number of foreign tourists arriving at Cheongju Airport reached approximately 50,000, an increase of more than 114% compared to the same period last year. During the same period, approximately 46,000 foreign visitors arrived via Daegu Airport, driving growth in the inbound tourism market thanks to overseas marketing efforts.
To address the imbalance in arrivals concentrated at Incheon International Airport and to achieve early results in revitalizing regional airports, the KTO launched the “Regional Airport International Tourism Hub Task Force” (hereinafter referred to as the TF) in April. The TF, comprising 29 departments and branch offices as well as the Cheongju and Daegu Airport Revitalization Councils, has been working to △ expand air routes, △ develop regional tourism content, and △ improve tourism infrastructure centered on regional airports. It has also introduced the “Regional Attraction Priority Branch System,” which pairs key regional airports with overseas branches, to conduct tailored promotional campaigns.
Since the beginning of the year, the Corporation has expanded its global network through on-site sales efforts led by its Chief Executive Officer (CEO). It has broadened cooperation channels with Taiwan’s China Airlines and Lion Travel, Japan’s HIS, and Peach Aviation, and has successively signed agreements to revitalize regional tourism with Aero K, based at Cheongju Airport, and T’way (Trinity) Airlines, based at Daegu Airport. As a result, as of the first half of this year, the number of charter flights arriving in Korea via Cheongju and Daegu Airports through the end of the year reached 356, more than doubling the initial target. The Corporation has also secured potential demand from 11 regions, including Kunming and Lanzhou in China and Matsumoto in Japan.
Efforts to develop tourism content have also accelerated. The Corporation has identified 333 locally specialized tourism products that highlight regional characteristics and designed 35 regional and ultra-regional tourism itineraries that link neighboring cities and provinces. Notable examples include an itinerary for travelers arriving at Cheongju Airport to visit Daejeon’s Seongsimdang, the Boryeong Mud Festival, and the Taean Marine Healing Center, as well as a K-Traditional Culture Tour for travelers arriving at Daegu Airport to visit Haeinsa Temple in Hapcheon, the Jinju Lantern Festival, and Haedong Yonggungsa Temple in Busan. The Corporation produced and distributed a dedicated toolkit to its overseas offices, containing information on local government transportation, lodging, shopping, and dining facilities, as well as details on travel agencies (land operators), local government incentives, and product development contacts, so that travel agencies and online travel platforms can immediately develop these into travel packages.
Infrastructure improvements and promotional and marketing efforts to enhance travel convenience after arrival are also underway. Regional shuttle buses and demand-responsive transit (DRT) services linked to Cheongju Airport served more than 7,000 passengers in the first half of the year alone. Standard QR codes for mobile payments and Near Field Communication (NFC) services have been expanded in the airport commercial district, and initiatives such as luggage delivery between hotels and the airport, unmanned currency exchange, and post-arrival duty-free kiosks are being implemented with the goal of launching in the second half of the year. The Korea Tourism Organization plans to continue expanding hospitality events at regional airports and promotional campaigns in collaboration with overseas branches to increase incentives for foreign visitors to choose regions outside the Seoul metropolitan area.
Park Seong-hyeok, President of the Korea Tourism Organization, stated, “Developing regional airports into regional tourism hubs is key to attracting more foreign visitors and alleviating the concentration of tourism in the Seoul metropolitan area.” He added, “Based on the models and results validated this year in Cheongju and Daegu, we plan to gradually expand this initiative to other regional airports starting in 2027.”
