Korean traders said “Myeongdong is dead.” How important are Chinese tourists to South Korea’s tourism industry?

Super important. According to many survey data, Chinese tourists have become the largest source of tourists in the Korean tourism market a few years ago.

Due to the impact of the new coronavirus epidemic, many people have stopped going abroad. As the epidemic in our country is gradually brought under control, and everyone is cheering that they can travel, the epidemic abroad is becoming increasingly serious. From the perspective of national health, the Chinese government calls on everyone to avoid long-distance travel as much as possible. Except for unavoidable reasons, it is best to consciously stay at home and not go out. But such behavior will undoubtedly cause the foreign tourism industry to suffer an unprecedented blow in history. As we all know, our country has a large population and ranks first in the world. Moreover, with the continuous improvement of economic strength, people are increasingly pursuing spiritual happiness. Therefore, traveling abroad has become the best choice for most people. Myeongdong, South Korea, was once a popular tourist attraction.

Before the epidemic, there was an endless stream of tourists in front of the scenic spot, and most of them were from China. But now it's a different story. The shop was closed and the road was deserted, with almost no one on the street. Almost all the streets in Myeongdong have gone bankrupt, and one store clerk even said bluntly that Myeongdong is dead. You know, Myeongdong used to be a place that many people dreamed of. There were large duty-free shops, brand-name specialty stores, large department stores, etc. In short, you can buy almost anything you want to buy there. However, due to the epidemic, they had to close the store. Therefore, South Korea's economy has also been hit by an unprecedented impact, with the economy shrinking severely and GDP showing negative growth.

None of us knows when the epidemic will end, let alone when South Korea’s tourism industry will recover. And as the national patriotism continues to strengthen, perhaps everyone's yearning for South Korea will not be so strong. After all, the THAAD incident made countless Chinese angry. Some people bluntly said: Myeongdong is actually like a third-tier city in my country, and it is not very touristy. It can be seen that South Korea's tourism services have also slacked off in recent years, causing dissatisfaction among tourists. If you just want to go to South Korea to indulge your shopping addiction, then there is no need to risk your life to travel to South Korea at this time.

Finally, it can be said without hesitation that South Korea’s tourism industry cannot be separated from the consumption of Chinese people. Being separated from the Chinese market will only put South Korea into an embarrassing situation.