South Korea's foreign tourist arrivals near last year's total after nine months
South Korea recorded 17.11 million foreign visitors through September, putting its annual tally close to the 18.94 million recorded throughout 2025.
South Korea received 17.11 million foreign visitors from January through September 2026, up 21.5% from a year earlier, Yonhap reported on October 22. That puts arrivals at 90.3% of the 18.94 million recorded throughout 2025, bringing the country close to exceeding last year's total with three months of 2026 still to count.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism expects the annual total to pass the 2025 figure as early as October, according to Yonhap. Its projection follows a nine-month increase from 14 million visitors in the same period last year; a full-year 2026 total has yet to be established.
September arrivals and leading visitor markets
Yonhap reported 2.06 million foreign arrivals in September, 21.1% more than in September 2025. September was the fifth month this year with more than two million visitors, following March, April, July and August. August had the highest monthly figure among those listed, at 2.25 million.
China remained the largest source market for the first nine months, with 5.47 million arrivals. Japan accounted for 3.99 million, Taiwan for 1.86 million and Hong Kong for 550,000. Visitors from the Americas totaled 1.62 million, while those from Europe totaled 1.19 million, Yonhap reported.
Visitor spending and regional entry points
Credit card spending by inbound travelers reached 15.94 trillion won, or about US$12 billion, from January through September, according to Yonhap. That was 47.7% higher than a year earlier, a faster rise than the increase in visitor numbers over the same period.
The increase also reached entry points outside the main international gateways. Foreign arrivals through regional airports, including Gimhae, Jeju, Cheongju and Daegu, rose 37.4% to 3.24 million. Regional ports, including Busan, Jeju and Seogwipo, received 1.58 million arrivals, up 14.5%, Yonhap reported. Together, regional airports and ports accounted for 28.2% of foreign arrivals in the nine-month period.
The tourism ministry had reported 15.05 million international visitors through August, up 21.6% from the same eight months in 2025. Its September 28 release described that tally as a record for the January-to-August period. Yonhap's subsequent September figure brings the reported nine-month total to 17.11 million.
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Sources and context
- Foreign tourist arrivals in S. Korea on track to exceed last year's totalYonhap News Agency
- Easier Entry and Tailored Marketing Bring More Visitors to Korea Inbound Arrivals Surpass 15 Million through August 2026, Setting a New RecordMinistry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Korea
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.