At the Korea Travel Night 2025 event, the Korea Tourism Organisation in Vietnam said Vietnam is one of South Korea’s most important tourism markets in south-east Asia.
Head of the Korea Tourism Organisation in Vietnam, Park Eun Jung, speaks at the event. (Photo: KTO).
By the end of November, South Korea had welcomed more than 508,000 Vietnamese visitors, up 6.9 per cent year on year. For the whole of 2025, arrivals are expected to reach about 550,000, an increase of 9 per cent compared with 2024, close to pre-pandemic levels.
The MICE segment recorded particularly strong growth. The Korea Tourism Organisation supported 345 Vietnamese companies in organising MICE trips to South Korea, bringing 41,166 visitors, up 12.7 per cent year on year.
This growth has been driven not only by diversification strategies built around K-culture but also by the launch of 376 new tourism products this year. These include sports tourism, education and medical tourism, local travel and in-depth experiences at emerging destinations across South Korea.
In the opposite direction, South Korea remains one of the largest source markets for Vietnam’s tourism industry.
Nguyen Thi Mai Hoa, deputy head of the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism, said Vietnam welcomed nearly 3.9 million South Korean visitors in the first 11 months of 2025.
Nguyen Thi Mai Hoa, deputy head of the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism, speaks at the event.
Hoa said the authority would continue to promote comprehensive strategic cooperation, working with South Korean partners to develop new tourism products aligned with market trends, strengthen promotion, accelerate digital transformation and facilitate people-to-people exchanges and business links.
Planned measures include developing and promoting new products, organising tourism product development competitions, working with tour operators to design new tours and holding workshops to support business connections between the two countries.
Marketing will also be expanded to independent travellers through K-culture themed familiarisation tours involving celebrities, integrated travel cards offering incentives for Vietnamese visitors, the establishment of a Korea tourism promotion centre and airline ticket promotions including free and discounted fares.
Beauty treatments and golf draw Vietnamese visitors
Vietnam and South Korea are now connected by more than seven airlines, with return airfares at times costing around VND 5 million, about USD 200, including taxes and fees, significantly lower than in previous years.
Nguyen Cong Hoan, chief executive of Flamingo Redtours, said the appeal of South Korea lies in the influence of the Korean cultural wave through films and music, as well as short travel distances, convenient flight networks, high quality services and diverse shopping and culinary experiences.
He said Vietnamese tourists previously favoured traditional and budget tours, but are now increasingly interested in high end, niche experiences such as healthcare, beauty treatments, festivals, music events and sports competitions including marathons and cycling.
Pham Hai Bang, chief executive of Bluetour Travel, said the number of Vietnamese visitors travelling to South Korea for beauty services is substantial and represents a highly promising market.
He said this segment mainly includes people aged between 35 and 50 with strong purchasing power. While women make up a large share, many men are also travelling to South Korea for cosmetic treatments.
Bang said convenient travel, multiple direct flights and affordable airfares are key factors, alongside Korean cosmetic clinics offering Vietnamese speaking staff to meet visitors at airports and provide on site support at hospitals and clinics.
