Due to a combination of screen-driven inspiration and a growing interest among foreign visitors to explore South Korea outside of its busiest cities, Jeju Island has seen a notable increase in foreign tourism this year.
Once thought of primarily as a domestic vacation destination, it is now attracting tourists from all over the world who are keen to experience the cultures and landscapes they first saw on screen.
As per The Korean Herald, a major influence behind this rise has been the Netflix K-drama When Life Gives You Tangerines, which was filmed on Jeju Island.
The series, set against the backdrop of the island’s fishing villages, struck a chord globally and topped Netflix’s non-English television rankings. Since its gradual release in March, interest in Jeju Island has translated into real-world travel, with foreign visitor numbers increasing every month from April onwards.
Overall, the island recorded a 17.5 per cent year-on-year rise in overseas visitors, a figure local authorities have openly linked to the show’s popularity.
Data from the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute highlights just how significant the shift has been. Jeju Island’s share of foreign tourists visiting South Korea has steadily climbed for three consecutive quarters this year, rising from 8.9 per cent in the first quarter to 10.5 per cent in the third.
Compared with the same period last year, this marked a clear increase, underlining Jeju Island’s growing appeal on the global travel map.
Between January and September alone, around 1.74 million foreign visitors travelled to Jeju Island, many of them seeking out locations featured in the drama. Cultural attractions have benefited directly from this interest.
The Jeju Haenyeo Museum, which celebrates the island’s iconic female free divers portrayed in the series, saw foreign visitor numbers jump by nearly 59 per cent, reaching close to 50,000 visitors by November.
Other regions have also begun to share in this tourism momentum. North Gyeongsang Province and South Gyeongsang Province both recorded modest but meaningful increases in foreign visitor share.
The APEC 2025 summit held in Gyeongju played a key role in boosting international awareness of North Gyeongsang Province, while in the south, travellers visiting Busan are increasingly extending their trips to nearby areas through longer-stay tourism packages.
Despite these encouraging shifts, Seoul continues to dominate foreign travel, with more than three-quarters of visitors still including the capital in their itineraries.
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