South Korea saw a record 4.76 million foreign visitors in the first quarter of 2026, with 2.06 million foreign travellers in the month of March alone — an estimate that coincided with the comeback concert of K-pop band BTS.
The South Korean government Thursday shared the data on its official website.
According to the report, 1.45 million visitors arrived from China in Q1, a 29 per cent jump year-on-year, accounting for the largest share of foreign tourists by nationality.
The number of visitors from Japan increased by 20.2 per cent, Taiwan by 37.7 per cent, and the US and Europe by 17.1 per cent.
The report suggests that the potential reason for the jump in tourism numbers stems from the spread of the Hallyu. The joint efforts of the public and private sectors to attract more tourists, despite persistent tension in the Middle East due to the ongoing Iran war, is also credited for the tourism boost.
Hallyu, which means Korean Wave, refers to the global, state-backed surge in popularity of South Korean culture, driven by K-pop, K-dramas, film, and fashion.
“An analysis of data from Korea Tourism Statistics, Foreign Tourist Survey and Korea Tourism Data Lab found that the number of foreign visitors who arrived at provincial airports grew a remarkable 49.7 per cent in the first quarter,” the report states.
Meanwhile, South Korea-based credit card company Hana Card estimated that 55.5 billion won (Rs 350.26 crore) was spent by foreign nationals on concert tickets for BTS’s ongoing Arirang World Tour between January 1 and April 12, with an average spending of 1.85 million won per tourist.
BTS have returned to the stage with their Arirang World Tour, kicking things off on April 9 after a four-year hiatus.
The group — comprising RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V and Jungkook — is set to perform at Tokyo Dome on April 17 and 18 before heading to North America, with stops in cities including Tampa, El Paso, Stanford and Las Vegas through late May.
The tour will then move to Mexico City in early May, followed by a European leg spanning Madrid, Brussels, London, Munich and Paris from late June to mid-July.
