Seoul bracing for crowds of Chinese tourists on holiday trips

A crowd of tourists from China and Southeast Asia leave after arriving Incheon International Airport on Sept. 30, ahead of China’s National Day extended holiday, which lasts from Oct. 1 to Oct. 7. (Yonhap News)

Local government making plans to deal with traffic congestion in areas around popular tourist destinations

By Eum Sung-won, staff reporter

With Chinese tourists flocking to Seoul for the National Day golden week holiday from Oct. 1 to Oct. 7, which celebrates the foundation of the People’s Republic of China on Oct. 1, 1949, the city has shifted into emergency mode. Waves of Chinese are flowing into specific areas of the city, and it is almost more than the roads, parking lots, and other infrastructure can handle.

According to a survey released by the Korea Association of Travel Agents (KATA) on Oct. 1, 982,805 Chinese tourists visited South Korea in the first half of the year through travel agencies specializing in China, a 75.7% increase from the 559,457 tourists that visited over the same period in 2013. And tourists who visit through travel agencies are only one third of the total number of Chinese tourists to Korea.

Most of the tourists who travel to South Korea through travel agencies are part of group packages that use charter buses. More than 80% of Chinese tourists to South Korea come to Seoul, concentrating on the area around Gyeongbok Palace, the Cheonggye Stream, Myeongdong, and Nam Mountain.

“When a great number of tourists congregate in a small area all at once, there are various unpleasant consequences. The charter buses create traffic congestion and parking problems, and the area becomes so crowded that there is hardly room to walk,” said a representative for KATA. The unfortunate side effects of the rush of Chinese tourists are likely to be even greater during China’s National Day golden week holiday period. Seoul Metropolitan Government is predicting that around 160,000 Chinese tourists will visit South Korea during this time.

The city is taking special measures to respond to the downtown traffic jams caused by Chinese tour buses during the holiday period. It is planning to dispatch 30 premium taxi drivers at various places downtown during the week, five at the entrance to Gyeongbok Palace, two at Dongdaemun Digital Plaza, and five in front of Lotte Department Store, among other locations. The idea is for the drivers to disperse the buses and direct them to dedicated parking lots.

The city will also assign a large number of traffic cops to major tourist destinations including Gyeongbok Palace, Insa Neighborhood, Samcheong Neighborhood, Jongmyo, Bukchon Hanok Village, and Changdeok Palace, along with Seosomun Street, Sejong Street, Namdaemun Street, Hotel Shilla, Dongdaemun, Lotte Department Store on Ulji Street, and Korea House on Toegye Street. The cops have been instructed to crack down on illegal parking and idling in these areas.

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