FEATURE KOREA
country this year, perhaps to the
World Taekwondo Festival in May or the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Daegu in August. What's more, October will see Korea
host its second-ever Formula 1 Grand Prix at what is now the largest sports stadium in the country. In spite of some concerns about being ready in time for the inaugural race in 2010, there was little reason to doubt: this is a dynamic nation that usually gets things done on time with the minimum of fuss. The southern province of South Jeolla,
known for its scenic coastline and magnificent mountains, will soon start to rev up to welcome more visitors to its high-profile international event.
What’s New South Korea’s popularity among Asian visitors using English as a common language has seen the introduction of English-speaking mobile tourism booths around Seoul. Tell clients to pop in if they get lost. Korean Air is ranked among the
world’s top 10 international airlines by readers of Conde Nast Traveler magazine, while Asiana won Skytrax Airline of the Year in 2010. Asiana’s flight from Sydney to London offers one night’s free stopover accommodation in Seoul. For the first time, Brits can now easily
purchase Korean Railways (Korail) tickets and passes through worldwide rail specialist International Rail. The Korean Rail Pass (KR Pass) offers
discounted unlimited rail travel throughout Korea over a three-, five-, seven- and 10-consecutive-days-period. Prices for the three-day Korean Rail pass start at £51pp. Athletics fans can stay in Seoul and take
the high-speed KTX train to the Athletics Championships in Daegu.
Tourism Talk
MICHAEL MICHAEL marketing manager, Korea Tourism Organisation, London
“Visitor numbers are holding up very well and we’re ahead of where we were this time last year. We’re hoping for an increase, to 100,000 UK passengers, this year. “We’re embarking on campaigns
featuring partner tour operators in the consumer and trade press to continue to raise awareness of Korea in the marketplace for agents to sell. The number of agents taking the Travel Uni Korea training course is rising and we want to attract more to support the increased number of tours available. “Last autumn we signed a partnership
agreement with UK Sport Taekwondo to engage with fans of the Korean martial art and further stimulate interest in Korea. “The social networking initiative CoolstuffKorea has over 1,700 followers on Twitter and Facebook with online tips on the best of Korea. A free android app for visitors will shortly be available at
www.gokorea.co.uk. Another current
initiative is the Korea Supporters Network, which we started last year. We will be announcing various activities to provide information and encourage new members.”
From The Front Line
MATTHEW EDWARDS ViaKorea Holidays “Having previously
specialised in tours to Japan
we recently launched the new brand ViaKorea, which is very exciting. "There’s a programme brochure with
several tours and a new ViaKorea website will be up and running in April. "Korea has an amazing culture, great shopping (with an excellent exchange rate between the won and sterling), high-speed trains, the undiscovered islands and a number of vibrant cities. "There are many reasons to visit this unique and wonderful country.”
MALCOLM DAVIES product manager, Funway Holidays “South Korea attracts the more experienced Asia traveller, looking for a destination that is ‘off the beaten track’, and where the lifestyle, culture and cuisine is so very different to our own. "Sales remain static, however, I
feel visitor numbers are bound to increase as the outlook for travel becomes more stable. Many clients are interested in combining South Korea with other Asia destinations, for a really varied itinerary.”
UP CLOSE & PERSONAL BY JENNIFER BARCLAY
“A one-hour flight from Seoul’s domestic airport took me south to the semi-tropical Jeju Island, known as ‘the Hawaii of Korea’ and a popular honeymoon destination. At the centre of the island is the dormant volcano Hallasan, the highest mountain in South Korea at 1,950 metres and a UNESCO Biosphere reserve. On arrival, we drove past tangerine
farms and golden eulalia waving in the breeze, skirting the 153m2 of forested national park. We stopped to walk through the rather spooky Manjang cave, a kilometre of the best lava tube system in the world. Staying at the Lotte Hotel on the south
coast, in the morning I wandered to Jungmun beach, a sweep of pale sand with green foliage trailing over dunes. I¹d read about Jeju’s famous diving women, who plunge ten to 20 metres without any breathing apparatus for seafood – so it was fascinating to see some of them at work.”
www.sellinglonghaul.com • April 2011 19
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