Official lauds World Cup’s role in driving tourism to South Korea

The Korea Tourism Organisation (KTO) has lauded the successful staging of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, stating that the tournament, which has been receiving more and more fans from abroad, is helping drive tourists’ enthusiasm to visit South Korea.South Korea’s embassy in Qatar and KTO hosted the ‘Travel to Korea, Cheer Together!’ at Doha Corniche from November 20 to 25 as part of World Cup-related activations to celebrate the return of travel to South Korea.‘Travel to Korea, Cheer Together!’ is an opportunity to attract GCC nationals and World Cup visitors from all over the world to reboot and promote tourism in South Korea after fully reopening in October 2022, said Hyunsun Hong, regional director of KTO – Dubai Office."The Korean Pavilion is a great opportunity to attract visitors from the GCC and the rest of the world to South Korea during this World Cup in Qatar. We have seen a great crowd at the pavilion, who witnessed the various entertainingperformances, the South Korean traditional craft zone, the game zone, and a South Korean-style sticker and photo booth."We are seeing the enthusiasm of people to visit South Korea, and we are pleased to provide all the travel consultations, travel brochures, and information needed at our pavilion,” Hong told Gulf Times in a statement Tuesday.According to Hong, the Korean Pavilion will remain open until the end of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 on December 18. It will be an opportunity for visitors to come and explore some of the fun-filled activities and collect all the necessary information, she noted.On November 24, the Korean Pavilion held another special event dubbed ‘Team Korea, Cheer Together!’ in the presence of South Korean Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Bo-gyoon to cheer for the South Korean team competing in the World Cup.The Korean Pavilion also showcased different cultural, tourism, and traditional experiences with a host of shows and performances, as well as entertaining activities like wearing traditional clothing (Hanbok), hands-on experience with arts and crafts, tourism support, Taekwondo performance, the art of South Korean calligraphy, and K-Pop performances.Hong added: "The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, the world’s largest sporting event, is being held in the Middle East region for the first time and therefore this is an opportunity to present South Korea and reboot tourism through the fun experiences and entertaining performances happening at the pavilion."South Korea opened its borders to foreign visitors in a phased manner early this year after a two-year lockdown. Qataris, GCC, and several other nationalities can travel to South Korea by applying for a K-ETA 48 hours prior to travel.”