Community-Led Tourism Doubles Income for Local Businesses
Creatrip Team
4 months ago
South Korea’s community-driven tourism program, “Tourang-Dure” (Tourang-Dure: a government-supported resident-led tourism initiative), has grown to 147 regions and 1,350 resident businesses since a 2013 pilot. The model helps locals create lodging, food, experience, and souvenir businesses based on local resources and connects them with Tourism Dure PDs (project developers) who provide branding, marketing, and management support. Success stories include a beekeeper who doubled sales in three years after launching a brand and hosting nearly 3,000 annual visitors for honey experiences, and a repurposed closed school turned cultural complex that grew from 300,000 won in its first year to over 300 million won. The Korea Tourism Organization now supports 234 resident businesses across 50 regions with about 3.5 billion won annually for capacity building and promotion, running markets and B2B events that link producers to consumers and travel agencies. Officials say the program strengthens local economies and plans for expanded policy support to deepen resident-led tourism.
