K-Wave Spending Hits Record ₩1.4 Trillion as Fans Visit Korea for 'Deokjil'
Creatrip Team
22 days ago
Even without BTS concerts in May, foreign tourists' spending on Korean pop culture (K-wave) topped ₩1.413 trillion, a new record. Korea Tourism data show a 6.3% monthly and 73.7% yearly rise, driven not only by concerts but by shopping, beauty, food, cultural experiences and visits to entertainment companies. In May, spending breakdown was shopping 39.1%, beauty & wellness 21.1%, fashion 14.3%, lifestyle & food 11.9%, Korean food 10.3%, and night culture 1.6%. Popular activities included concert attendance (~26,000), 'deokjil' (fandom activities, ~7,900), visiting drama/film locations (~5,000), and dance lessons (~2,300). The trend suggests Hallyu tourism has broadened from concert-driven surges into a stable tourism ecosystem fueled by K-beauty, K-fashion and K-food as core draws.
