World · East Asia & Pacific · 2 hrs ago
Korean Travelers Shift Toward Japan, China and Other Asian Destinations
BC Card analyzed overseas travel spending by South Koreans from 2024 through the first half of 2026.
Asia accounted for 74.3% of trips in early 2026, up from 60.4% in the same period of 2024, according to two of the reports.
Europe and North America lost share as airfares and prices rose and a stronger US dollar increased the cost of North American trips.
Japan was the most popular country, at 38.7%, followed by China at 11.2% and Vietnam at 11.0%.
One report gives different regional shares for the same period, putting Asia at 69.7%, Europe at 14.2% and North America at 10.6%.
Travel was more common among higher-income customers, as well as people in their 20s and 30s and residents of the Seoul region; customers earning at least 100 million won a year were 2.2 times as likely as average to travel abroad.
BC Card’s analysis found that South Korean overseas travel shifted toward Asia, with Japan the leading destination in the first half of 2026.
Two reports put Asia’s share of travelers at 74.3%, up from 60.4% in 2024, while another reported 69.7%, up 10.5 percentage points.
Japan accounted for 38.7% of destination visits, followed by China at 11.2% and Vietnam at 11.0%.
Europe and North America lost share, which BC Card linked to higher travel costs, including airfares, local prices and the stronger US dollar.
Travel abroad was more common among younger adults, residents of the Seoul metropolitan area and higher-income customers.
- Who
- South Korean travelers, as analyzed by BC Card.
- What
- Their overseas travel shifted toward Asian destinations, especially Japan and China.
- When
- The analysis covered the first half of 2026 and compared it with 2024. BC Card announced the findings on Nov. 2, 2026.
- Where
- Overseas destinations, particularly Japan, China and other Asian countries.
- Why
- BC Card cited higher airfares and local prices for Europe, and the stronger US dollar for North America.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Asia accounted for 60.4% of overseas travel in the figures reported by two articles.
BC Card’s analysis of customers who traveled abroad at least twice during this period identified six traveler types.
Japan accounted for 38.7% of destination visits, while reports differed on Asia’s overall share.
BC Card released its analysis of overseas travel spending trends.
- Asia share
- 74.3% in two reports; 69.7% in another
- Leading destination
- Japan, 38.7%
- Second destination
- China, 11.2%
- Europe share
- 12.3% in two reports; 14.2% in another
- North America share
- 8.2% in two reports; 10.6% in another
- High-spending travelers
- Customers using at least 3 million won a month on domestic credit cards had 2.9 times the average overseas travel tendency
3 sources
What people are saying
It appears that the relatively slow recovery in demand for long-distance travel, higher airfares and rising prices had a combined effect.