Chinese Tourism

[Anchor Lead]

In a concerning trend for the Korean tourism industry, Chinese interest in travel here has diminished with just a month left until China's biggest holiday the Spring Festival. Let’s find out more.

[Pkg]

Reservations for train tickets began Thursday across China ahead of the nation's Spring Festival next month. Ticket counters are crowded with people trying to buy a ticket home for the holiday in advance. In recent days, a growing number of Chinese people are traveling overseas during the Spring Festival holiday. Some six million are estimated to have already booked overseas trip reservations for next month.

[Soundbite] CCTV : "Reservations for overseas trips were 4 times higher than domestic travel bookings on online travel sites. Thailand, Japan and the U.S. are popular destinations"

Until last year, Seoul was the third favorite destination of Chinese tourists. This year, its ranking has fallen to 7th place. Some pundits say this is because of Korea's political situation including the president's impeachment and the decision to deploy the THAAD anti-missile shield in Korea.

[Soundbite] Chinese Travel Agency Representative : "Especially since the THAAD deployment was announced, it seems somewhat negative feelings have emerged among the Chinese general public."

The Korean government is struggling to revive recently strained ties with China along with the domestic tourism market. It's employing strategies such as creating a new Korean Wave or Hallyu visa specifically targeting Chinese visitors from next year.