Korean tourism numbers may be up on Guam, but they are not spending nearly as much as Japanese tourists:
Yeon Hee Oh, left, and Hong Kyu Kim, tourists visiting the island from Seoul, Korea, together strike a comical pose for a photo during a stop at Puntan Dos Amantes, or Two Lovers Point, on Saturday, March 31, 2018.
Visitor arrivals from Korea are making up for a decline in arrivals from Japan, but since last summer, Guam Visitors Bureau officials have noted the average Korean tourist spends much less on island than the average Japanese tourist.
Lately, they’ve been spending about one-third of what the average Japanese visitor spends here, according to the tourism agency.
As of January, the average Japanese traveler spent about $578 per day on island, compared to only $187.40 per day for a Korean traveler. The figures are similar for February, according to GVB, although that spending report hasn’t been released.
“We’re seeing a lot more cost-conscious visitors,” Nico Fujikawa, GVB tourism research director, said about visitors from Korea. “They’re looking for a deal. They’re kind of like locals.” [Guam PDN]
Not surprising. A lot of them go on package tours and eat kimchi and Shin Ramyeon in their hotel rooms.
Smokes
6 years ago
Guam should start extolling the Japanese tourist and making overt references to how Koreans should be corralled into a lower caste to educate their shop keepers and people as to who should be treated better based solely on how much can be squeezed from them while they’re there. Give the Dae Han’s a taste of their own. 😎
johnhenry
6 years ago
If Guam really wants the Korean tourists to spend more in Guam, then the Guamanians need to jack up the prices of Korean food.
Not surprising. A lot of them go on package tours and eat kimchi and Shin Ramyeon in their hotel rooms.
Guam should start extolling the Japanese tourist and making overt references to how Koreans should be corralled into a lower caste to educate their shop keepers and people as to who should be treated better based solely on how much can be squeezed from them while they’re there. Give the Dae Han’s a taste of their own. 😎
If Guam really wants the Korean tourists to spend more in Guam, then the Guamanians need to jack up the prices of Korean food.