Busan has been recognized once again for its growing role in global medical tourism. The city announced that it received the grand prize in the “Global Marketing for Medical Tourism – Metropolitan Government” category at the Medical Asia 2025 awards ceremony held on December 4 at the Korea Press Center in Seoul.

The award, jointly hosted by Money Today, The Korea Central Daily in New York, and China’s Phoenix Net Jilin, honors excellence in medical globalization and healthcare tourism.

The annual awards select winners based on 15 years of big data analysis, expert surveys, and committee evaluations.

This marks Busan’s third time receiving the honor in 2018, 2024, and 2025.

The city recorded its best results last year by attracting 31,165 international medical visitors.

In 2025, Busan has focused on market-specific promotional efforts such as specialized campaigns for Japanese and Southeast Asian visitors, partnership programs for Mongolian public officials, medical tourism talent development, and a themed promotion on the Japanese beauty platform Gangnam Unnie.

Busan is also expanding global exposure for its wellness and medical services through multilingual digital campaigns, influencer marketing, airport and railway advertising, and its own medical tourism magazine.

Fleet Chinhae