Travel
Busan surpasses 3 million foreign tourists for the first time
Haps Magazine Korea
December 2, 2025
(Photo courtesy of Haps Magazine Korea)
Busan has officially recorded more than 3 million foreign tourists this year, marking a historic milestone for the city’s tourism industry.
City officials announced on December 2 that the cumulative number of international visitors reached 3.02 million, boosted by the 350,000 tourists who visited in November alone.
The previous record was set in 2016 with 2.96 million foreign visitors. Numbers later fell below 2 million during the COVID-19 pandemic, but this year marks the first time Busan has ever surpassed the 3 million threshold since tourism statistics began in 2014.
For the past decade, the city has aimed for this goal through various initiatives but had never managed to reach it, until now.
City officials expect the total to rise further, projecting at least 3.5 million foreign visitors by year’s end.
From January to September, foreign tourists spent a cumulative 755.6 billion won in Busan, including 96.2 billion won in September alone.
Shopping made up the largest share of spending at 52%, followed by food and beverage at 18%, leisure services at 12.4%, medical and wellness at 8.5%, and lodging at 8.4%.
By nationality, visitors from Taiwan ranked first, followed by tourists from China, Japan, the United States, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Hong Kong.