Marketing Korea as an international tourist destination

Promoting inbound tourism as a strategic industry in the Republic of Korea (hereafter Korea) has become an objective of the Kim Young Sam administration. Selling Korea as a vacation destination has to counter not only the lack of information overseas about Korea as a holiday destination but also regulations enforced on the tourist industry during the 'frugality' drive of the Roh Tae Woo administration, 1990-91, This article examines the problems of marketing Korea as an international tourist destination, In particular it reviews the marketing strategies of the Ministry of Transport and the Korea National Tourism Corporation, Bureaucratic inertia and inadequate promotion strategies suggest Korea will remain a marginal international tourist destination.