South Korea is set to launch a luxury travel dream team project to attract the Middle Eastern super-rich travelers, who spend more than 50 times the average per capita travel expense of foreign visitors to Korea.
Sources from the travel industry said on Monday that the country’s Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) selected 36 travel dream teams to create ultra-high-end luxury travel packages aimed at the super-rich from six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries: United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, and Bahrain.
The culture ministry and KTO plan to finalize the lineups of the teams after further verification by the end of 2024.
This “Dream Team,” named “A‘alam Arabi Korea,” or “Arabic world in Korea,” consists of 36 establishments across various sectors: 11 accommodations, 10 medical facilities, 3 beauty services, 4 shopping locations, 3 food and beverage establishments, and 5 K-culture organizations.
The accommodation lineup includes top-tier 5-star hotels such as Hotel Shilla, Lotte Hotels & Resorts, and Fairmont Ambassador Seoul.
The medical lineup, geared towards high-value services, includes CHA Medical Center for general and women’s health, KMI Korea Medical Institute, Gangnam JS Hospital (orthopedics), Jaseng Hospital of Korean Medicine, and Minish Dental Hospital.
The shopping lineup is equally impressive, featuring major brands including Hyundai Department Store, Lotte Department Store, Shinsegae, and Hotel Lotte Duty-Free.
The Middle Eastern super-rich’s spending power is beyond imagination.
JS Hospital, known as the “Hiddink Rehabilitation Hospital” in the Middle East, has catered to VIPs, including royals from Qatar and UAE, who fly in on private jets despite treatment costing between 100 million ($72,388) and 300 million won.
Qatar in particular covers all medical expenses, including accommodation, for both the patient and a guardian.
It is estimated that an entourage that typically includes 10 or more people stays in connected rooms for more than a month and spends an average of 100 million to 300 million won in total medical expenses. This is about 50 times the average per capita travel expense of foreign visitors to Korea in 2023 ($2,152).
Middle Eastern tourists in general are also increasingly visiting Korea alongside the region’s super-rich royals.
Tourist arrivals from GCC countries increased by over 39 percent year-on-year and over 110 percent compared to pre-Covid levels in 2019 as of August 2024. The average spending for regular Middle Eastern tourists is approximately $3,637 per person, which is 1.5 times that of other foreign tourists visiting Korea.
“K-medical popularity in the Middle East goes beyond K-pop,” according to Kang Yoo-young, head of the KTO’s Asia and Middle East team who is working on the Dream Team.
“At a recent medical tourism event in Qatar, there was an overwhelming demand for Korean hair loss treatments with down payments in the high 1-million won range, which surprised Qatari officials.”
The culture ministry and KTO plan to introduce K-beauty packages worth more than 10 million won before unveiling high-end medical tourism courses once the medical lineup is finalized.
The K-beauty course will include a stay at a 5-star hotel, skincare, hair, and makeup sessions, along with professional photoshoots, with each skincare and hair service costing at least 1 million won and photoshoots priced at 1 million won per hour.
This is in addition to an overnight stay at a luxury hotel and a meal at a Michelin restaurant.
The medical tourism course will feature dental services focused on implants and orthodontics, dermatology for popular “K-water glow” treatments, and stem cell and hair treatments in orthopedics, with stays exceeding a month and treatment costs ranging from tens of millions to 300 million won, contributing significantly to foreign currency revenue.
The KTO also plans to distribute Arabic and English pamphlets to relevant embassies by the end of 2024.
“We aim to finalize the lineup for Middle Eastern super-rich and refine product development by the end of this year,” Kang said. “The number of participating companies will increase via a rigorous qualification review process that will take place twice a year.”
By Shin Ik-soo and Yoon Yeon-hae
[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business News Korea & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]
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