How did China’s Guangzhou tee up a surge in South Korean tourists?
Safety concerns in Southeast Asia and China’s visa-free travel policy among factors fuelling boom in golf tourism
Compared with 2023, when international travel began recovering after the coronavirus pandemic, Korean bookings surged by more than 300 per cent last year, said Quan, who is of Korean descent, adding that the Guangzhou-based agency expected even stronger growth this year.
“Even though Guangzhou is one of China’s three major cities, Korean golfers used to be relatively rare here,” she said. “But now I’m happily busy every day.”
While roughly 90 per cent of golfers in Guangzhou are Chinese, South Korean visitors make up the overwhelming majority of foreign players, according to travel industry officials. Most of the golf-focused travel agencies in the city, including the one where Quan works, are run by or employ Chinese people of Korean descent to cater primarily to the Korean market.
For years, Korean golf tourists favoured countries such as Japan, Thailand and Vietnam, said Lee Hee-hyun, CEO of Blooming Golf Tour, a travel agency based in Seoul. But that began to shift in 2024, when China introduced a 30-day visa-free policy for South Korean travellers.
The impact has been significant. At Holiday Islands Golf Club – one of the most popular courses in Guangzhou among South Koreans – the number of Korean visitors rose 81 per cent year on year last year, while the number of Chinese grew by just 4.4 per cent.
While Japan remained the top destination for Korean golfers, rising golf costs in Southeast Asia and safety concerns in countries like Thailand and Cambodia had made China the second most popular destination, Lee said, adding that Guangzhou accounted for more than 80 per cent of Blooming Golf Tour’s China bookings.