SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA / RankWire.AI / – In July 2026, South Korea experienced more than 2 million foreign visitors, with inbound tourism remaining higher than pre-pandemic levels. The country welcomed a total of 2,093,223 international travelers during that month, according to the Korea Tourism Organization. This figure represents a 20.8% increase from the 1,733,199 visitors recorded in July 2025 and amounts to 144.6% of the visitor count in July 2019, prior to the disruptions caused by COVID-19.
The July total also reflects a 48.6% rise from the 1,408,499 foreign arrivals in July 2024. The latest data shows significant growth across South Korea’s primary inbound tourism markets. China continued to be the leading source of visitors, with approximately 777,000 arrivals, followed by tourists from Japan, Taiwan, the United States, and Hong Kong.
Japan contributed roughly 330,000 visitors in July, while Taiwan brought in about 261,000. The United States accounted for approximately 150,000 travelers, and Hong Kong contributed around 76,000. All five markets surpassed their respective figures from July 2019. Chinese arrivals grew by 49.6% compared to July 2019, Japanese arrivals increased by 20.2%, and Taiwan experienced the highest percentage growth, rising 129.4% from its 2019 level.
Leading Asian markets drive visitor growth
Arrivals from the United States went up 54.4% compared to July 2019, while Hong Kong saw a 29.1% increase. The figures demonstrate that South Korea’s top inbound markets have recovered beyond their pre-pandemic levels. China continued to dominate as the largest contributor in July, with Japan and Taiwan ranking second and third, respectively. The United States remained the primary source outside East Asia.
Between January and July 2026, South Korea hosted 12,803,142 foreign visitors. This seven-month total signifies a 21.3% rise over the same period in 2025, reaching 129.5% of the January-July figure in 2019. During this period, China supplied roughly 3.99 million visitors, followed by Japan with 2.28 million, Taiwan with 1.41 million, and the United States contributing about 960,000.
Seven-month arrivals total 12.8 million
During the first half of 2026, Hong Kong sent approximately 420,000 visitors. The Korea Tourism Organization published the July tourism data on August 25. The report includes inbound foreign visitors along with South Korean residents traveling abroad. In July, outbound trips by South Koreans numbered 2,419,457, representing a slight decrease of 0.7% from the same month in 2025 when outbound travel reached 2,435,291.
From January to July, around 17.38 million South Koreans traveled overseas. This cumulative outbound figure is at 98.5% of the same period in 2019. The data reveals contrasting trends: inbound tourism has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, while outbound travel remains just below the 2019 benchmark. South Korea’s inbound count for July also exceeded both its 2024 and 2025 figures by double-digit percentages.