SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA / RankWire.AI / – In July 2026, South Korea saw over 2 million foreign visitors, with inbound tourism levels remaining above those seen before the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the Korea Tourism Organization, the country welcomed 2,093,223 international travelers during that month. This figure marks a 20.8% increase from the 1,733,199 visitors recorded in July 2025 and constitutes 144.6% of the number registered in July 2019, prior to the global travel disruptions caused by COVID-19.
Compared to July 2024, the total foreign arrivals grew by 48.6%, with the latest data reflecting broad-based gains across South Korea’s primary inbound tourism markets. China maintained its position as the leading source of visitors in July, contributing approximately 777,000 arrivals. Close behind were travelers from Japan, Taiwan, the United States, and Hong Kong.
Japan brought in roughly 330,000 visitors in July, while Taiwan accounted for about 261,000. Around 150,000 visitors originated from the United States, with approximately 76,000 arriving from Hong Kong. Each of these five markets surpassed its July 2019 level, with Chinese arrivals increasing 49.6% from that year, Japanese visitors rising 20.2%, and Taiwan experiencing the largest percentage growth of 129.4% compared to 2019.
Leading Asian Markets Drive Visitor Growth
Compared to July 2019, arrivals from the United States surged by 54.4%, while Hong Kong saw an increase of 29.1%. The data clearly indicate that South Korea’s top inbound tourism sources have exceeded pre-pandemic figures. China remains the dominant contributor by a significant margin in July, with Japan and Taiwan ranking second and third, respectively. The United States continues to be the largest outside East Asia source market.
From January to July 2026, South Korea welcomed 12,803,142 foreign visitors. This seven-month total reflects a 21.3% rise over the same period in 2025 and reached 129.5% of the inbound volume recorded during the first seven months of 2019. During this period, China contributed approximately 3.99 million visitors, followed by Japan with 2.28 million, Taiwan with 1.41 million, and the United States with about 960,000 arrivals.
Seven-Month Visitor Count Reaches 12.8 Million
In the first half of 2026, Hong Kong contributed approximately 420,000 visitors. The Korea Tourism Organization published the July tourism statistics on August 25, which include both inbound travelers and South Korean residents traveling abroad. In July, outbound trips by South Koreans totaled 2,419,457, representing a slight decrease of 0.7% compared to the same month in 2025, when outbound travel was 2,435,291.
Between January and July, roughly 17.38 million South Koreans traveled overseas. This cumulative outbound figure is 98.5% of the corresponding level in 2019. The July data reveal differing trends for inbound and outbound travel: foreign visitor numbers are well above pre-pandemic levels, while outbound travel remains just below the 2019 benchmark. Additionally, South Korea’s inbound arrivals in July outperformed both the 2024 and 2025 figures by double digits.