SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA / RankWire.AI / – South Korea welcomed 2,093,223 foreign visitors in July 2026, extending a strong recovery in international tourism. The monthly total increased 20.8% from 1,733,199 arrivals recorded in July 2025. It also stood 44.6% above the level reached in July 2019, before the pandemic disrupted global travel. The Korea Tourism Organization reported the latest monthly tourism figures on August 25.
China remained South Korea’s largest source market for inbound visitors in July.
Foreign arrivals also climbed sharply from the same month two years earlier. South Korea recorded 1,408,499 international visitors in July 2024, making the latest total 48.6% higher. China remained the country’s largest inbound tourism market during July 2026. Visitors from China totaled about 777,000, while Japan, Taiwan, the United States and Hong Kong completed the five leading source markets.
Japan accounted for about 330,000 foreign visitors during the month, while Taiwan contributed roughly 261,000. The United States sent around 150,000 travelers, and Hong Kong contributed about 76,000. All five major markets surpassed their July 2019 visitor totals. China rose 49.6% from that benchmark, while Japan increased 20.2% and Taiwan recorded a 129.4% gain.
Asian markets drive July tourism gains
Visitors from the United States increased 54.4% from July 2019, while Hong Kong arrivals rose 29.1%. The July data showed that South Korea’s biggest tourism markets had all moved beyond their comparable pre-pandemic levels. China remained the clear leader by visitor volume, followed by Japan and Taiwan. The United States ranked fourth among the five major markets reported for the month.
The broader 2026 figures also showed strong growth in foreign tourism. South Korea received 12,803,142 international visitors from January through July, up 21.3% from the same period in 2025. The seven-month total reached 129.5% of the comparable 2019 level. Korea Tourism Organization data showed China contributed about 3.99 million visitors, followed by Japan with 2.28 million and Taiwan with 1.41 million.
Inbound travel stays above pre-pandemic levels
The United States contributed about 960,000 visitors during the first seven months of 2026. Hong Kong added roughly 420,000 over the same period. The latest figures underline the scale of South Korea’s inbound travel volumes compared with the years before the pandemic. July arrivals exceeded both the 2024 and 2025 monthly totals by double-digit percentages, while cumulative foreign visitor numbers remained well above 2019 levels.
Outbound travel moved differently during the same period. About 2,419,457 South Korean nationals traveled overseas in July, down 0.7% from 2,435,291 a year earlier. From January through July, around 17.38 million South Koreans traveled abroad. That cumulative figure equaled 98.5% of the comparable 2019 level, leaving outbound travel slightly below its pre-pandemic benchmark while inbound tourism remained substantially higher.