SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA / RankWire.AI / – In July 2026, South Korea attracted 2,093,223 international visitors, continuing an impressive rebound in global tourism. This figure represents a 20.8% rise from the 1,733,199 arrivals recorded in July 2025. It also surpasses the pre-pandemic July 2019 level by 44.6%. The Korea Tourism Organization announced these latest monthly tourism figures on August 25.
Compared to the same month two years earlier, foreign arrivals grew significantly. In July 2024, South Korea hosted 1,408,499 international visitors, making the current total 48.6% higher. China remained the top source market for inbound tourism during July 2026, with approximately 777,000 visitors. Following China, Japan, Taiwan, the United States, and Hong Kong made up the five leading countries of origin.
Japan accounted for roughly 330,000 foreign travelers in the month, while Taiwan contributed about 261,000. The United States sent approximately 150,000 visitors, and Hong Kong added around 76,000. All five leading markets exceeded their visitor numbers from July 2019, with China increasing by 49.6%, Japan by 20.2%, and Taiwan achieving a 129.4% rise.
Asian countries propel July’s tourism growth
American visitors increased by 54.4% compared to July 2019, and arrivals from Hong Kong rose by 29.1%. These figures indicate that South Korea’s top tourism sources have all recovered past their pre-pandemic levels. China remains the leading contributor by visitor volume, followed by Japan and Taiwan, with the United States ranking fourth among the five major markets for that month.
The cumulative data for 2026 also highlight robust growth in inbound tourism. From January to July, South Korea welcomed 12,803,142 international visitors, a 21.3% increase over the same period in 2025. The total for these seven months reached 129.5% of the 2019 equivalent. According to Korea Tourism Organization data, China brought in about 3.99 million visitors, Japan contributed 2.28 million, and Taiwan accounted for 1.41 million.
Inbound tourism remains robust above pre-pandemic levels
During the first seven months of 2026, the United States sent approximately 960,000 visitors, while Hong Kong added about 420,000. These figures emphasize how South Korea’s inbound travel volume exceeds the numbers from previous years. July’s arrivals surpassed both the 2024 and 2025 monthly totals by double digits, and overall foreign visitor counts remained well above 2019 levels.
Outbound travel patterns diverged during the same period. Around 2,419,457 South Korean residents traveled abroad in July, a slight decrease of 0.7% from 2,435,291 a year earlier. From January to July, approximately 17.38 million South Koreans journeyed overseas, equaling 98.5% of the same period in 2019. While outbound travel is marginally below pre-pandemic figures, inbound tourism continues to stay significantly higher.