Foreign tourism bodies gear up to attract Koreans

As much as Korea wants to draw foreign tourists to generate income and promote its international image, foreign countries are also making greater efforts to attract Koreans to spend money on their goods and services.

As much as Korea wants to draw foreign tourists to generate income and promote its international image, foreign countries are also making greater efforts to attract Koreans to spend money on their goods and services.

Some have arranged a meeting with the press to promote their tourist destinations, while others have launched a publicity campaign to directly appeal to a greater crowd.Among others, the Singapore Tourism Board is making a head start by holding a large-scale promotional event with the press on Feb. 16 to publicize one of its major tourist attractions, Sentosa Island.

Sentosa Island, Singapore

It is Asia’s leading leisure destination and Singapore’s premier island resort getaway, located within 15 minutes of the central business and shopping districts.

The 500-hectare island resort is home to an exciting array of themed attractions, award-winning spa retreats, lush rainforests, golden sandy beaches, resort accommodation, world-renowned golf courses, a deep-water yachting marina and luxurious residences, making Sentosa a vibrant island resort for business and leisure. In 2010, Sentosa welcomed Singapore’s first integrated resort, Resorts World Sentosa, which operates South East Asia’s first Universal Studios theme park.

Situated on the eastern end of Sentosa Island is Sentosa Cove, an exclusive residential enclave. By 2014, it will be bustling with some 2,000 homes, romantic quayside restaurants, retail and specialty shops. Offering Singapore’s only truly oceanfront residences, Sentosa Cove is fast becoming the world’s most desirable address.

The island is also proud to be home to Sentosa Golf Club and its two acclaimed golf courses, the Serapong and the Tanjong.``Korean arrivals to Singapore rose 33.1 percent in 2010 from 2009, while around a third of these visitors made Sentosa a part of their itinerary. More than 38,000 Koreans tourists visited Sentosa last year, up 11 percent from a year earlier,’’ said Susan Ang, commercial division director of Sentosa Leisure Group.

She then said the leisure-related sales revenues attributed to Korean visitors rose 42 percent in 2010, adding with a series of openings of new facilities, the island is poised to attract more Korean and other tourists from around the world to its shores in 2011.

Some of the island’s more than 200 attractions include the Sentosa Boardwalk _ a footbridge that spans 700 meters between Sentosa and mainland Singapore. It opened its doors to visitors on Jan. 29 and has been catering to guests, especially free and independent travelers and young families, who wish to enjoy the panoramic view of the harbor.

Many visitors choose for a more scenic route onto Sentosa, and that is via the iconic Jewel Cable Car Ride, which returned to service in June 2010 after undergoing a complete overhaul. The system now boasts a stunning fleet of 67 metallic black and chrome cabins illuminated by LEDs, creating the effect of sparkling jewels as they zip through the black canvas of the night sky between Mt. Faber and Sentosa.

``As more Koreans are travelling to Singapore as free-and-independent travelers, they will find Sentosa’s latest installment, the Sentosa Full Day Play Pass, a cost-effective tool when they arrive on the island. A convenient one-ticket system which allows guests to experience up to 13 attractions on the island resort, the new bundled pass is designed to help guests achieve up to 60 percent in cost savings and reduce potential queuing time at the pre-determined attractions,’’ Ang said.

Berlin

The German National Tourist Office also held a meeting with media outlets here on Feb. 17 to promote Berlin and other tourist destinations in Germany among Korean travelers. Burkhard Kieker, the head of the Berlin Tourism Office, came to Korea and publicized what the city can offer visitors.

``On top of thousands of historic sites, a wide range of cultural and sports events will take place in the city this year. We will host the Women’s Football World Cup in June and organize special exhibitions at museums throughout the city,’’ Kieker said.

He said Berlin has been sparkling with stars and starlets during the Berlinale on Feb. 10 to 20 and the opening match of the Women’s Football World Cup this summer will turn the city into a ``fan festival’’ once again.

Other Berlin festivals and events in store for 2011 include the ``Faces of the Renaissance’’ exhibition in the Bode Museum, where 150 masterpieces (including work by da Vinci and Botticelli), will be on display.

The ``Compass’’ exhibition in the Martin-Gropius-Bau will show drawings from the Museum of Modern Art New York. The Pergamonmuseum will revive the ancient city Pergamon and Berlin is looking forward to the jubilee 125th anniversary celebration of the Kurfurstendamm.

Hong Kong

Many Korean tourists visit Hong Kong for shopping and Chinese food. But now there is one more reason for art-loving Koreans to go and explore the city as a large-scale art festival is in full-swing. The 39th Hong Kong Arts Festival 2011 kicked off on Feb. 17 and will run through March 27, showcasing more than 200 performances and related events featuring 38 ensembles or solo artists from overseas and 16 from Hong Kong.

``This is an even larger festival than in previous years, with a significant increase in the total number of tickets available to festival audiences and the number of performances to be presented. There is also an increase in the duration of the festival. The result is a richly packed 39 days with as many as 18 performances on the same day, bringing the vibrancy and cultural richness of life in Hong Kong to yet a higher level,’’ said Charles Lee, chairman of the Hong Kong Arts Festival.

Drawing on great classical music traditions, three major cultural institutions from Leipzing, once home to both Johann Sebastian Bach and Richard Wagner, are invited to the festival, while the New York Ballet presents seven performances based on selections from works by Balanchine and Robbins, from “Serenade” to “Dances at a Gathering,” to “West Side Story Suite” and “Concerto DSCH” by Alexei Ratmansky.

The festival’s music theaters also cover wide range of styles, sources and subject matter, from Robert Wilson’s production of Brecht’s “The Threepenny Opera” performed by the Berliner Ensemble, the theater company set-up by Brecht himself, to Shakespeare’s “Macbeth.”

Western Australia

Tourism Western Australia is promoting two events ― sculpture exhibitions on the Cottesloe Beach and Perth International Arts Festival. The 7th Annual Cottesloe exhibition will be held on March 3 to 22, drawing over 60 local, interstate and international artists, who will transform Perth’s most popular beach in a stunning sculpture park overlooking the Indian Ocean.

The exhibition is featured from the sea wall along the sand toward North Cottesloe and on the surrounding greased areas, creating a beautiful sculpture park.

The Perth International Arts Festival, which began on Feb. 11 and will last through March 7, has been attracting tens of thousands of visitors from Australia and overseas. It is the oldest art festival in the Southern Hemisphere, which began in 1953.This year, it has invited more world-class artists in music, films and plays, with an aim of drawing more than 800,000 visitors.

Source = koreatimes.co.kr