Seoul Sees Sharp Increase in Medical Tourists

The number of foreign tourists who visited Seoul for medical tourism exceeded 470,000 last year, according to a new report.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on May 30 that it will recruit 200 new partner organizations to promote Seoul’s medical tourism.

In 2023, the number of foreign tourists who visited Seoul for medical tourism exceeded 470,000, surpassing the number in 2019 before COVID-19. The increase is attributed to synergies of the end of the COVID-19 pandemic and the popularity of K-pop, which has boosted Seoul’s image.

According to data from the Korea Health Industry Development Institute on May 30, 473,340 foreign tourists visited Seoul for medical tourism in 2023. The figure is 3.2 times more than that of 2022 (146,310). This was also higher than 320,284 medical tourists who visited Seoul in 2019, the year before the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a significant rebound from 60,000 to 70,000 medical tourists in 2020 and 2021, when the number of foreign tourists plummeted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In particular, medical tourists have been increasingly favoring hospitals in the Seoul area. Last year, Seoul’s medical tourists accounted for 78 percent of the total number of medical tourists in Korea (605,768). This is a sharp increase from the previous year’s share of 59 percent.

Seoul came in second in the world in 2023, after Taiwan, in terms of healthcare services and costs, according to NUMBEO, which publishes a global healthcare service index. Foreigners who experienced medical tourism in Seoul were particularly appreciative of the skills of Korean medical staff, the quality of diagnostic and treatment equipment, and the speed of tests.

To respond to the growing demand for medical tourism in Seoul, the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Tourism Organization are recruiting 200 new medical tourism partners in Seoul from on May 30 to June 18. The targets include medical institutions such as hospitals and clinics, tourist attraction organizations, and other tourism service-related organizations such as those in the wellness and lodging sectors.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to announce the selected organizations in August after evaluating their records in attracting foreign patients and their plans.