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Netflix series 'KPop Demon Hunters' boosts international tourism to Seoul

Published: 02 Sep. 2025, 19:17

KIM MIN-YOUNG
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Tourists and citizens crowd a street in Myeong-dong, central Seoul, on Aug. 15. [YONHAP]

The city government said Tuesday that the global popularity of Netflix’s animated series “KPop Demon Hunters” boosted the influx of multinational tourists, with a record 1.36 million foreign tourists visiting Seoul in July.

The figure is up 23.1 percent from July 2024 and 18.2 percent higher than the same month in 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic.

From January to July this year, 8.28 million foreign tourists came to Seoul, marking a 15.9 percent increase from the same period last year and the highest figure ever recorded for that time frame.

City officials attributed the rise to a mix of experiences favored by global millennials and Gen Z travelers, safe and digital-friendly infrastructure for transport and lodging and the capital’s blend of tradition and modernity.

Foreign tourists receive guidance from a tour guide in Jung District, central Seoul on July 1. [NEWS1]

Compared to the same period in 2019, tourist numbers from Singapore rose 64.4 percent, followed by Taiwan by 44.0 percent, the United States by 40.6 percent and Indonesia by 34.3 percent.

“We will build differentiated tourism content and innovative services to reach the milestone of 30 million foreign visitors early and make Seoul a leading global tourism city,” said Goo Jong-won, director general of the Tourism and Sports Bureau of the Seoul Metropolitan Government.

BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [[email protected]]