Report: More Koreans Traveling Overseas

In 2005, the total number of Koreans traveling overseas exceeded 10 million for the first time.

The Department of Justice announced yesterday that the number of overseas departures by Korean nationals increased by 13.5 percent from 2004 to a record 10.37 million last year.

The total number of both Koreans and foreigners who entered and left the country in 2005 grew 10.2 percent from the previous year’s 29.6 million to 32.62 million, passing the 30 million mark for the first time.

This figure has tripled in just fifteen years since first surpassing 10 million in 1990, at 10.05 million.

China was the most frequent overseas destination at 28.7 percent, followed by Japan at 18.3 percent.

“Because the five-day workweek system has become more widespread, demand for overseas travel has grown and departure figures have jumped,” said a Justice Department official. “If this trend continues, the total incoming and outgoing number is expected to top 50 million in five or six years.”

Six million foreigners visited Korea last year, up 4.5 percent from 2004, but that figure is still only 58 percent of the number of Koreans who visited foreign countries. The number of foreigners entering the country specifically for tourism was 4.43 million.

Jin-Kyun Kil leon@donga.com