Foreign tourists visiting South Korea voice inconvenience at a higher rate than travelers to Japan, a report found. In Korea, digital services such as mobile identity verification and payments drew the most complaints, while in Japan transportation and the use of tourist sites were the main sources of frustration.
"Do I Really Need a Korean Number?" — Frustration Over Digital Barriers
About 11% of online posts about travel in Korea contained at least one complaint, according to a Yanolja Research report released on the 24th by Rep. Kim Yoon-duck of the Democratic Party of Korea, a member of the National Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee. For posts about travel in Japan, the share was about 7%.
The report analyzed English-language posts about travel in Korea and Japan on the online community Reddit from January 2023 through December 2025. Complaints were sorted into 11 categories, and negative reactions to travel in Korea stood out more than those for Japan in seven of them.
Complaints from travelers in Korea were concentrated in digital services. That category accounted for 27.8% of all inconveniences cited, the largest share, followed by tourist information and guidance at 16.4%, transportation at 13.1% and payments at 12.0%.
Typical examples included identity verification procedures that require a Korean mobile phone number, difficulty using some apps when connecting from abroad, and cases in which foreign credit cards were declined. Travelers also shared experiences of struggling to use domestic map apps or being refused entry at some establishments because English communication was limited.
In Japan, by contrast, transportation drew the most complaints at 23%, followed by sightseeing and hands-on activities at 15.9% and dining at 12.8%. Most responses described difficulties getting around or using tourist attractions, citing complicated rail lines and station exits and crowding at tourist sites.
"Tourists come expecting the dynamic, warm-hearted Korea they have seen in K-dramas, and experiences like these can leave them feeling unwelcome and excluded," Kim said.
Arrivals Near Record High as Travel Frictions Persist
Foreign tourist visits to Korea are rising quickly. Arrivals totaled 17.11 million in the first nine months of this year, up 21.5% from the same period a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's September 2026 inbound tourism report released on the 22nd. In just three quarters, the figure reached 90.3% of last year's annual total of 18.94 million, and the ministry projected that this month the annual tally would surpass the all-time record.
By country, Chinese tourists were the largest group at 5.47 million, up 29.2% from a year earlier and accounting for about 32% of all arrivals. Japanese tourists numbered 3.12 million, up 16.9%, and Taiwanese tourists 1.86 million, up 32.4%. Together, the three markets made up about 61% of the total.
Arrivals from the Americas and Europe reached 1.62 million and 1.19 million, up 12.0% and 20.0% respectively from a year earlier, indicating that demand for travel to Korea is broadening beyond major Asian markets to Western countries.
As the inflow of tourists grows, reducing the inconveniences travelers actually encounter is emerging as a challenge. Because verification and payment systems familiar to domestic users can become barriers to entry for foreigners, improvements to boost accessibility for overseas users are needed, observers said.
Ranked Fifth in the World — Something to Envy About Korea?
A vast 1,302-kilometer rail network that carries seven million riders a day.
Commuters endure packed trains every day, but foreign media ranked it fifth in the world because it combines safety, public service and advanced technology.
Can it overcome operating losses and the task of repairing aging facilities to become the world's best?
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