BTS comeback sparks tourism boom across Korea

Jan 27, 2026, 11:25 am

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Global K-pop group BTS has announced its large-scale world tour “Arirang,” set to begin in Goyang this April. / BigHit Music

The comeback of BTS is giving a significant boost to South Korea’s tourism industry, as the group announced a large-scale world tour that is already driving up travel demand in major host cities.

BTS revealed that it will kick off its global tour titled Arirang with a concert in Goyang in April, followed by stops across North America, Europe, South America and Asia. A total of 82 performances are scheduled in 34 cities worldwide, fueling a sharp rise in domestic and international travel demand.

According to BigHit Music, citing data from a global accommodation platform, overseas searches for travel to Seoul surged 155 percent compared with the previous week during the 48 hours following the tour announcement on Jan. 14. In particular, inbound travel searches for Busan—where a special concert marking the group’s debut anniversary will be held in June—jumped by an astonishing 2,375 percent.

Busan-bound searches also soared by several thousand percent in major Asian markets, including Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Domestic travel demand showed similar momentum, with searches for trips to Seoul and Busan rising 190 percent and 3,855 percent, respectively.

The ripple effect of BTS’s tour is being felt overseas as well. In Brazil, local radio station BandNews FM reported that searches for bus tickets surged more than 600-fold following the announcement of the group’s October concert in São Paulo.

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Poster for BTS’s North American concerts as part of the “Arirang” world tour. / BigHit Music

The British daily The Guardian also highlighted the economic impact of BTS’s tour, describing it as a global event capable of generating substantial spillover effects across lodging, consumption and tourism.

Citing expert analysis, the newspaper noted that concertgoers traveling from outside a region typically spend about 3.4 times the ticket price on travel and tourism-related expenses. For BTS, however, the figure is expected to be significantly higher, making the overall economic impact difficult to predict.

BTS’s influence is also reflected in national branding. In the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s 2025 survey on South Korea’s national image, BTS ranked first among figures who most positively promoted the country’s image abroad. Member Jungkook placed sixth overall, the highest ranking among solo artists.

Meanwhile, BTS is set to release its fifth full-length album, Arirang, on March 20. A large-scale comeback performance celebrating the release will take place the following day at Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul.

#BTS #Arirang world tour #tourism industry #concert tourism