Jeju Island is rapidly turning into what some describe as “Chinatown.” This change is driven by a sharp decline in locals visiting the island and a surge in Chinese tourists. South Koreans have opted to visit nearby Japan as the yen’s value fell to historically low levels. Controversies surrounding Jeju’s overpriced local foods have also discouraged domestic travel to the island.
Last year, roughly 12.66 million Koreans visited Jeju, down 8.3% from the previous year. The downward trend continued in the first half of this year, with the number of Korean visitors falling 8% year-on-year to 5.92 million.
In stark contrast, the number of Chinese tourists has skyrocketed. In the first half of this year, 680,895 Chinese tourists visited Jeju, up 766.5% from a year ago. This figure alone surpassed the total number of Chinese tourists who visited in 2018 (661,120) and is on track to overtake the total number of visitors in 2019 (1,079,133).
Chinese-language signs can be seen all over the island, from traditional markets to the streets of Jeju. Shops and restaurants are quickly adopting Chinese menus and Chinese-style electronic payment systems, which has sparked concerns that the island is becoming dominated by Chinese influence and capital.
Around noon on August 15, all 24 customers seated across nine tables at a Haejang-guk (Korean-style beef broth soup) restaurant in Yeon-dong, Jeju City, were Chinese tourists.
Restaurants that fail to cater to Chinese tastes are going out of business. Lim Dong-hoon, who operates nine ‘Obok Susan’ kaisendon (Japanese seafood rice bowl) restaurants across Korea, said he had to close his Jeju branch last June after just one year of opening because sashimi, the main ingredient of kaisendon, is not popular with Chinese tourists. “Chinese visitors are currently supporting a big chunk of Jeju’s economy because locals aren’t visiting as much, but Chinese people do not favor sashimi, so we had to close,” Lim said. Some restaurants have adjusted their menus by adding mala sauce and fried dishes.
Many businesses have adopted Alipay and WeChat Pay, payment systems widely used in China. According to the Jeju Tourism Organization, payments made through Alipay at Jeju’s Dongmun Traditional Market and Seogwipo Olle Market jumped from 17 million won in March to 250 million won in Ma, a 15-fold increase. “The number of merchants accepting Alipay and WeChat Pay on Jeju Island has increased by 70 to 80% compared to last year, and in areas like Yeon-dong, Jeju City, which is particularly popular with Chinese tourists, these merchants now account for 50 to 60% of the total,” said Lee Gong-se (51), who runs the ICB KS sign-up center, the official Korean agency for Alipay and WeChat Pay.
“Jeju Island is the only place in Korea where Chinese tourists can enter without a visa, and it is close to major cities like Beijing and Shanghai,” said Kim Eui-geun, a professor of hotel and tourism management at Jeju International University, on why Chinese tourists are particularly drawn to Jeju.
As Jeju becomes increasingly dependent on Chinese tourists, some experts have raised concerns that the island could experience a “hollowing out” phenomenon, similar to what happened in Seoul’s Myeongdong district a few years ago, if tourists stop visiting. “Should future conflicts with the Chinese government lead to a drop in tourists, Jeju’s economy could take a toll,” said Kim Nam-jo, a professor of tourism at Hanyang University.
