Why Germany is the Key Market for Korean Tourism: Insights from ITB Berlin 2026

Kang Sang-heon | 2026.03.10

  Business meetings with local travel agencies are underway at the Korean pavilion. [Photo: Korea Tourism Organization]  
  Business meetings with local travel agencies are underway at the Korean pavilion. [Photo: Korea Tourism Organization]  
The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) announced on March 10 that it showcased Korean tourism at ITB Berlin 2026, held March 3–5. Over the event, KTO conducted 753 business meetings and expects sales from Korea-focused travel packages to total about 33.5 billion KRW (approximately $25,125,000).

ITB is the world’s largest B2B travel trade show; this year roughly 160 countries and some 6,000 organizations participated. KTO teamed up with 28 Korean partners — including travel agencies, airlines, the Seoul Tourism Foundation, the Busan Tourism Organization, and the Gyeongsangbuk-do Cultural & Tourism Organization — to operate a major Korea pavilion.

At the pavilion, visitors enjoyed hands-on regional tourism exhibits, from assembling a wooden model of the Cheomseongdae observatory to interactive K-culture quizzes. About 5,000 people stopped by. KTO also invited 25 prominent German media outlets and travel agencies to the Korean Cultural Center in Berlin for a Korea briefing and a Korean food tasting.

KTO views Germany as a strategic market with growing business travel demand. According to the organization, 48% of German visitors to Korea explore beyond Seoul to regional destinations, and roughly 27% travel to Korea for business. These travelers tend to spend more during their trips.

In response, KTO signed a multilateral memorandum with German investment promotion agency FRM, medical and health goods distributor Insenio, and T’way Air to boost business tourism to Korea. The partners plan to deepen cooperation to generate higher-value inbound travel demand.

Kim Jung-taek, head of KTO’s Frankfurt office, said, “Germany shows strong interest in Korean history and culture, and business travel demand is rising. We’ll use this trade show to turn German interest into actual visits to Korea and to help invigorate regional tourism.”