Out-of-town visitors to Gumi, in North Gyeongsang Province, are now staying an average of 2.99 days—a clear sign that demand for longer stays is rising.
According to Tourism Data Lab on the 5th, visitors averaged 3.05 days in May when the Asian Athletics Championships were held, 3.00 days in October during the food festival, and 2.84 days in November during the ramen festival. Overall, last year’s average stay for out-of-town visitors was 2.99 days.
The city says lodging demand increased as more visitors arrived following the Asian Athletics Championships and as events like the Romantic Night Market, the ramen festival, and the food festival continued to draw crowds.
Gumi is pushing to shift from a “work-first” city to one where visitors linger, and it has begun expanding accommodation options to support that change.
Through last year, the city invested about ₩700 million (approximately $525,000) to support environmental improvements, including exterior repairs and upgrades to 1,129 rooms across 52 aging lodging facilities. This year it plans to spend about ₩200 million (approximately $150,000) to renovate 77 rooms at 14 properties and refresh worn exteriors.
In Gumi’s No. 1 National Industrial Complex, the city has secured a four-star global-brand hotel spanning basement level 1 to 15 floors above ground with a total of 211 rooms; construction is scheduled to begin in May–June. Additional new hotels are also planned within the industrial zone.
The city has also expanded downtown lodging options.
The Gaksan Village Hotel, which remodeled five vacant houses on Geumri-dangil, opened last November and continues to attract younger visitors.
“We will expand lodging in phases to become a destination city that encourages longer stays and prepare for an era of 10 million visitors,” Mayor Kim Jang-ho said.
