Tourists visit a beach on Jeju Island, July 2. Yonhap

JEJU ISLAND — Despite the summer travel season reaching its peak, the southern resort island of Jeju is not experiencing the bustling atmosphere it used to, driven by a noticeable drop in tourist numbers to Korea's famed emerald gem.

Even at Jeju's popular tourist destinations, the atmosphere was relatively calm during peak season when visited on Aug. 7 and 8. Occasional conversations in Japanese and Chinese indicated the presence of international tourists, but the bustling scenes of past years were absent.

A weekday lunch visit to Sukseongdo, one of Jeju's renowned black pork restaurants, required only a 15-minute wait without a reservation. This starkly contrasted with the situation a few years ago, when long lines were the norm for the restaurant's famous black pork belly meal.

Black pork belly is served at Sukseongdo, a famous barbecue restaurant on Jeju Island. Korea Times photo by Pyo Kyung-min

The diminished vibrancy was also visible at Dongmun Market in Jeju City. Despite the enthusiasm of vendors dancing to EDM while grilling lobsters, the crowds gathered for the scene were relatively sparse.

A young vendor selling Jeju's specialty, "omegi tteok" (millet and mugwort rice cake), noted that he has been noticing more Chinese tourists compared to Koreans lately.

"I hear more Chinese while working. It feels like the ratio is almost 50-50 now. We're even considering hiring someone who can speak Chinese," he told The Korea Times.

According to statistics from the Jeju provincial government, the number of domestic tourists visiting the southern island this year as of Aug. 10 was 7.31 million, a 6.5 percent decrease from the 7.81 million counted during the same period last year.

While it is challenging for the resort island to expect a dramatic turnaround in its number of visitors, even those visiting do not spend as much as before, raising concerns about a bleak economic outlook for vendors.

"People do visit a lot because it's vacation season, but no one opens their wallets. Business is pretty much the same, gloomier than a few years ago before the pandemic," a merchant operating a souvenir shop at Dongmun Market said, expressing concerns about the drop in business.

Tourists are notably absent from a usually bustling alley inside Gate 4 of Jeju City's Dongmun Market, Aug. 8. Korea Times photo by Pyo Kyung-min

Negative sentiment

Compounding the problem are recent negative issues that have tarnished Jeju's reputation among potential visitors, including controversies over pork belly, such as complaints about its excessive fat content, and allegations of price gouging targeting at unsuspecting tourists.

For instance, a backlash erupted in April when an online post alleged that a popular Jeju restaurant served excessively fatty pork belly, which the uploader claimed was "almost 98 percent pure fat," while the food was priced at 150,000 won ($110). Another tourist also posted photos online, claiming a similar experience with fatty pork at another barbecue restaurant, intensifying accusations of deceptive practices by local merchants.

Yoo, a Korean tourist at Dongmun Market, expressed that he had concerns about perceived price gouging before coming to Jeju with his family.

"I hadn't been to Jeju for a while and the recent string of negative news items made me hesitant. Bringing my family here only to face overcharging would spoil the trip. I was worried that we might encounter such issues," he said.

Despite these fears, the tourist was surprised to find that prices were lower than expected.

"I bought two beautiful soju glasses from a nearby souvenir shop for about 5,000 won each. The food prices were reasonable as well. If you look around, it doesn't seem like there's excessive overcharging," Yoo said.

Merchants on the island voiced their frustration, arguing that a few incidents have been exaggerated, leading to a drop in local tourists with no immediate signs of recovery.

"The controversies over fatty pork, poor service and overpricing are the fault of some selfish individual business owners. But when people hear such news, they start to believe the entire island is unwelcoming to tourists," said the owner of a black pork restaurant in Jeju City's Geonip-dong Black Pork Street.

"It's disheartening for those of us who are working diligently every day to make an honest living."

Jeju City's Geonip-dong Black Pork Street appears deserted. Korea Times photo by Kim Young-heon

The prevailing negative sentiment has made it difficult to reverse the trend of declining tourist numbers, presenting challenges for Jeju Island that go beyond merely shifting perceptions.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Jeju Island experienced a surge in tourism as travel restrictions limited international options for Koreans, causing prices for accommodation and rental cars to skyrocket. However, even after global travel resumed, these prices remained elevated due to inflation, reinforcing the perception of Jeju as an expensive destination.

This has prompted Korean tourists to opt for nearby foreign destinations over Jeju, believing their money goes further abroad. This trend, combined with an expanding range of travel options, makes it increasingly difficult to boost Jeju's appeal as Korea's top domestic tourist destination.

A recent report released by travel research firm Consumer Insight supports this trend, with 83 percent of respondents thinking that money spent on a trip to Jeju might be better used for a trip to Japan.

In response to the declining number of domestic tourists, the Jeju provincial government has recently established a task force with three key objectives: restore public trust, rebuild Jeju's positive image and enhance the island's competitive edge.

As part of its efforts, the task force has launched a tourist complaint reporting center, which will serve not only as an information hub but also as a platform for enhancing the island's image by handling and responding to visitor complaints.

Kim Hee-chan, chief of the provincial government's tourism and exchange bureau, emphasized the commitment to revitalizing the tourism sector. "We will not rest on our past achievements but will explore new policies and address challenges to create a new future for Jeju tourism," he said.

In addition, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism also took action to revitalize tourism on Jeju Island. On Aug. 8, Minister Yu In-chon visited Black Pork Street to inspect the quality of the meat and evaluate improvements in the area following the recent controversies.