Jeju City's Geonip-dong Black Pork Street appears deserted with many empty seats in various restaurants. Korea Times photo by Kim Young-heon

Jeju City's Geonip-dong Black Pork Street, known for its black pork specialty restaurants and popularity among tourists, presented a starkly different picture Monday evening from the usually bustling scenes of the past.

Despite it being dinner time, many restaurants had empty seats, and some staff members were seen soliciting customers at the entrances, a sharp contrast to the pre-pandemic days when the street was packed with tourists.

Restaurant owners in the area say that since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, the increase in overseas travel and the decrease in domestic tourists have made it difficult for them.

Additionally, the recent "fatty pork belly" controversy has further impacted their businesses. Recently, an anonymous tourist posted photos of Jeju's black pig pork belly or "samgyeopsal" at a Jeju restaurant, claiming the samgyeopsal was 98 percent fat, which sparked public uproar over the overly fatty pork belly cuts.

Restaurant owners lamented that the mistake of a restaurant has adversely affected others, leading to heightened distrust in Jeju pork, which has directly hit their already declining sales.

A well-known black pork restaurant owner in downtown Jeju, 62, shared that more customers now check the meat for excess fat as soon as they receive it and request a replacement if they find it unsatisfactory.

Restaurants in a dining district in Jeju City suffer from declining tourists. Korea Times photo by Kim Young-heon

Foreign tourists' spending falls

The surge in demand for overseas travel due to COVID-19 being classified as endemic has led to a sharp decline in domestic tourists visiting Jeju.

According to the Jeju Tourism Association, as of May 22 of this year, 4.58 million domestic tourists visited Jeju, an 8.4 percent fall from a year earlier. The number of domestic tourists peaked at 13.8 million in 2022 but dropped to 12.66 million last year. If this downward trend continues, it is projected to fall to around 11 million this year.

With domestic tourists accounting for approximately 90 percent of Jeju's tourism industry, their decline has impacted revenue across accommodations, restaurants and even local golf courses.

The recent fatty "samgyeopsal" controversy has exacerbated the situation. A tourist, 45, said, "Many people I know prefer going abroad for the cost of a trip to Jeju. Given the same price, who would choose Jeju with its high prices and perceived unfriendliness?"

Experts agree that to overcome the crisis in Jeju's tourism industry, focusing on providing high-quality services is essential.

Moon Sung-jong, a professor of tourism management at Cheju Halla University, said, "We need to create demand for domestic tourists and establish new and innovative measures to improve Jeju's tourism image. Above all, the tourism industry must promise fair prices and good service quality."

Although the number of foreign tourists visiting Jeju has increased, their spending has decreased, which is another negative factor.

According to the Jeju Tourism Association, as of the end of April, 542,000 foreign tourists visited Jeju, a steep gain from 100,000 visitors a year earlier.

However, the spending of Chinese tourists, once considered big spenders, has dropped, and tourists in their 30s and 40s, who have higher spending power, are not visiting as much, leading to an overall reduction in consumption.

The average total expenditure per foreign tourist last year was $1,034 (1.41 million won), the lowest in the past five years.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, sister publication of The Korea Times, was translated by generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.