South Koreans now prefer to design their own travel itinerary and join local tour programs instead of going along with fully pre-packaged tours when going overseas.

Gone are the days when Koreans went overseas in groups, reliant on Korean-led tour guides, industry leader Hana Tour Service found after studying the bookings of 7 million overseas travelers.

Independent planning, diversified destinations, and theme-led travels are the new trends in Korean travel style, it said.

The number of individually-planned overseas trip has expanded by 11 percent on average over the past five years. Individual bookings for local tour programs like guided visit to museum have grown 72 percent on average in recent years.

Travel agencies must develop programs for seniors as young people choose to go on their own to arrange budget flights and accommodations. Korean travelers in their 50s and 60s on average spent 1.12 million won ($1,006) per overseas trip product or 18 percent more than other age groups.

Another noticeable change in Korea’s tourism industry was growth in family trips. Resort destinations like Guam and Okinawa are favored by families traveling with children under six while those traveling with kids aged between seven and 12 prefer trips to cities with famous amusement parks, said the company.

By Shin Ik-su and Cho Jeehyun

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]