Shopping has been the biggest reason in bringing foreigners to South Korea, leading them to spend an average $653 during their stay, a poll on visitors found on Monday.

A foreign visitor to Korea spent at average $653, according to a poll by the nation’s leading budget carrier Jeju Air Co. on 1,056 non-Korean nationals on their return flight to home early last month,.

Excluding flight and accommodation costs, the largest proportion of 27.2 percent of the respondents said they spent $300 to $500 during their visit, followed by less than $300 at 20.5 percent and $500 to $700 at 19 percent. Foreigners who spent more than $1,500 accounted for 7.5 percent.

The item that topped the shopping list of the travelers from overseas countries was clothes at 54.5 percent and cosmetics came in second at 49.1 percent, based on multiple responses. Food ranked third at 33.5 percent.

By nation, 57.3 percent of Japanese visitors bought clothes in Korea, followed by cosmetics at 55.7 percent and food at 55.3 percent. For Taiwanese visitors, watches came out on top at 73.9 percent, trailed by clothes at 71 percent and shoes 60.9 percent. Cosmetics were the most popular shopping item for travelers from China, Vietnam and Thailand.

The survey also found that about 86 percent of the respondents stayed in Korea for more than three days. Most of them came to the country for shopping and dining, with response rate reaching 59.3 percent 56.3 percent, respectively. A majority of 86.5 percent said they were satisfied with their travel experiences in the country and 91.2 percent said they are willing to revisit Korea later. Among them, 55.6 percent wanted to travel Seoul and its surrounding areas again, and 32 percent hoped to go to Jeju Island during their revisit.

By Chun Gyung-woon and Choi Mira

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