South Korea cracks down on cheap package tours with forced shopping

The findings came after an inspection of seven package tours sold in Vietnam and China, which make up a significant portion of the tourists visiting South Korea, the Korea Times reported.

Seoul authorities enlisted foreign nationals to pose as tourists, purchasing the packages and experiencing the tours firsthand.

The inspection revealed that most of the packages prioritized shopping, leaving tourists with little time to experience Korean culture or learn about the country's history.

Many tourists were even pressured into visiting stores and purchasing goods.

Some tour guides showed unfair behavior towards tourists, often based on how much money they spend while shopping, authorities pointed out. In one instance, a guide even prevented tourists from leaving a shopping area for 40 minutes until they made a purchase.

"We will take strong action against illegal practices that disrupt the tourism industry, and work to enhance the quality of tourism to make Seoul a more attractive city that visitors will want to return to," said Kim Young-hwan, Director General of the Tourism and Sports Bureau at Seoul's city government, as reported by the Korea Herald.

In recent years, many tourists have been enticed by extremely low-cost tour packages, only to be pressured by tour guides to buy overpriced products such as cosmetics, nutritional supplements, and duty-free items.

Shopping scams were the top complaint among foreign tourists in South Korea, according to a report released by the Korea Tourism Organization last year.