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South Korean Airbnb lodging listings

More than 500,000 foreign tourists to South Korea found their accommodations through the peer-to-peer lodging service Airbnb last year, the company recently announced. This figure has doubled in the space of a year, indicating that the peer-to-peer lodging industry is becoming more established in South Korea.

Airbnb published its business performance in South Korea for the first time during a press conference at the Press Center in centre Seoul on June 5. The number of foreign tourists who visited South Korea by way of Airbnb last year increased to 510,000, 130% more than the 220,000 in 2015. While Airbnb still only accounts for a small percentage of the more than 15 million foreigners who visit the country each year, that percentage has recently been on the rise. As individual tourism spreads, an increasing number of tourists are interested in experiencing the life of locals. When South Korean nationals are included, a total of 1.01 million tourists are using Airbnb in the country.

Airbnb, which began in San Francisco in 2008, is a peer-to-peer lodging service that connects homeowners with travelers who are looking for a place to stay. The advantage of the service is that homeowners are able to make use of extra rooms in their house, while travelers can experience the culture while staying with a local.

20.3% of the foreign tourists to South Korea who find accommodations on Airbnb are Chinese. Though Chinese represent nearly half (46.8%) of all foreign tourists to the country, their share of Airbnb users is just half that, while tourists from Southeast Asia (including Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines) account for 23% and Americans for 16.2%.

“Airbnb is generally used by individual travelers who want to get to know South Korea a little better. The percentage of Chinese who use Airbnb seems to be lower because many Chinese use package tours,” said Mike Orgill, Airbnb's public policy director for the Asia Pacific region. “The more growth that Airbnb achieves in South Korea, the more diverse the mix of tourists’ nationalities will become. This will help with the diversification of tourism.”

Airbnb also concluded that it has had a positive impact on the South Korean economy. The number of homeowners who hosted tourists at least once last year was 9,800, or 4,500 more than in 2015. These homeowners earned an average of 4 million won (US$3,582) a year. Airbnb reported that the income of these homeowners and tourists’ expenditures had a combined economic impact of 531.5 billion won (US$476.2 million) in South Korea last year.

There are still a number of challenges that Airbnb will have to address. Some accuse the peer-to-peer lodging industry of being illegal in South Korea because it has no legal basis, and users have also complained about the safety and quality of the lodgings since Airbnb only serves as a go-between.

By Kim So-youn, staff reporter

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