After a four-year hiatus, K-pop band BTS hosted a comeback concert in Seoul on 21 March – a one-hour special that single-handedly powered a 103% hotel booking surge, compared to a week before.
Accommodation bookings by foreign travellers spiked by 63.3% compared to the same period in 2025, while overall bookings for March grew by one third (33.5%) in year-on-year comparisons, local travel agency All My Tour shared with a South Korean news outlet.
Accessibility and pricing were the top considerations.
Most travellers opted to stay near the venue at Gwanghwamun Square, centred around City Hall, Dongdaemun, Jongno and Myeongdong districts, and picked three- to four-star hotels.
The BTS effect also spilled over to local retail and departmental malls, which reported increased spending, similarly at the above adjacent precincts to Gwanghwamun.
Additionally, the tourist mix reflected the diverse fan base of the globally-renowned boyband.
Fans from Chinese-speaking regions (41%) took the first spot, followed by the Americas and Europe (29.2%), and Southeast Asia (26.2%).
To tap on the tourism rush, the Korea Tourism Agency extended free Wi-Fi, restrooms and mobile phone charging stations to visitors, alongside booths promoting South Korean tourism. A dedicated experiential tourism space, HiKR Ground at Korea Tourism Organization Seoul Centre was decorated to welcome the BTS Army – the band’s fans – who could also join dance and singing classes to BTS music.
BTS' first live show in Seoul is a teaser to their upcoming Arirang world tour – which will see its seven members go on 82 shows, including to Singapore from 17-22 December. The Singapore stop is also the group’s longest stop in Asia outside of South Korea and Japan.
The combined global economic effect of the Gwanghwamun performance and world tour is expected to hit 8 trillion won (US$5.28 billion) – which could surpass even Taylor Swift’s recent global tour.
Related: How travel agents can profit from sports and concert tourism in Asia