Visitors sample local delicacies at the Seoul Food & Hotel 2026 exhibition at KINTEX in Goyang, June 9. Yonhap
For the millions of international travelers drawn to Korea by the global ascent of its cultural exports, the culinary itinerary rarely extends beyond the neon-lit barbecue joints of Seoul or the ubiquitous presence of packaged kimchi.
But Korean tourism officials are betting that the future of the country’s travel boom lies far outside the capital — hidden in the bubbling cauldrons of provincial tofu houses and the centuries-old fermentation vats of the rural south.
The state-run Korea Tourism Organization launched an aggressive initiative Tuesday, aimed at transforming hyperlocal regional cuisine into the next global lifestyle trend. The agency invited 33 prominent food and travel influencers from 13 countries to Samcheonggak, a traditional cultural complex in northern Seoul, to inaugurate "K-Local Food Hunters 33," a coordinated, multiday culinary expedition spanning the Korean peninsula.
The strategy relies heavily on the digitized word of mouth.
