Jeju has ascended UIA’s global rankings and now, the Island of the Gods is hoping to draw more business events from South-east Asia
While Jeju Island may be popular among Chinese event planners, the Jeju Convention and Visitors Bureau (JCVB) is courting the South-east Asian market with much fervour.
Describing the region as one that is “growing rapidly” for Jeju, JCVB’s marketing director, Cho Jin Hun, noted that interest from Indonesia and Vietnam has been especially strong.
While JCVB does not track business event visitor numbers, its overall arrivals showed a YOY increase of 13 per cent to 12 million footfalls in 2014. A record-breaking 2.8 million were from China, up 55 per cent from 2013.
Visitor numbers from Indonesia numbered 36,850, a 62 per cent year-on-year increase, while from Vietnam there were 32,000, up 76 per cent year-on-year.
Eager to intensify its destination marketing in other South-east Asian markets like Singapore and Malaysia, Cho said the CVB intends to participate in more international exhibitions and may explore organising fam trips.
He said: “Previously, many people thought Jeju was more for holidays. They did not know that the island can host meetings and conventions too. There are many good meeting facilities available, allowing the destination to offer a perfect mix of business and pleasure.”
MC MICE’S managing director, Yang Minku, agrees.
“Our (predominantly Chinese) clients are always looking to mix business with leisure elements and that can easily be achieved in Jeju because (it is a) resort island,” he said.
Fun factor aside, Jeju has experience in hosting large-scale global gatherings. Having hosted 85 international conferences last year, up from 82 in 2013, Jeju is now ranked 21st in the world and seventh in Asia according to the Union of International Associations 2014 Global Rankings.
It welcomed several prestigious global events in 2015, including the Annual Meeting of the World Aquaculture Society which saw 4,000 guests, and the International Conference on Diabetes & Metabolism which had 1,500 delegates from around the world.
The resort-style convention centre ICC Jeju is easily the island’s most popular meeting venue due to its size and availability of customisable space. The seven-storey venue, which is divisible into three spaces, can take up to 4,300 pax theatre-style and 3,500 classroom-style. The 1,500-seat auditorium, built for concerts and performances, is also suitable for keynote presentations, conferences and seminars.
Kim Jay, MICE manager with ICC Jeju, said: “ICC Jeju is unique because of its location along the beach, which allows delegates to also enjoy the view of the Pacific Ocean. The setting relaxes delegates even though they are in a convention centre, and this is something no other convention venue in the world can offer.”
Acknowledging that convenience and accommodation quality are important considerations for business event planners and attendees, Jay pointed out that there are four “first-class” hotels within the Jungmun Resort Complex next to the ICC Jeju. They are the 429-key The Shilla Jeju, 500-room Lotte Hotel Jeju, 223-room Hyatt Regency Jeju, and the 90-key The Suites Hotel Jeju.
These luxury properties are also equipped with meeting facilities of their own.
E J Fieldhouse, Pacific World South Korea’s country manager and director of Kim’s Travel Service, told TTGassociations that Jeju’s “island culture and breathtaking views” have made it “especially attractive for incentive programmes”.
The destination boasts three UNESCO World Heritage sites – Hallasan Mountain Natural Reserve, Geomunoreum Lava Tube System, and Seongsan Ilchulbong Tuff Ring. The island’s dramatic coastline can also be explored via the Jeju Olle, a series of coastal walking paths with different levels of difficulty.
