The Korea Railroad Corporation (Korail) said Friday that the number of rail passengers visiting regional areas increased sharply through special discounts offered during the "2026 Travel Month" train travel campaign.
The event, hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and organized by the Korea Tourism Organization, ran for 45 days from April 1 to May 31. During this period, benefits included coupons equivalent to a 100% discount on train fares for free-travel products in population-declining areas, a 50% discount on theme trains, and a 20,000 won discount on the "Naeilro" free-travel pass. Total users reached approximately 134,000.
Among them, free-travel products in population-declining areas recorded approximately 51,000 users. These products refunded the full train fare to customers who verified visits to the country's 42 population-declining areas. The number of users surged about 31-fold from the same period last year (1,618).
The most visited area was Miryang in South Gyeongsang Province (5,773). It was followed by Iksan in North Jeolla Province (4,151), Samcheok in Gangwon Province (4,130), Namwon in North Jeolla Province (3,378) and Yeongwol in Gangwon Province (2,644).
The 50% discount on theme trains was used by approximately 79,000 people, a 92% increase from last year (41,323). Theme trains include the Donghae Santa Train, the Baekdudaegan Canyon Train, the West Gold Train and the Namdo Ocean Train. Users frequently visited Buncheon Station (4,912) and Cheoram Station (4,711) in Gangwon Province, Suncheon Station (4,574), Gunsan Station (4,440) and Jeonju Station (4,302).
Korail estimated that the train travel products, used by a total of approximately 134,000 people over the 45 days, generated a production-inducing effect of about 37.7 billion won. The figure was calculated by applying the average per-trip domestic travel spending and the tourism industry production-inducement coefficient to the number of users.
"The flow of visitors toward population-declining areas continued beyond expectations, and rail travel played a significant role as a catalyst for regional economic development," said Lee Min-sung, head of Korail's Customer Marketing Division. "We will continue to develop diverse travel products and take the lead in revitalizing regional tourism."
