Busan's medical tourism industry has moved beyond post-pandemic recovery into a phase of rapid growth. Foreign patient numbers surpassed 70,000 for the first time, lifting the city to second place nationwide and signaling that its potential as a convergence industry of tourism and healthcare is materializing in earnest.
According to Busan Metropolitan City on Tuesday, 75,879 foreign medical tourists visited the city in 2025, up 151.5% from 30,165 a year earlier. The figure marks an all-time high and is more than triple the pre-pandemic peak of 19,748 recorded in 2019.
The results carry significance beyond simple recovery, as they indicate that a structural foundation for growth has been established. The number of foreign patients in Busan rose from 12,912 in 2023 to 30,000 in 2024 and 70,000 in 2025, moving from "staircase growth" into a "leap-forward growth" trajectory.
Busan's national ranking also climbed. The city rose from third place in 2024 to second place in 2025, marking its first No. 2 ranking nationwide, while maintaining the top spot among non-capital regions for the second consecutive year.
By nationality, Taiwan accounted for the largest share at 37.4%, followed by Japan at 22.2%, China at 15%, Russia at 4%, the United States at 3.7% and Thailand at 2.7%. Medical tourism demand expanded sharply across East Asia, particularly from Taiwan, China and Japan, rapidly broadening Busan's market base. Taiwanese medical tourists surged 293% from 2024, followed by China at 219%, Japan at 129% and Thailand at 105%.
Behind this growth lies a systematic recruitment strategy built on public-private cooperation. The city government has pursued a range of policies, including designation of top-performing medical institutions for foreign patient recruitment and joint promotion, improvements in international medical reception infrastructure, country-specific targeted marketing, briefings and familiarization tours for overseas buyers, and region-specific specialized projects.
The economic ripple effect of medical tourism is also drawing attention. Medical tourists spend an average of 8.11 million won per person, roughly four times the 2.05 million won spent by general tourists, underscoring the sector's impact on the local economy as a high-value-added stay-based tourism industry.
To sustain this momentum, Busan will establish a "Basic Plan for Revitalizing Medical Tourism" this year, backed by a total investment of 2.4 billion won. The core of the policy is an upgrade strategy centered on customized medical services. Specifically, the city plans to elevate the quality of its medical tourism through three key strategies: strengthening the medical tourism industry ecosystem (Flow), securing competitiveness in medical-tourism convergence (Identity), and branding Busan as a global destination (Trust).
"We expect to reach our goal of attracting 100,000 medical tourists to Busan by 2030 ahead of schedule," Acting Busan Mayor Kim Kyung-deok said. "We will work to build a high-value-added convergence medical tourism model that combines treatment and tourism, leading to tangible revitalization of the local economy."
