"Want to Be Like Korean Women": Where Young Chinese Head First Upon Arriving in Seoul
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Economic Content Platform for Investors
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by Yun Seulgi
Published 19 Jun.2026 15:25(KST)
Updated 19 Jun.2026 15:36(KST)
Among young people in China, “K-beauty trips” to Korea—where visitors experience personal color analysis, makeup, hairstyling, and ID photo shoots all in a single day—are rapidly gaining popularity.
On June 18 (local time), the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported, “Young Chinese are traveling to Korea to receive higher-quality beauty services at a lower price,” adding, “The way young people consume overseas travel is changing.”
On the 9th, Myeongdong street in Jung-gu, Seoul, was bustling with crowds as foreign tourists who visited Korea in April this year reportedly spent more than 1.3 trillion won, marking an all-time high. Photo by Yonhap News Agency
According to the report, on Chinese social media platforms, the top three must-do activities when traveling to Korea are personal color analysis, makeup and hairstyling, and ID photo shoots.
Whereas plastic surgery tourism—which requires a recovery period—used to attract attention in the past, young Chinese tourists today prefer beauty services that offer relatively inexpensive and quick transformations in appearance.
One of the most popular services is personal color analysis. At related studios, staff analyze the customer’s skin tone and hair color, classify them into one of the four seasonal types—spring, summer, autumn, or winter—and then recommend colors that suit their clothing and makeup. Depending on the duration and components of the service, the cost ranges from 200 to 800 yuan (approximately KRW 45,000 to KRW 180,000).
A recent visitor to Korea who received a personal color analysis told SCMP, “For the first time since I was born, I learned what colors suit me.” She added, “As my first activity in Seoul, I did a color analysis and then bought cosmetics that matched the results. After returning home, I sorted out 80% of the clothes that didn’t suit me.”
Some tourists even arrive in Korea without any makeup and head straight to a hair salon or makeup shop as their first stop.
Despite language barriers, they communicate by showing photos of the hairstyles they want. Particularly, there is a high level of satisfaction with the skills of Korean female stylists. Tourists said that Korean stylists “deliver the most perfect results effortlessly.”
On the 1st of last month, foreign group tourists were moving under the guidance of a tour guide at the Incheon International Airport arrival hall. The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. Photo by Yonhap News Agency
There are also reviews noting that Korean salons are cheaper than those in China in terms of price. For example, while a haircut in Beijing can cost over 200 yuan, in Seoul it is available at about half that price, with more satisfying results.
Some tourists book makeup shops that have worked with K-pop idol groups such as BLACKPINK, spending hundreds of yuan for a one-day transformation experience. One customer commented, “I wanted to see how beautiful I could become without much effort.”
Their “beauty day” schedule usually ends with an ID photo shoot. Tourists say this service allows them “to capture the best version of themselves in the most natural way.”
SCMP analyzed that this trend reflects a shift toward experience-oriented overseas travel. Instead of just visiting famous tourist attractions or shopping, people are increasingly organizing their trips around specific experiences, such as participating in workshops in Chiang Mai, Thailand, or fitness training in Bali, Indonesia.
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