Foreign patients visiting Incheon rise for third straight year

Incheon is cementing its position as a key hub for medical tourism in South Korea, as the number of foreign patients visiting the city has grown steadily over the past three years.

The city is driving both quantitative and qualitative growth in medical tourism, with serious-illness treatment — including cancer and cardiovascular disease — expanding alongside K-beauty procedures centered on dermatology and plastic surgery.

The Incheon Tourism Organization said Tuesday that an analysis of foreign patient figures over the past three years showed annual increases: 14,606 in 2023, 21,387 in 2024 and 26,483 in 2025.

Last year's figure represented a 23.8 percent increase from the previous year, reflecting growing recognition of Incheon's medical tourism competitiveness both at home and abroad.

The most notable characteristic of Incheon's medical tourism is the parallel growth of high-value serious-illness care and lighter medical tourism services.

Anchored by large general hospitals, Incheon has built a strong track record in attracting patients with serious conditions such as cancer and cardiovascular disease, maintaining high average medical spending and length of stay per patient.

According to a 2024 Korea Health Industry Development Institute analysis of foreign patient spending patterns based on credit card data, international patients in Incheon spent 112 billion won ($74.4 million) last year — generating economic effects roughly 2.2 times higher than those of other local governments that attracted a similar number of foreign patients.

The K-beauty wave is also fueling medical tourism growth.

Breaking down 2025 figures by medical specialty, foreign patients visiting dermatology clinics surged 169.5 percent from the previous year, the highest growth rate of any specialty.

Plastic surgery visits also rose 54.7 percent, signaling that cosmetic medicine is emerging as a new growth pillar for Incheon's medical tourism sector.

The nationalities of foreign patients are also diversifying. Beyond Japan and China, demand is spreading to the United States, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and Vietnam, extending Incheon's medical tourism reach beyond Asia into North America and Central Asia.

The growth trend is continuing this year.

The 41 medical institutions affiliated with Team Medical Incheon — a public-private consultative body operated by the Incheon Tourism Organization — attracted 133.6 percent more foreign patients in the second quarter of this year than in the same period last year.

Applying the National Tourism Strategy Council's benchmark of 8.11 million won in average spending per medical tourist, estimated medical expenditure by foreign patients in Incheon through the second quarter of this year comes to approximately 109.8 billion won.

"Incheon is ideally positioned for medical tourism, with top-tier general hospitals, Incheon International Airport and a seaport," said Yoo Ji-sang, president of the Incheon Tourism Organization. "We will continue to expand our two-track strategy of nurturing both serious-illness treatment and K-beauty medicine to realize the campaign pledge of welcoming 3 million foreign tourists — a goal of the ninth elected administration."