'Wang hong' makeovers, Disney cruises: How Korean travelers are splitting into two extremes

Recent travel trends are splitting sharply into two opposite types: a healing-oriented style centered on rest in small cities, and an experience-driven style focused on novel activities at well-known destinations.

Shinhan Card's Big Data Research Institute said Monday the divergence reflects two competing psychological drives — one to lower cortisol, the stress hormone, and ease everyday tension, and another to seek dopamine-fueled excitement. The institute labeled the two patterns "Cortisol OFF" travel and "Dopamine ON" travel.

The Cortisol OFF trend is showing up as a growing preference for quiet, low-density small cities. According to Shinhan Card transaction data, the number of cardholders who used their cards in major small cities in Japan in the first quarter of 2026 was 3.9 times higher than in the same period of 2024. Visitors to those smaller cities were also notably older: the share of travelers in their 50s and 60s was 17.6 percentage points higher among small-city visitors than among those who went to major cities, reflecting strong demand from middle-aged and older travelers who prefer a relaxed pace and affordable prices.

Within South Korea, a laid-back style of travel on foot — strolling along the beach, sitting and doing nothing, browsing small independent shops — has emerged as a defining example of the Cortisol OFF pattern.

Mukho, a coastal neighborhood in Donghae, Gangwon Province, has become a go-to destination for this kind of unhurried travel, driven by social media attention on its retro alley Nongoldamgil and the sunrise views at Dojjebigol. Shinhan Card data showed that transactions at small independent shops in the Mukho area surged 2,113 percent in the January–May period of 2026 compared with the same period of 2024, with travelers in their 20s and 30s accounting for 74 percent of those purchases. The figures point to a spending pattern among younger travelers stepping away from packed itineraries and long restaurant queues in favor of simply letting time pass.

On the other side, the Dopamine ON trend is playing out through hands-on, immersive experiences for travelers who actively seek excitement.

In China, a "wang hong experience" — dressing up in elaborate makeup and costumes to look like a Chinese social media influencer — has been drawing attention. The activity recorded the highest year-on-year growth among travel-related experience keywords between 2024 and 2026, breaking into the top six for the first time. The share of women among Shinhan Card users making payments in China also rose from 37.8 percent in 2024 to 43.0 percent in 2026.

A push for extreme dopamine experiences — total immersion in a single theme far removed from everyday life — has also intensified. Social media mentions of Disney Cruise, a theme-based cruise line, jumped 657 percent in 2026 compared with 2024, and interest in Mediterranean, Alaska and fireworks cruises also climbed.

The Dopamine ON trend is spreading beyond individuals to family groups as well.

An analysis of social media keywords associated with Yeongwol — the filming location for "The King's Warden," which drew 16 million moviegoers — and Gongju, the center of a rice-cake shop craze, over the past year found that words such as "parents" and "taking them along" frequently appeared alongside those destinations.

Payment data bears this out. Among all visitors recorded from January to May 2026, travelers aged 60 and older accounted for 24.5 percent of visits to Yeongwol and 20.8 percent in Gongju, suggesting that a culture of sharing trendy travel experiences with parents has taken hold.

"As travel has become a routine leisure activity, demand for quiet rest and demand for active experiences are both growing more distinct at the same time," an official at Shinhan Card's Big Data Research Institute said. "We will continue to use Shinhan Card's data analysis capabilities to track the diversifying landscape of consumer trends."