Thousands of Chinese tourists taste Korean cuisine by Han River

Thousands of employees from a Chinese company participate in an event held in Seoul to taste Korean traditional ginseng chicken soup at one of the city’s riverside parks on May 6, 2016

SEOUL, (Yonhap) — Thousands of employees from a Chinese company participated in an event held in Seoul to taste Korean traditional ginseng chicken soup at one of the city’s riverside parks on Friday.

The 4,000 employees from Chinese healthcare company Joymain Science & Technology (Zhongmai Group) flew into South Korea on several flights from various Chinese cities such as Shanghai, Qingdao and Beijing the previous day.

They are part of the company’s 8,000 employees set to make an incentive trip to the country this month.

The first group will have a “samgyetang” party and enjoy various Korean folk games on the banks of the Han River in central Seoul, according to the Seoul metropolitan government, one of the event’s organizers.

“This trip to South Korea will become an unforgettable memory,” the head of Zhongmai Group said. “This will also become an opportunity to promote samgyetang in China as well.”

“The creativity of South Koreans come in line with Zhongmai’s business spirit,” he added. “We would like to thank the South Korean government for providing us with support.

Samgyetang is a traditional chicken soup made with a whole young chicken stuffed with ginseng, sticky rice and garlic. It is widely recognized in the country as an energy-boosting meal during the summer months.

The government said hundreds of dinner tables will be set up for the guests, who will also be served beer, kimchi and drinks made from ginseng.

After the dinner, artists who participated in creating the original soundtrack of the South Korean hit television series “Descendants of the Sun” held a concert.

The government earlier allowed Zhongmai employees to receive visas through a simple online procedure as part of efforts to attract more Chinese mass tour groups.

Woori Bank also operated a foreign currency exchange booth at the venue of the dinner and placed two to three Chinese-speaking staffers there.

The tourists are to return to their hotels at around 9 p.m. Organizers said the group has booked 16 hotels for their stay in Seoul.

On Thursday, most members of the group shopped around the capital city, starting with Dongdaemun Market, known for its cheap and quality fashion items. Some others visited Lotte World Mall in southern Seoul to buy tax-free cosmetics products.

Another 4,000 employees are scheduled to arrive in Seoul on Monday. The second group is also scheduled to hold the same “samgyetang” dinner at the same place on Tuesday.

In recent years, Chinese firms have been sending thousands of employees to South Korea on incentive trips.

In March, 6,000 employees from Aolan International Beauty Group, a cosmetics and health supplements company based in China’s southern province of Guangzhou, came for a weeklong tour, followed by another 4,200 from a Shanghai-based financial group who visited last month.

The number of Chinese visitors to South Korea rose 17 percent in the first two months of the year to 1.07 million on the back of the growing popularity of South Korean TV shows and K-pop.

This month’s visit was arranged by the city government, along with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, and other related government agencies that have been promoting the export of samgyetang.

A pack of “samgyetang” provided to Chinese visitors at an event held at one of Seoul’s riverside parks on May 6, 2016.

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