Jeju Island, a well-known tourist destination in South Korea, plans to use blockchain technology in its tourism strategy. Beginning in the later part of 2025, the island will implement NFT-based digital visitor cards to encourage tourism among younger generations.
The purpose of these NFT-powered cards is to offer tourists exclusive benefits like travel reductions, subsidies, and membership privileges at various destinations. Using blockchain technology, the cards will also securely store travel data, such as trip histories, images, and videos, providing a personalized and tamper-proof experience for travelers.
Jeju Island is not new to blockchain innovation. Over the years, it has experimented with numerous implementations of this technology, including introducing a blockchain-based COVID-19 contact tracing software in 2021 and an energy usage tracking platform in 2022. These efforts support Jeju’s aspiration to become a global hub for blockchain technologies.
A testing period will precede the wider release of the new NFT visitor cards. The project aims to attract tech-savvy Millennials and Generation Z travelers, thereby enhancing Jeju’s standing as a progressive travel destination, despite the lack of details about the blockchain platform and pricing.
This action underlines South Korea’s overall push for digital innovation. The country has been a prominent supporter of Web3 technology, investing extensively in the metaverse and incorporating blockchain solutions into a variety of industries. With approximately 15 million cryptocurrency users by the end of 2024, South Korea’s interest in blockchain and NFTs is growing.
Jeju’s NFT-powered tourist cards are the island’s most recent step in harnessing technology to offer engaging and sophisticated travel experiences while increasing its attractiveness to the next generation of guests.