Organizers expect about 500,000 foreign tourists to visit global maritime festival


YEOSU, South Jeolla Province ― A last push was being made Wednesday to prepare the Yeosu Expo site, with some pavilions unfinished and roads around the site still under construction two days before the opening ceremony.

Organizers said that about three pavilions would not be completed in time for Friday’s grand opening, and also tried to allay concerns over a lack of adequate accommodation.

Chairman of the Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea Organizing Committee Kang Dong-suk said that churches, school dormitories and camp sites will be used to help accommodate the 10 billion visitors expected to visit the international event from May 12―Aug. 12.

The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, local travel agencies and participating countries’ delegations have voiced concern over the lack of quality accommodation near the site in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province.

A 30,000 ton cruise ship is set to be docked at the Expo to provide lodging for up to 500 people, but will not be available for the opening weekend as it has not arrived yet.

But Kang said that there were 1,000 high-end hotel rooms available, and 10,000 other rooms had been secured by the organizing committee.

“For foreign visitors we have secured hotels, motels and pensions within an hour’s drive by car,” he added. “For Korean and local visitors we have secured accommodation within two hours’ drive by car including Templestays, church stays, motels and hotels. Church stay accommodation services can provide 5,000 rooms per day.”

Going on data from previous world Expos, around 95 percent of Expo attendees are expected to be domestic visitors, with the anticipated 500,000 international visitors coming mostly from China, Japan and Southeast Asia. But smartphone guide applications were not yet fully functional in Japanese and Chinese.

And Kang admitted that a few pavilions’ exhibitions and facades had not yet been finished. While many pavilions were completed, builders and welders were still working on others as journalists viewed the site during a press preview on Wednesday.

“Unfortunately there is still some road construction going on around the Expo site and some international pavilions have not been completed,” Kang said.

He said that the organizing committee was cooperating with pavilions to help them complete the work quickly, and that the few unnamed strays would open a few days after the weekend. He added that Yeosu City Government had pledged to finish road construction by the opening.

The launch ceremony of the Expo themed around “The Living Ocean and Coast” will be attended by thousands of guests on Friday at 6 p.m., with the Expo then opening to the public on Saturday.

A dress rehearsal with 100,000 guests last Saturday left some participants confused about digital booking systems and directions. Kang said that extra volunteer guides would be on hand and more maps installed to make it easier for guests to get around.

There are 104 countries and 10 international organizations participating in the $1.91 billion event. There will be about 8,000 cultural performances at the 2.71 million square-kilometer site over 93 days.

The Expo aims to highlight efforts around the globe to combat climate change, as well as showcasing participating nations’ marine environments and technology.

It is expected to produce economic benefits of $11.1 billion, creating about 80,000 jobs.

More than 1 million tickets have been sold in advance for the Expo. While deputy spokeswoman Kang Hyun-ju said this accounted only for a small percentage of the expected sales, she added: “Reflecting Koreans’ characteristic that they don’t buy tickets in advance we expect that more and more people will buy tickets and come to the Expo.”

By Kirsty Taylor (kirstyt@heraldcorp.com)