Anchor: The government has unveiled a plan to create a walking trail that encircles the nation as one of many ways to raise the competitiveness of the tourism sector. On Thursday, some 150 people got together including the president, ministers, vice ministers and tourism industry officials for a policy meeting in Seoul, where they discussed how to better cater to the growing diversity of visitors to South Korea.
Our Park Jong-hong has this report.
 
Report: The government has decided to build a four-thousand-500 kilometer trekking course surrounding the nation.

The Korea dulle-gil trail network will connect the Haeparang Trail on the East Coast, Pyeonghwa-Nuri Trail along the inter-Korean border as well as other trails along the country's coasts.

The project was one of the key initiatives unveiled at a tourism policy meeting on Friday, during which President Park Geun-hye and her ministers discussed ways to enhance South Korea as a tourist destination.

[Sound bite: President Park Geun-hye (Korean)]
"We need systematic policies focusing on boosting tourist satisfaction to ensure they visit again, which in turn, will raise spending."

The Minister of Culture and Tourism said that the Korea Trail will be operated in connection with local tourist attractions which trekkers will come closer to while walking along the path. 

The ministry said that the nationwide hiking route will draw five-point-five million visitors annually, creating 720 billion won, or over 616 million dollars' worth of an economic impact.

The government will also consider allowing homestays and other accommodation-sharing services for visiting foreign travelers.

It also will hire more multilingual tour guides to better serve visitors from Thailand and Indonesia.

The president called on her ministers to ensure that any foreign visitor to the country has a pleasant travel experience free with no complaints.

[Sound bite: President Park Geun-hye (Korean)]
"Issues of cheap travel packages and overcharging taxi fares and at markets are dropping tourist satisfaction and undermine the image of Korean tourism."

To solve this problem, the government will develop a Smartphone App dubbed ‘Ask Me,’ through which tourists can report inconveniences to authorities and get them addressed in real time.
Park Jong-hong, KBS World Radio News.