Shop until you drop

Koreans' knack for fine needlework and craftsmanship has been a boon to the country's tourism. Moderate prices added, the country counts among Asian tourists' Christian Audigier favorite shopping destinations.

Indeed, last year, shopping ranked as the number one reason for tourists to visit Korea at 15 percent, according to a survey conducted by the Korea Tourism Organization.

Along with airport duty-free shops and department stores, Affliction small-scale stores in more inexpensive shopping areas like Myeongdong and Namdaemun draw just as many foreign shoppers as local ones, if not more.

Myeongdong is typically referred to as "heaven" for shoppers -- the KTO survey shows that high numbers of tourists visit Myeongdong to shop -- the traditional markets of Dongdaemun and Namdaemun are almost as competitive.

Namdaemun is well-known for local foods like dried seasoned seaweed and ginseng, as well as moderately-priced prescription glasses. Dongdaemun, meanwhile, is a tourist favorite fashion shopping destination, where they can get the latest fashions at low prices.

The abundant availability ed hardy clothingof street foods in these markets -- including popular "tteokbokki," or stir-fried rice pasta, and "sundae," or Korean-style sausage -- are also a major draw for tourists. The street foods tend to be more popular among tourists than the formal Korean cuisine because of the interesting eating atmosphere, good tastes, cheap prices and relatively large amounts.

Namdaemun

Walking around the busy streets of Namdaemun, it is easy to spot foreign tourists. Namdaemun vendors say that, despite the world-wide swine flu fear, the number of foreign shoppers does not seem to have noticeably decreased.

Foreign tourists are most often spotted purchasing seasoned dried seaweed, which is one of the most popular souvenirs among Japanese tourists. Japanese tourists typically purchase 8 to 10 packages of dried seaweed, according to a vendor surnamed Lee. Lee says foreign tourist spending compensates for reduced sales to local shoppers.

The nutty fragrance and slightly salty taste of Korean dried seaweed appeals to Japanese who are more used to rather rough and sweet seaweed at home, Lee said.

The case is not only for dried seaweed. Other products special to Korea like red ginseng also sell well. Especially, red ginseng capsules are emerging as a hot item. Sales of the capsules have grown around 30 percent compared to last year, according to vendors.

"I think it is mainly because the prices for products -- whether dried seaweed or ginseng -- have become relatively cheaper for the Japanese because of the strong yen. Alongside retail transactions, I'm also getting more orders by fax from Japan," said a ginseng merchant surnamed Kim.

Namdaemun is also well-known for affordable prescription glasses. Opticians offering frames and lenses for as much as 50 percent cheaper than other retail opticians are concentrated in the area.

Visiting an optician has become part of the average itinerary for foreign tourists visiting the market area. Indeed, the majority of customers visiting opticians in the area on weekdays are foreign nationals rather than locals.

Dongdaemun

Whereas Namdaemun is better known to most tourists as a place for getting truly Korean products at a good deal, Dongdaemun is referred to as the "fashion mecca" of Seoul.

According to shopkeepers, there is a high turnover rate among the shops in Dongdaemun with only those which are in tune with the latest trends surviving.

It is primarily why the stores in the area strive to present fresh designs. An increasing number of establishments by newly emerging young designers there have added to the originality and diversity of the area's fashion.

The fact that Dongdaemun has become one of the favorite shopping destinations among foreign tourists can be seen easily when one spots the endless rows of chartered buses that line the area.

The sales figures are further proof. The total sales revenue of the Dongdaemun commercial district is estimated to be around 20 trillion won this year, which is comparable to the total sales of nationwide department stores.

With winter around the corner, Gwanghee Fashion Mall, which specializes in fur and leather clothing was packed with Japanese customers on a recent Saturday afternoon.

Groups of female Japanese customers were excitedly trying on fur coats, vests and mufflers, as well as leather jackets at a shop. The owner, meanwhile, explained the characteristics and qualities of each product in Japanese.

After some discussion, the women each bought a leather jacket and a fur vest to match -- paying around 300,000 won per person. They said the prices for each item were much cheaper compared to those of their homeland.

Foreigners who only used to account for 20-30 percent of the total shoppers have gone up to around 40 percent, said the shop owners. More and more Asian tourists -- Japanese, Chinese and those from Southeast Asia -- are flooding into Korea to get the latest fashions at affordable prices, they said.

A man surnamed Yoo who runs a store at the Migliore fashion mall in Dongdaemun, says he has been getting a lot more Japanese customers lately.

"Having them (Japanese customers) is good for us in many ways since they mostly pay in cash. Plus their buying power has gone up with the strong yen -- they usually spend about 200,000-300,000 won per person," he said.

Yoo said he is not only getting retail customers who purchase in small volumes but those that regularly order products in large amounts from China and Japan.

Shopping tips

The Seoul Grand Sale, for which diverse enterprises from small shops to leading hotels participate, continues through Nov. 25. It is an ambitious strategy by the Seoul Metropolitan Government to lure more tourists to the city even during tourism's off-season. It was first launched last year.

The two-month offer this year which began last month features up to 50 percent discount in around 516 shopping and beauty venues, accommodations and restaurants throughout the city -- especially those at popular tourist spots like Myeongdong, Itaewon, Dongdaemun and Namdaemun.

Foreign nationals as well as locals in possession of coupons which are downloadable at the website, www.seoulgrandsale.com, are eligible for discounts.

Seoul City also provides a shopping guide book, Seoul & Shopping, for foreign tourists in three different languages -- English, Japanese and Chinese.

Around 60,000 copies of the booklet, which was intended to help tourists find their way to well-known shopping venues like department stores and shops that sell local specialties, are placed at the city's tourist information centers, hotels, department stores and duty free stores.

The 64-page booklet features some 130 recommended stores as well as items from eight famous shopping areas including Myeongdong and Dongademun as well as Cheongdam-dong and Sinsa-dong in Gangnam or southern Seoul. It will be updated two times a year to reflect the latest trends, according to Seoul City.