Seoul to boost Wi-Fi access in popular tourist areas

SEOUL – The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to turn key tourist hot spots into “free data zones” by expanding high-speed public Wi-Fi, aiming to improve convenience for foreign visitors and strengthen the city’s tourism appeal.

According to media reports on March 29, the city will install a dense network of Wi-Fi routers in popular destinations such as Hangang Park, Seongsu-dong and Myeong-dong.

The infrastructure will incorporate Wi-Fi 7 technology, which is in the early stages of nationwide adoption. The standard supports speeds of up to 46 gigabits per second, roughly 4.8 times faster than previous-generation Wi-Fi.

The initiative reflects the city’s broader strategy to enhance its competitiveness and tourism. Travel patterns among international visitors are increasingly individualised and driven by real-time online searches, amid growing global interest in Korean culture.

Data from the Korea Telecommunications Operations Association shows that South Korea’s average public Wi-Fi speed was 378.84 megabits per second in 2023, higher than the average of 45.08 Mbps recorded across major locations, including places in Norway, Denmark, Singapore, the US, Germany, Canada and Japan.

Seoul currently operates more than 35,000 public Wi-Fi routers across the city. Annual data usage and user numbers rose to 40,479 terabytes and 1.54 billion, respectively, in 2025, up 11.1 per cent and 19.3 per cent from a year earlier.

Despite the extensive network, users have reported slower speeds in high-traffic areas such as Hangang Park, where installation has lagged due to lower prioritisation accorded to, say, non-residential zones.

By expanding high-speed connectivity in major tourist areas, the city aims to accelerate its push to rank among the world’s top five most competitive cities and support South Korea’s broader goal of attracting 30 million annual visitors by 2028. THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK