The three biggest safety concerns for foreign tourists traveling to Korea were pickpockets, the North Korean threat and car accidents, according to a recent survey of foreign tourists by the Korea Tourism Organization.

Thirty-five percent of 704 foreign respondents said they were concerned about pickpocketing, 17 percent said they were worried about the North Korean threat and another 17 percent said they were concerned about accidents involving public transportation. The answers were given before they had arrived in Korea. Concerns in all categories fell after they arrived in Korea, except for worries over possible ferry accidents, indicating the impact of the Sewol ferry sinking on safety perceptions of foreign tourists traveling in Korea.

Japanese tourists were concerned the most with safety in Korea. More than 80 percent of foreign tourists said Korea was a safe tourist destination while only 58 percent of Japanese said so.

Overall, 81.4 percent of foreign tourists rated South Korea as safe. Japan was rated the safest destination, at 88.6 percent, among countries and regions including China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, Southeast Asia, Europe, and North America.

(wylee@heraldcorp.com)