SEOUL, South Korea — Looking to tap into the deeply rooted faith of the Philippine travel market, South Korean tourism officials have enlisted the star power of Filipino comedian and host Melai Cantiveros. Cantiveros and her family recently concluded a strategic three-day promotional tour of major Catholic pilgrimage sites across South Chungcheong Province.
The target campaign—organized by the South Chungcheong provincial government and the Korea Tourism Organization’s (KTO) Manila office—seeks to position the region as a primary destination for faith-based family travel ahead of the monumental World Youth Day Seoul 2027.
The tour, which ran from Tuesday to Thursday, focused heavily on historical locations deeply tied to the narrative of early Korean Catholics who faced intense historical persecution for their faith:
- Haemi International Holy Ground (Seosan): Cantiveros and her family visited the sacred site accompanied by an Indian priest and local city officials. The group filmed vlogs and short-form social media content to introduce the sanctuary to her massive online audience.
- Solmoe Holy Ground (Dangjin): Recognized universally as the cradle of Korean Catholicism, this site is celebrated as the historic birthplace of St. Andrew Kim Tae-gon, South Korea’s first homegrown Catholic priest.
- Hapdeok Catholic Church: The delegation explored the stunning, century-old architecture of the church in Dangjin, alongside the specialized Wake-Up International Youth Center in Seosan.
With Cantiveros commanding a staggering 21 million combined followers across YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, South Korean officials are counting on her digital reach to open up a new tourism channel linking Hallyu (the Korean Wave) with religious pilgrimage.
To create a balanced itinerary for families, the province integrated faith-based landmarks with popular regional lifestyle and leisure attractions:
- Taean International Horticulture Healing Expo: The family spent time exploring the massive botanical and environmental pavilions.
- Boryeong Mud Theme Park: The group experienced the region’s famous therapeutic mud foot baths.
- Sapgyoho Amusement Park: The itinerary wrapped up with a family-oriented excursion to the popular coastal theme park in Dangjin.
Cantiveros is no stranger to promoting South Korea, having served as the KTO’s official Honorary Ambassador for Korea Family Tourism since May 2024. Her previous projects include starring in the Seoul-based comedy film Ma’am Chief: Shakedown in Seoul (2023) and visiting major family attractions like Everland’s KPop Demon Hunters zone.
Seosan city and provincial officials confirmed that market-specific travel packages and enhanced English-language tourism materials are actively being developed to handle the projected influx of Southeast Asian travelers. By utilizing authentic, faith-backed family content from high-profile figures like Cantiveros, South Korea aims to aggressively expand its travel footprint well beyond traditional shopping and pop-culture districts.