Seoul, May 30 (IANS): The number of foreign travelers to South Korea surged by sevenfold in April from a year earlier on eased travel restrictions amid efforts to return to pre-Covid normalcy, data showed on Tuesday.

A total of 889,000 foreign travelers visited South Korea last month, up nearly 600 per cent from the 128,000 tallied in the same month last year, according to the data compiled by the Korea Tourism Organization.

The monthly figure also accounted for 54 per cent of 1.6 million tallied in April 2019, before the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic, reports Yonhap News Agency citing the data.

Some 128,000 Japanese people traveled to South Korea last month, up 5,651 per cent from a year ago, followed by 109,000 American visitors, up 252 per cent on-year.

Tourists from China shot up 10 times to 106,000 thanks to increased flights between the two countries and China's labour day holiday season.

The numbers from Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam totalled 77,000, 54,000 and 41,000 visitors, respectively.

Meanwhile, a total of 1.5 million South Koreans travelled overseas last month, up almost sevenfold from a year earlier.