BBQ's Chicken Camp gets popularity from foreign tourists

Foreign tourists looking for Chicken Camp, operated by BBQ, a South Korean fried chicken brand, have been increasing noticeably.

Chicken Camp is a chicken cooking experience program run by Chicken University, a franchise training institution under BBQ, since 2004.

BBQ announced on Monday that out of the 2,090 participants in Chicken Camp this year, 11.3% were foreign tourists. Inquiries related to the program also increased by 30.4% from the same period last year, between April and Oct.

In recent years, as the interest of foreign tourists in Chicken Camp has been rising, BBQ has been developing and operating separate programs for overseas tourists in collaboration with travel agencies.

"Recently, foreigners who have come across Korean Wave content have inquired about experiencing the culinary art at the birthplace of K-chicken," a BBQ source said. 

BBQ actively utilizes Chicken Camp to promote K-chicken and Korean food culture worldwide. The company held in July a global Chicken Camp, inviting embassy officials. The event included diplomatic officials from 13 countries, including Bangladesh, Malaysia, Congo, Zambia and Nigeria.

Write to Ji-Yoon Yang at yang@hankyung.com