As the tourism industry experienced rapid growth due to digital transformation, the spotlight turned to smart tourism as a way to address issues like natural resource depletion, environmental degradation, the weakening of local cultures, and unequal distribution of economic benefits. In response to these challenges, Kyung Hee University established the Smart Tourism Research Center (STRC) in 2013 with support from the Korea Research Foundation. Over the last decade, STRC has been researching smart tourism cities, focusing on the development of smart devices, supply chain perspectives, and sustainable tourism practices within urban ecosystems. STRC has built a research network that includes local governments, public institutions, and businesses, and has collaborated with researchers from a range of academic backgrounds to conduct comprehensive, interdisciplinary studies.

• 2024
  • Plans to host the 2nd International Smart Tourism Conference in July.
• 2023
  • Awarded the Humanities and Social Sciences Research Institute Support Project by the National Research Foundation of Korea (duration: Sep 2023 - Feb 2026).
  • Organized the inaugural International Smart Tourism Conference.
  • Launched the first Smart Tourism Festival.
  • Conducted mid-to-long term consulting for emerging global tourism cities for the Seoul Tourism Foundation (sponsored by Seoul Tourism Organization)
• 2022
  • Conducted a research service for updating and applying competitiveness indicators for smart tourism cities (sponsored by Seoul Tourism Foundation).
  • Conducted a research service for innovative strategies on the Seoul Smart Tourism Platform (sponsored by Seoul Tourism Foundation).
  • Hosted a smart tourism convergence seminar (Topic: Advances in smart tourism technology and policies/laws/regulations).
• 2021
  • Clinched the Grand Prize at the Asia Smart Tourism Industry Expo.
  • Launched the 'Journal of Smart Tourism,' a dedicated scholarly publication.
  • Supported the development of a smart city project in Hue, Vietnam (sponsored by KOICA) (2021-2025)
  • Researched smart tourism content utilization strategies for the Seoul Tourism Foundation (sponsored by Seoul Tourism Organization)
  • Selected among the World Top 2% researchers.
• 2020
  • Awarded the 'Sustainable Smart Tourism and Hospitality Education Platform Project' under the BK21 program.
  • Developed index for smart tourism cities for the Seoul Tourism Foundation (sponsored by Seoul Tourism Organization)
  • Created a non-face-to-face index and information service for the Korea Tourism Organization (sponsored by Korea Tourism Organization)
  • Analyzed Airbnb data to forecast changes in the lodging paradigm (sponsored by Airbnb)
  • Prof. Sung-byung Yang honored with the Kyung Hee Fellow.
• 2019
  • Elevated to a university-affiliated research institute at Kyung Hee University.
  • Granted the third phase of the Social Science Research Support (SSK) project by the National Research Foundation of Korea (2019-2023).
  • Undertook a research service to assess the economic impact of smart tourism (sponsored by Korea Tourism Organization)
  • Initiated a foundational study for developing smart tourism cities, conducted by the Seoul Tourism Foundation (sponsored by Seoul Tourism Organization)
• 2018
  • Provided consultancy for Incheon City’s Smart MICE.
  • Prof. Chulmo Koo honored with the Kyung Hee Fellow.
• 2017
  • Developed a research service for a B2B platform providing safety information for domestic walking tours (sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism)
• 2016
  • Advanced to the second phase of the Social Science Research Support (SSK) project by the National Research Foundation of Korea (2016-2019)
  • The paper titled “Smart Tourism: Foundations and Developments” was named 'Paper of the Year 2016' in the Electronic Markets.
  • Prof. Namho Chung honored with the Kyung Hee Fellow.
• 2015
  • Published the first-ever paper on the concept of smart tourism in the journal Electronic Markets.
  • Received the Best Paper Award at ENTER2015, the premier conference in smart tourism.
• 2014
  • Chosen for the Global Research Network (GRN) Support Project (sponsored by National Research Foundation of Korea)
• 2013
  • Inauguration of the Smart Tourism Research Institute at Kyung Hee University.
  • Awarded the first phase of the Social Science Research Support (SSK) project by the National Research Foundation of Korea (2013-2016)