A recent Seoul City survey indicates that most tourists who visit the country associate kimchi, the country’s traditional side dish, with the image of Seoul.

The report was compiled by asking more than eleven-thousand tourists at Incheon International Airport, over the age of 20 and who had been in Seoul for less than two months, what image came to mind when they thought of the nation's capital city.

Friendliness with 7.6 percent, shopping with 3.1 percent, bulgogi at 2.8 percent, the Olympics with 2.5 percent, dramas also with 2.5 percent, busy people with 2.3 percent, Seoul Tower with 2 percent, and the World Cup followed at 1.7 percent.

Twenty-seven percent of the visitors came to Seoul for business reasons, while those who came for tourism purposes followed closely behind. Roughly 15 percent came to visit relatives and friends and almost the same number of tourists came to experience Korean culture.