South Korea's tourism revenue through the first 10 months of 2014 has already set an all-time high compared with totals from previous years, data showed Sunday, on the back of the rising number of Chinese visitors.

The country's tourism revenue came to US$14.78 billion in the January-October period, surpassing the previous record of $14.16 billion posted for the whole of last year, the data compiled jointly by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism and the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute showed.

The cultural ministry said that given the trend, the tourism revenue may reach $16.7 billion for 2014, up 17.9 percent from 2013. The number of tourists visiting the country is also estimated to rise 15 percent on-year to reach 14 million in 2014, the data showed.

"The robust numbers came as more Chinese tourists visited South Korea and enjoyed luxurious shopping," an official from the institute said. "As the number of Chinese visitors is expected to continue to rise, they will become the blue chip of the tourism balance."

The number of Chinese visitors through October this year came to 5.25 million, up 39 percent from last year. An average Chinese tourist spent $1,738.4 in South Korea, the highest among visitors from other countries. 

For all of 2014, the number of inbound Chinese tourists is estimated to reach 6 million, rising 38.6 percent from 2013. (Yonhap)