Explera's South Korea programme hosts travel creators on the ground in Seoul, Busan and beyond. From 150,000 followers on your primary channel, you get hotel, transfers and activities in exchange for honest, disclosed coverage. You pay your own flights and insurance, keep editorial control, and get an answer within five business days of applying.
01The tiers
Four hosted tiers, set by your audience
From 150,000 followers on your primary channel. The number decides the tier, and the tier decides the hotel nights and how many days are filled, from a single palace morning to a full week between Seoul and Busan. Korean hotel classes are described as "or equivalent".
150k–249k followers
Rising
Hotel
1 night · 3-star or equivalent · daily breakfast
Transfers
Return airport, private licensed vehicle
Activities
One sightseeing visit, activity or tour
Your pick from our catalogue, matched to the niche your audience actually follows you for.
250k–499k followers
Established
Hotel
2 nights · 4-star or equivalent · daily breakfast
Transfers
Return airport, private licensed vehicle
Activities
Tours, sightseeing or an activity every day
Not a single outing — a programme built around what your channel is known for.
500k–1M followers
Signature
Hotel
4 nights · 4-star or equivalent · breakfast
Transfers
Return airport, private licensed vehicle
Activities
Tours, sightseeing or an activity every day
Enough time to move between destinations rather than shoot one base, so the trip carries a real narrative.
1M–5M followers
Authority
Hotel
5 nights · 5-star or equivalent · breakfast
Transfers
Return airport, private licensed vehicle
Activities
Tours, sightseeing or an activity every day
Island days, cultural itineraries, venue sessions — planned around the destinations and the content your audience comes to you for.
Spotlight · Under 150k followers.We still reply — and still consider a single activity or tour.
Bespoke · Over 5M followers.Above five million, we build the trip with you — including multi-destination trips across Asia and New Zealand.
02What's included
What Explera covers in Korea, and what it never does
What Explera provides
Hotel nights sized to your tier, with breakfast
Return airport transfer from Incheon or Gimhae in a private licensed vehicle
Tours, sightseeing and activities matched to your niche
An itinerary planned around palace hours, market evenings and the season
A team on the ground that runs its own ground services
What we do not provide
International or domestic flights, including to Jeju
Cash fees
Visas or K-ETA applications
Travel insurance, which is mandatory and your responsibility
Personal extras such as shopping, spa add-ons or unagreed upgrades
03A hosted day
What a day on the ground can look like.
Stock photo · for illustration
Illustrative day · Seoul
08:30
Hanbok fitting
Pick-up from your hotel and a fitting at a rental shop near Gyeongbokgung, with time for hair.
09:15
Gyeongbokgung at opening
The courtyards before the tour groups arrive, then the guard ceremony at Gwanghwamun.
11:30
Bukchon, quietly
A walk through the hanok lanes within resident visiting hours. Voices low, cameras away from doorways.
13:30
Break and editing time
Back to the hotel to rest, back up footage and post stories. Lunch is on your own time.
17:30
Gwangjang Market
A guided food evening: bindaetteok fried to order, mayak gimbap and a seat at a shared counter.
20:00
Han River after dark
Skyline views, then the riverside parks and bridge lights. In season, the Banpo Bridge fountain.
Follow @expleradmc on all our social media profiles, then tell us about your channel, your audience, your blog or website and the trip you have in mind.
02
5 business days
Step 2: Review
We verify reach, engagement and audience geography, then give you an answer either way.
03
Signed in the portal
Step 3: Agreement
Inclusions, dates, deliverables and disclosure wording, agreed and signed before anything is booked.
04
Within 30 days
Step 4: Travel & publish
Announce the trip before you go, then publish within 30 days of your last travel day, tagging @expleradmc.
05How we work
The principles behind every collaboration.
Disclosed, always
Every post is labelled for your audience's market, with #협찬 and a clear line at the top for Korean audiences. The wording is in your agreement.
Your edit, not ours
We never script or pre-approve your content. We check tags, links and disclosure, and may ask for a factual correction.
Rules on the ground, respected
Palace equipment rules, Bukchon's resident hours and DMZ photo restrictions are part of the plan, not an afterthought.
A straight answer
Every application gets a decision within five business days, including the ones we say no to.
06Deliverables & disclosure
Honest, disclosed coverage — on your terms.
Before you travel1
Announce the trip before you travel, on social media and your blog, tagging @expleradmc.
Within 30 days2
Publish the agreed posts within 30 days of your last travel day.
Then3
Disclose clearly for your audience's markets, then submit links and screenshots in the portal.
No. Explera never provides flights, international or domestic. You book and pay for your own flights to Incheon, Gimpo or Gimhae, and any domestic flight, including to Jeju. We provide hotel, transfers and activities on the ground once you land. We also do not provide cash fees, visas, K-ETA or travel insurance.
02
How many followers do I need?
Hosted tiers start at 150,000 followers on your primary channel, whether that is Instagram, YouTube, TikTok or an equivalent blog audience. The number decides your tier, from Rising to Authority, and above five million we build the trip individually. Under 150k we still reply and consider a single activity or tour in Korea, without hotel or transfers.
03
Who qualifies?
Creators aged 18 or over with a primary channel they built themselves and a blog or website of their own. We verify reach, engagement quality, audience geography, niche fit and content quality before confirming anything. Bought followers, engagement pods or past sponsorships that were not disclosed end the conversation. You also need your own flights, insurance and any visa or K-ETA your passport requires.
04
Do I need my own blog or website?
Yes. Every applicant must own a blog or website as well as their primary social channel, and that includes Spotlight applicants. A social profile or link-in-bio page does not count. We check that the site is live and belongs to you. It carries your pre-trip announcement and your post-trip blog post with a link, marked rel="sponsored", to the agreed Explera page.
05
What is complimentary and what do I pay for?
Your tier's hotel nights, return airport transfer in a private licensed vehicle and the activities in your agreed itinerary are hosted. You pay for flights, travel insurance, any visa or K-ETA, and personal extras: shopping, extra drinks, spa add-ons, beauty products and any upgrade that was not agreed. Meals are included only where the itinerary says so.
06
How does disclosure work?
You disclose under the rules of your audience's markets. For a Korean audience, that means the Korea Fair Trade Commission's guidelines on endorsement and review advertising: a clear label such as #협찬 and a disclosure line at the top of the post, not buried among hashtags. The exact wording for your collaboration is written into your agreement.
07
What do I post before the trip?
Once you are approved and before you travel, you publish two announcements: a social post saying you are travelling to Korea with Explera, tagging @expleradmc, and a blog post on your own site announcing the trip and linking to the agreed Explera page. Both are disclosed, submitted in the portal with a URL and screenshot, and checked before you travel.
08
Does Explera approve my content?
No. We never script or pre-approve your editorial content, and you decide what you say about Korea and about us. We only check that the agreed tags, links and disclosure are in place, and we may ask for a factual correction, such as a wrong price or a safety detail at the DMZ.
09
How far ahead should I apply?
At least three weeks before you travel. We answer within five business days, and scheduling needs at least a week after you sign the agreement. The form warns you if your dates are sooner. For cherry blossom in spring or autumn foliage, apply well ahead, because those weeks fill first and DMZ tours need passport details in advance.
10
What are the filming rules at palaces, temples and the DMZ?
At palaces, handheld personal filming is normal, but commercial shoots and larger kit can need permission. Temples are places of worship, so keep quiet and ask before filming monks. Bukchon is residential, with restricted tourist hours. At the DMZ, tours are tightly controlled, photography is restricted at certain points and you must follow the guides' instructions.
Your move
Ready to film Korea? Apply at least three weeks before you travel.