Devoted BTS fans make pilgrimage to South Korea to get closer to their idols
The chart-topping K-pop band has a truly international fan base, and many are visiting South Korea to learn more about where the stars come from and visit their old hang outs
By Kwan Yeon-soo
For Shawn Marie, 47, and her daughter Stelfi Klug, flying from Germany to South Korea was like a dream come true.
As part of the BTS Army fan base, they were overjoyed at the chance to watch K-pop concerts live and follow in the footsteps of their favourite seven-member Korean boy band.
The day after they arrived in South Korea, on August 31, the duo booked tickets for a K-pop concert in Incheon, a city neighbouring the capital, Seoul. A day later, they embarked on the “BTS tour”.
“Thanks to BTS, we’ve come to love everything about Korea, not just K-pop,” says Marie.
Now that BTS have become high-fliers in the US Billboard 200 and the Hot 100 charts, more fans from around the world are flying to South Korea to visit “holy sites” associated with the band in and around Seoul. They explore places where BTS spent most of their time before making their musical debut in June 2013, and get to witness signs of their popularity.
