A new call center -- the phone number is 1330 -- provides Olympic information in eight languages: Korean, English, Japanese, Mandarin, Russian, Vietnamese, Thai and Malaysian·Indonesian. It will be in operation until March 18, the last day of the Paralympic Winter Games. (Korea Tourism Organization)
By Kang Gahui and Son Gina
If you ask in Russian, "Are there any rooms available for less than KRW 150,000 per night in Gangneung on Feb. 10?" the operator will answer you in proficient Russian and give you the contact information for some accommodations in that price range, in that city, on that day.
The 1330 call center is an information hotline operated by the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO). If you were to dial 1330 in Korea, without any area code or other prefix, you were able to get in touch with the KTO's Tour Guide Service in four languages: Korean, English, Japanese and Mandarin.
The 1330 Special Olympic Call Center is now being operated in honor of the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. It started on Dec. 7, last year and will operate until March 18, the final day of the Paralympic Winter Games.
This new Special Olympic Call Center has added Russian, Vietnamese, Thai and Malaysian/ Indonesian to the existing four languages, so that tourists will be able to obtain detailed information in a total eight languages concerning accommodations, food, transportation and cultural events. The service is free of charge.
The KTO said that the added language services will run from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m for the first time, and that it plans to expand operations in all eight languages to 24 hours a day.
kgh89@korea.kr
