Beauty on a budget: The cosmetic surgery capital that tourists can’t resist
Tourists are flocking to one location in particular for a makeover.
Forget Paris or Bali, South Korea has quietly become the new pilgrimage site for anyone chasing a younger face or a sharper jawline.
Just like the country’s music, the South Korean K-beauty craze has now gone global, drawing thousands of foreigners—especially New Yorkers—seeking top-tier cosmetic work at a fraction of U.S. prices.
The logic is simple: fly halfway across the world, spend a few weeks on tour, and still save thousands. From facelifts and Botox to skin rejuvenation and eye reshaping, clinics in Seoul are offering full makeover packages that combine medical precision with five-star hospitality.
One Manhattan-based influencer, who regularly documents her trips online, books several procedures per visit, with the reason being that the same session in New York would cost up to six times more.
“The US and the rest of the world are at least five years behind,” claimed Y. Lee, the influencer in question, said on her @taxinoodle account. “I really liked the results and liked the entire experience,” she added, saying “It’s really expensive here compared to Korea.”
Prices tell the story. A Botox treatment that costs around $600–700 in the U.S. averages barely $100 in Seoul. A full facelift and neck lift that might hit $50,000 back home can be done — along with aftercare, accommodation, and airport pickup included — for roughly $35,000. Many clinics even employ translators and personal coordinators who guide patients through every step, from consultation to recovery.
Dr. Roy Kim, a plastic surgeon with offices in San Francisco and Beverly Hills and an American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) Member, spoke to the NY Post, saying: “Korea has very high standards of medical care, sanitation, cleanliness and ethics.”
@taxinoodle Replying to @toostunnedtospeak FULL LIST OF ALL TREATMENTS I GOT IN KOREA #koreabeauty #koreabeautytreatments #kbeauty #greenscreen
♬ original sound - Taxinoodle
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"The Korean government is quite aware of the economic gains of foreign citizens coming to Korea for medical and surgical care, and the same high standards for Korean citizens are the same for non-Korean citizens.”
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