GroundK was selected to run the transport and protocol operations for the APEC 2025 KOREA First Senior Officials' Meeting (SOM1) in Gyeongju. For more than 2,000 delegates from 21 member economies, our team designed and operated arrival-to-departure mobility connecting Gimhae International Airport and KTX stations with the Gyeongju HICO convention center and the main hotels.
Gyeongju as the stage, and the mobility challenge
Gyeongju represents Korea's history and culture, which makes it a fitting host city for an international meeting. Its transport infrastructure, however, needed support. The first task was to improve access from Gimhae International Airport, the KTX stations, and the bus terminal to the venue at Gyeongju HICO and the main hotels.
SOM1 was a large gathering, with more than 2,000 delegates from 21 economies. For participants to focus fully on the meeting, the mobility underneath it had to run without gaps. As the first gateway leading into the APEC 2025 KOREA Summit, SOM1 was where our team concentrated on an operation plan built to offset the limits of a regional city.
Planning the journey from arrival to departure
The work began with analysis. Our team first mapped the travel routes and the vehicles each route would need. Seen from the perspective of overseas and domestic participants arriving through the international airport and the KTX stations, we accounted for every leg between venue and hotels and built a complete arrival-to-departure plan.
Preparing for the unexpected mattered as much as the plan itself. Our team maintained a 24-hour crisis response system and monitored every movement in real time, so that any unforeseen change could be met immediately on the ground.
"From arrival to departure — the flawless mobility service that launched APEC 2025 SOM1." — APEC 2025 KOREA SOM1 operations slogan
Guidance built for international participants
For a global event, lowering the language barrier was central. Our team produced all guidance material in English so overseas participants could follow it with ease. We prepared detailed materials covering shuttle route maps, timetables, and boarding points, and installed English signage on every vehicle and at every stop.
We also assigned multilingual guides, so global participants could move comfortably between the venue and their hotels without losing their way. Participants praised this attention to detail as a genuine experience of Korean hospitality.
A data-driven, purpose-based shuttle strategy
Our team studied the movement patterns of SOM1 participants and designed the service so that riders could choose a shuttle by their own purpose. For transport hubs such as Gimhae International Airport and the KTX stations, we analyzed every flight and KTX schedule in advance, identified the windows of peak demand, and built the arrival and departure timetables around them. To remove friction in venue travel, we ran a circulating shuttle between Gyeongju HICO and the main hotels.
Service followed the fixed timetable, but when ridership surged, we added vehicles on a flexible basis. As a result, participants could move between hubs whenever they needed and keep their attention on the meeting. The operation reaffirmed that, at a large event, a purpose-based strategy is what pushes mobility efficiency to its peak — a method we have organized into our MICE shuttle operations playbook and apply across other events.
Seeing every vehicle in real time with VMS
A key reason GroundK could take on a larger role at SOM1 — and earn recognition for it — was our in-house VMS (Vehicle Management Service) solution. VMS lets us monitor the location and status of every vehicle in real time. Where each vehicle is heading, who is driving it, and how it sits against live traffic all appear on a single view.
This technology is what allowed us to go beyond simply boarding participants smoothly: it let our team respond quickly to the unexpected, from accidents to congestion.
Trained staff holding service quality at every hub
Large international events bring frequent surprises. Our team placed trained staff at every hub, building a structure that could resolve on-site issues the moment they arose. With dedicated personnel at the airport, the KTX stations, the hotels, and the venue, we handled shuttle guidance and shared broader information about the event and about Gyeongju itself, lifting participant satisfaction further.
"Smooth mobility makes an international event succeed — and GroundK takes responsibility for it." — GroundK
What SOM1 leaves behind, and what comes next
APEC 2025 KOREA SOM1 closed successfully, with high participant satisfaction earned through tailored operations, attentive on-site response, and IT-driven strategy. Mobility at an international event is now more than moving people from place to place: it is a way to show hospitality and expertise, and a factor that raises a nation's brand value.
Drawing on experience built across many international and large-scale events, GroundK supports the technology, know-how, and expertise that keep an event running smoothly. We deliver gap-free mobility even in regional cities where transport infrastructure is thin, and we act as the partner that shows the world Korea's professionalism and spirit of service. Take the first step toward a successful event with GroundK.
