Jeju Vacationers Flock: "No Vacant Rooms Until September"

450,000 Tourists This Month
5-Star Hotels Fully Booked in Boom
Domestic Duty-Free Sales Showing Recovery Trend

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-seon] Due to the impact of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), summer vacation demand is concentrating on Jeju Island. The number of domestic tourists visiting Jeju in a single day has exceeded 40,000, and there are no vacant rooms in 5-star hotels. Duty-free store sales targeting domestic tourists are also recovering as people open their wallets domestically instead of traveling abroad.

According to the Jeju Tourism Association on the 12th, the cumulative number of domestic tourists from the beginning of this month to the 11th reached 456,806, a 1.6% increase compared to the same period last year (449,411). This is the first time since January this year that the number of tourists has increased compared to the previous year in August. On the 1st, the number of tourists in one day reached 49,219. Compared to the 15,000 or so domestic tourists during March and April when COVID-19 was rampant, this is more than three times higher.

As people head to Jeju, 5-star hotels are enjoying a boom. Jeju Shilla Hotel is fully booked except for some high-priced suites this month. A hotel official explained, "Since the COVID-19 situation, considering the congestion within the facility, we only accept reservations for 80% of the total rooms," adding, "With honeymoon and summer vacation demand coinciding, there are almost no remaining rooms for this month."

The situation is similar at Jeju Lotte Hotel, Pinx Podo Hotel, and Haevichi Hotel. In particular, Pinx Podo Hotel, which has 26 rooms all on one floor, is fully booked until September despite the room rate exceeding 500,000 won per night.

Sales at duty-free stores used by domestic tourists are also recovering. Domestic duty-free store (designated duty-free store) sales, which were 23 billion won in March, nearly doubled to 42.4 billion won in June. A duty-free store official said, "We expect sales to increase further in July and August as the number of tourists increases," adding, "It is understood that people who cannot travel abroad and thus cannot use duty-free stores are purchasing cosmetics at domestic duty-free stores in Jeju."

Meanwhile, accommodations and casinos that mainly serve foreign tourists are still struggling. The number of foreign tourists visiting Jeju remains at 100 to 200, about 3% of last year’s level. In particular, casinos in the province are exclusively for foreigners, as domestic tourists are not allowed to enter, resulting in sales plummeting by more than 90%, leading to closures or shortened business hours.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.