Gwangbokjeol Holiday Overlaps with End-of-Season Vacations... How Will the 'Quarantine Crisis' Be Handled This Weekend?

Visitors enjoying water play at Gwakji Beach in Aewol-eup, Jeju City. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghoon Jeong] "Is it reasonable to stay home for the entire three-day holiday? I will try to avoid contact while going out..."

This is the story of office worker Sim Jihyeon (30), who is leaving for a trip to Mokpo, Jeollanam-do, on the afternoon of the 13th. Having not yet taken her summer vacation, she plans to stay in her hometown Mokpo by using annual leave next week. Sim said, "Although I feel burdened going back home due to the spread of COVID-19, I also tested negative with a rapid antigen test," adding, "While there are concerns about the spread of the infectious disease due to increased movement, staying home all the time only leads to depression."

The three-day Liberation Day holiday from the 14th to the 16th has put quarantine measures on high alert. With daily new COVID-19 cases hovering around 2,000, there are concerns that increased movement during the holiday could cause a surge in infections. People infected in the metropolitan area may spread the virus in non-metropolitan tourist areas, and then return to the metropolitan area causing further sporadic infections. Although health authorities are urging people to refrain from traveling and moving during the Liberation Day holiday, it is uncertain how much public cooperation will be achieved.

A survey conducted by leisure platform company Daily Hotel on August 4-5 with 1,840 members showed that 57.4% of respondents planned to take a vacation after mid-August. The traditional peak vacation period of late July to early August accounted for 28.8%. Office worker Park Kwangsu (35) said, "Since COVID-19, it has become difficult to plan long vacations such as overseas trips," adding, "I plan to use the Liberation Day holiday to go to Gapyeong, Gyeonggi-do."

Local governments in major tourist destinations such as Jeju Island and Gangwon Province are in a state of emergency. Although the number of local cases decreased after the peak vacation period from late July to early August, the rapid increase in metropolitan area cases raises the possibility of a surge during the Liberation Day holiday. Professor Eom Jung-sik, an infectious disease specialist at Gachon University Gil Medical Center, said, "If the trend of more than 2,000 confirmed cases is not controlled, explosive increases like those seen in countries such as the UK are a concern," and emphasized, "It is necessary to refrain from traveling during the holiday period."

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