Quarantine for Arrivals Leads to Cancellation of Honeymoon and Business Trips... Government's Delayed Measures Increase Confusion

On the 2nd, as the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases reached 5,266, setting a new daily record, citizens visiting the screening clinic set up at Gangseo-gu Public Health Center in Seoul are waiting to get tested. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy reporters Seo So-jeong and Yoo Je-hoon] "I was preparing to go on my honeymoon to Hawaii, USA next week, but I had to cancel it urgently due to the 10-day self-quarantine measure. We postponed our wedding several times because of COVID-19, and now having to postpone the honeymoon too makes me feel really down."

Park, 31, who lives in Jongno-gu, Seoul, called the travel agency call center at 9 a.m. on the 2nd, right when it opened, with a trembling heart. The honeymoon was scheduled for next week, but the government announced late the previous afternoon that, to block the domestic inflow of the Omicron variant, all foreigners and Koreans entering the country from any country for the next two weeks would be subject to a 10-day quarantine.

Park said, "When I inquired at the travel agency, they said that honeymoon trips during this period can be canceled with no cancellation fees, so at least that's a relief," adding, "But it's disappointing that I can't go on the long-awaited overseas honeymoon with the implementation of With-Corona."

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters, from 0:00 on the 3rd to midnight on the 16th, all foreigners and Koreans entering from any country during the next two weeks must quarantine for 10 days regardless of vaccination status. The enhanced quarantine exemption system will be applied, minimizing the issuance of quarantine exemption certificates limited to attending funerals or official duties. Even those who previously received quarantine exemption certificates for visiting immediate family or business trips as overseas vaccinated persons will be subject to quarantine for two weeks.

On the morning of the same day, travel agencies were flooded with calls inquiring about overseas travel. A representative from Mode Tour said, "The government announced this urgently yesterday, so we held an emergency meeting as soon as we arrived at work," adding, "For now, we have decided to waive cancellation fees for honeymoon reservations during the relevant period and will consider additional measures depending on the situation."

Corporate overseas business trips are also in a state of emergency. A travel agency official said, "There are many calls asking whether major IT and bio conferences scheduled to be held in the USA next year can proceed," adding, "Since the USA has not blocked entry itself, major events are planned to proceed as scheduled, but there are many inquiries expressing concern." This is because if quarantine is required locally or if the quarantine period is extended to block Omicron inflow in the future, it could affect plans.

Schedules for overseas business travelers are also being changed one after another. A mid-sized domestic company planned to visit Indonesia this month to discuss local business with partners, but due to the Omicron variant, Indonesian authorities extended the mandatory quarantine period upon entry to 7 days, and Korea also decided on a 10-day mandatory quarantine, so they are considering switching to non-face-to-face meetings.

Park, who is about to go on a business trip to Europe, said, "Since I have many meetings for work, a 10-day self-quarantine after entry is practically impossible," and added, "I am rescheduling the business trip to avoid the quarantine period."

The quarantine authorities said, "We will continue to monitor the risk and spread of the overseas Omicron variant and plan to expand or adjust the designation of countries with strengthened quarantine measures."

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