'Going to the East Coast Instead of Jeju'... Fewer Visitors to Jeju Due to Rising Airfare and Rental Car Prices

Airfare Rises 4 to 5 Times Higher Than Usual
SUV Rental Prices Reach 1 Million Won Per Week
Jeju Island Experiences Higher Inflation Rate Compared to Other Regions

During the vacation season when people go on summer holidays, some are planning trips to Jeju but end up turning back. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Gun-chan] Mr. A, who lives in Seoul, originally planned a trip to Jeju with his family but changed his plans. The prices of airfare and rental cars were higher than expected, which was a big burden. Mr. A said, "The round-trip airfare for a family of four alone is nearly 1 million won," adding, "If we rent a car and book accommodation, the cost becomes too much, so we're thinking about going to the East Coast, which we can reach by our own car."

During the peak summer vacation season of late July and early August, some people who planned trips to Jeju are turning back. This is because travel-related expenses such as airfare and rental car prices have increased due to the combination of peak season and rising prices.

According to the 'Summer Vacation Traffic Survey' conducted on the 20th of last month by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in collaboration with the Korea Transport Institute, 64.5% of respondents said they would take a summer vacation this year, an increase of 26.7 percentage points compared to the same period last year. The highest response rate, 17.9%, indicated they would take vacations between July 30 and August 5.

However, Jeju is being overlooked by those planning summer vacations this season. The proportion of people choosing Jeju as their summer vacation destination has decreased. The East Coast region ranked first as a domestic summer vacation destination this year with 24.7%. Jeju ranked third with 12.2%, which is 7.8 percentage points lower than last year.

The number of tourists visiting Jeju during the holiday season has not shown a significant increase compared to last year. [Image source=Yonhap News]

In reality, the number of tourists visiting Jeju during the peak summer vacation season of late July and early August has not shown a significant increase compared to last year. Despite this being the first summer vacation season after the full lifting of social distancing measures, the expected surge in tourists has not materialized.

According to the 'Tourist Inflow Status' compiled by the Jeju Tourism Association, 48,347 domestic tourists visited Jeju on the 30th of last month, an increase of 13.4 percentage points compared to the same day last year. However, on the following day, the 31st, the number decreased by 0.4 percentage points. For the entire month of July, the year-on-year increase in tourists was only 10.8 percentage points.

The reason for the modest increase in tourists visiting Jeju is attributed to the recent high inflation, which has raised costs such as airfare for Jeju trips. In particular, airfare has increased about 4 to 5 times compared to usual. Previously, by choosing discounted tickets, one could book the Gimpo-Jeju route for a round trip costing 40,000 to 50,000 won. Currently, weekend one-way fares are around 120,000 won, and weekday prices approach 100,000 won one way. The cost for a family of four to travel to Jeju easily exceeds 1 million won.

Airfare is around 120,000 KRW one way on weekends, and weekday prices also approach 100,000 KRW one way.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Rental car prices are in a similar situation. According to the rental car price comparison app Kamoa on the 17th of last month, rental car bookings in Korea for July and August increased by 68% compared to the same period last year. Among these, Jeju was the region with the most bookings. According to industry sources, the average price for renting an SUV for one week currently exceeds 1 million won.

The higher inflation rate in Jeju compared to other regions is also considered to have influenced the decrease in the number of tourists. The inflation rate in Jeju has been higher than in other areas. According to the 'July Consumer Price Trends' by Statistics Korea, the national consumer price index rose by 6.3% over one year, while Jeju's increased by 7.4%. Dining prices also rose significantly compared to other regions. Jeju ranked first among local governments with a 7.6% year-on-year increase in the personal services sector, which includes dining prices.

Along with increased travel-related expenses due to high inflation, the spreading COVID-19 resurgence is another variable. On the 3rd, the Central Disease Control Headquarters announced that as of midnight, 119,922 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed, bringing the cumulative total to 20,052,305.

Professor Jung Jae-hoon of Gachon University College of Medicine's Department of Preventive Medicine, a member of the National Infectious Disease Crisis Response Advisory Committee, forecasted that the peak of this resurgence could pass between this week and next week. On the 2nd, Professor Jung posted on his Facebook, "I predict the peak of the outbreak will pass between this week and next," adding, "The scale of the outbreak is expected to be less than half of the initial estimates."

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