"5 out of 10 Koreans... Plan to Travel This Chuseok Holiday"

Jeju Air Survey of 4,188 People
"41% Preparing Domestic Travel, 9% Preparing Overseas Travel"
Top Consideration Is 'Travel Destination Cost'

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Hyun-seok] Five out of ten Koreans plan to travel during this year’s Chuseok holiday period.

According to Jeju Air on the 24th, a survey on domestic and international travel plans for the Chuseok holiday was conducted via SNS from the 10th to the 19th. Among 4,118 respondents, 1,699 (41%) said they planned domestic travel, and 382 (9%) planned overseas travel. This was followed by ‘visiting hometown or family and relatives’ with 786 (19%), ‘staying at home with family’ with 737 (18%), and ‘undecided’ with 514 (13%).

When asked what they considered most important if they were to take an air trip this Chuseok, 1,615 (39.2%) chose ‘a travel destination within budget,’ followed by ‘COVID-19 quarantine status of the destination’ (1,175; 28.5%) and ‘a travel destination they have always wanted to visit’ (1,101; 26.7%).

Regarding the item on which they would spend the most from their set budget for Chuseok air travel, 1,751 (42.5%) answered expenses at the travel destination such as restaurants, cafes, golf, leisure, and transportation. 1,557 (37.8%) chose ‘good accommodation,’ 651 (15.8%) ‘airfare,’ and 159 (3.9%) ‘shopping expenses including duty-free shopping.’

Among Jeju Air’s destinations, ‘Jeju’ was the most desired travel spot during the Chuseok holiday, accounting for 49.9% (2,056), nearly half of all respondents. Guam (564; 13.7%), Da Nang (351; 8.5%), Saipan (344; 8.4%), and Bangkok (311; 7.6%) followed.

The biggest reasons for hesitation about air travel this Chuseok were the quarantine status of the destination (1,329; 32.3%), high travel costs (1,010; 24.5%), and entry procedures such as pre-entry PCR tests for overseas travel (774; 18.8%). Some respondents also cited lack of flights due to no desired routes or schedule mismatches (531; 12.9%) and airfare (292; 7.1%).

When asked about the expected timing for overseas travel after this year’s Chuseok, 1,214 (29.5%) chose ‘the first half of next year.’ 1,024 (24.9%) said ‘by the end of this year,’ 891 (21.6%) ‘summer vacation between July and September next year,’ and 590 (14.3%) ‘the end of next year (October to December).’

A Jeju Air official said, “Demand for traveling with family and friends during the holiday period is increasing,” adding, “We will continue efforts to meet the changing travel trends and diversified customer needs due to COVID-19.”

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