With China's Zero-COVID Lift, "Let's Travel"… Surge in Searches for Korean and Japanese Tourist Spots

Facility Quarantine for Arrivals Lifted from the 8th of Next Month
Japan Moves to Tighten Entry Restrictions on Chinese Tourists

On the 26th, ahead of the first year-end after the social distancing measures were lifted, Incheon Airport Terminal 1 was bustling with travelers./Yeongjongdo Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] As China plans to lift its 'zero COVID' policy, including facility quarantine for incoming travelers, starting from the 8th of next month, searches for overseas tourist destinations such as South Korea and Japan have surged.

On the 27th, Chinese media cited the travel booking site Feizhu, reporting that international flight searches increased more than eightfold within an hour after the Chinese authorities' policy announcement. The search volume for flights to China reached the highest level in the past three years.

The travel site Tongcheng also reported that after the policy announcement, international flight searches increased 8.5 times, and visa searches increased tenfold, with the most notable overseas tourist destinations being Japan, South Korea, and Thailand.

US-based CNBC also cited the travel site Trip.com, stating that searches for overseas travel during the Lunar New Year holiday from the 21st to the 27th of next month increased following the policy announcement. The popular overseas travel destinations were Japan, South Korea, Thailand, the United States, Singapore, and Malaysia, in that order.

This trend is due to the Chinese authorities' decision to lower quarantine measures. Until now, incoming travelers had to undergo five days of facility quarantine and three days of self-quarantine, but the Chinese authorities announced that starting from the 8th of next month, facility quarantine for incoming travelers will be discontinued, and the mandatory COVID-19 PCR testing at airports will be eliminated.

Meanwhile, anticipating a surge in Chinese travelers due to this measure, the Japanese government decided to conduct COVID-19 tests on all individuals arriving from China starting from the 30th. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also announced that Japan will strengthen entry restrictions targeting China, where COVID-19 infections are rapidly increasing.

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