My Hometown Has Traffic Jams, Traveling to Japan and Southeast Asia During Lunar New Year Holiday

Seol Holiday Travel Bookings Surge 7000%

After the social distancing measures due to COVID-19 were effectively lifted, the number of travelers heading overseas during the first Lunar New Year holiday is expected to increase significantly. Popular overseas travel destinations are Japan and Southeast Asia.

According to Hana Tour, the country's top travel agency, about 15,000 people have booked package tours departing between the 20th and 24th, which includes the Lunar New Year holiday. This is a 7,015% increase compared to last year's Lunar New Year holiday. Compared to the Lunar New Year holiday in 2020, just before the COVID-19 outbreak, this is about half the level of recovery.

On December 30, 2023, two days before the New Year, Gimpo Airport's domestic terminal in Seoul was bustling with travelers. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

By region, Southeast Asia accounted for the largest share at 54%, followed by Japan at 30%, and Europe at 7%.

In Southeast Asia, Vietnam (36%), Thailand (17%), and the Philippines (12%) ranked at the top. In Japan, North Kyushu, Osaka, and Hokkaido showed a balanced distribution.

Looking at departure dates, 32% of travelers depart on the first day of the holiday, the 21st, and 26% depart the day before the holiday, the 20th. Hana Tour said, "We can feel that travel sentiment is reviving as most Lunar New Year holiday packages are fully booked."

Airlines Also Increase Flights for Lunar New Year Holiday

On the morning of the 1st, the departure hall of Terminal 1 at Incheon International Airport was bustling with passengers embarking on trips to celebrate the New Year.

Airlines will increase domestic and international flights during the Lunar New Year holiday period to facilitate the movement of travelers.

Jeju Air will operate 38 additional domestic flights from the 19th to the 26th on routes such as Gimpo~Jeju, Busan, Daegu, Busan~Jeju, and Cheongju~Jeju, as well as 54 additional international flights on routes including Incheon~Sapporo, Osaka, Da Nang, and Bangkok.

Asiana Airlines will operate 10 additional flights from the 20th to the 24th on routes such as Gimpo~Gwangju, Jeju, Yeosu, and Yeosu~Jeju, adding 1,740 seats. Asiana Airlines also decided to increase the free checked baggage allowance for all domestic flights during this period from the existing 20 kg to 30 kg.

On Lunar New Year’s Day, the 22nd, Asiana Airlines will offer tteokguk (rice cake soup) and sikhye (sweet rice drink) as special menu items to business class passengers on long-haul flights departing from Incheon (to the Americas, Europe, and Sydney), and traditional yukwa (Korean rice cookies) to economy class passengers.

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