"One in Four Japanese Visitors to Korea Flew with Jeju Air"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunseok Yoo] Jeju Air announced on the 15th that an analysis of its 2022 international flight transportation performance revealed that 74,238 Japanese visitors, accounting for 25% of all Japanese visitors to Korea throughout the year, used Jeju Air.

According to the Tourism Knowledge Information System of the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute, the number of Japanese visitors to Korea last year was 296,867. This represents approximately a 19-fold increase compared to 15,265 visitors in 2021. Although this is a small number compared to 3,271,706 visitors in 2019, it is regarded as a signal of recovery in demand for tourism to Korea. In particular, in December 2022, the number surged to 84,175 in one month, making Japanese visitors the largest group of foreign visitors to Korea.

Jeju Air proactively resumed major Korea-Japan routes such as Tokyo (Narita), Osaka, Fukuoka, Sapporo, Nagoya, and Okinawa starting in October 2022, when visa-free entry for Japan was reinstated. As a result, in October last year, 14,238 Japanese visitors traveling to Korea used Jeju Air, recording a 228% increase in passenger numbers compared to 4,347 passengers in the previous month, showing a rapid increase in Japanese visitors.

Furthermore, according to Jeju Air’s own analysis of its Japan route transportation performance last year, the route with the highest proportion of Japanese visitors traveling to Korea was ‘Nagoya~Incheon’ at 44%, ranking first. This was followed by the Osaka~Incheon route with 27% of Japanese passengers in second place, and the Tokyo (Narita)~Incheon route with 25% in third place.

Jeju Air cited the overwhelming number of Korea-Japan flights, convenient schedules, and reasonable fares as reasons why Japanese visitors to Korea choose Jeju Air. A Jeju Air official stated, “Starting March 26, we plan to operate 12 Korea-Japan routes, including Incheon~Matsuyama and Shizuoka routes, to maximize travel convenience for tourists from both countries,” adding, “We will also contribute to the recovery of Korea’s tourism industry through active international flight expansions and the discovery of new routes.”

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