"Is This Right?"... Over 230,000 People Left for Japan During the Samiljeol Holiday Weekend
by Han Yeju
Published 09 Mar.2025 10:17(KST)
Updated 09 Mar.2025 10:28(KST)
10% Increase in One Year
Consumer Burden Eased by High Inflation and Weak Yen
Domestic Flights Down 12.5%
Over 230,000 passengers used flights to and from Japan during this year's three-day Samiljeol holiday.
According to data submitted by Incheon International Airport Corporation and Korea Airports Corporation to Lee Yeon-hee, a member of the National Assembly Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea, a total of 231,956 passengers (combined arrivals and departures) used Japan routes from domestic airports between March 1 and 3.
This represents a 10.2% increase compared to the 210,509 passengers who used Japan routes from domestic airports during last year's three-day Samiljeol holiday. It is also 15.1% higher than the 201,467 passengers recorded during the three-day Samiljeol holiday in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
During this year's Samiljeol holiday, 162,235 passengers used Japan routes from Incheon Airport, while 69,721 passengers used Japan routes from five other airports currently operating international flights under Korea Airports Corporation: Gimpo, Gimhae, Jeju, Cheongju, and Daegu. These figures represent increases of 9.1% and 12.9%, respectively, compared to last year's Samiljeol holiday.
The increase in passengers on Japan routes outpaced the overall rise in international flights. The total number of international passengers during this year's Samiljeol holiday was 810,448 (642,240 at Incheon and 168,208 at other airports), which is 7.7% higher than last year's holiday total of 752,409.
The popularity of Japan routes has been soaring since the resumption of visa-free individual travel for foreigners at the end of 2022. This is attributed to reduced consumer burden due to persistent high inflation and a weak yen. This trend appears to have continued without exception during the Samiljeol holiday.
Airlines have responded to the increased demand by adding more flights on popular major city routes such as Tokyo and Osaka, while also launching services to smaller Japanese cities to attract more passengers. Korean Air resumed its Incheon-Kumamoto route in November last year after 27 years, and Asiana Airlines restarted regular flights on this route after about eight years. Eastar Jet became the first domestic airline to operate a route from Incheon to Tokushima in December last year. Amid this trend, the number of Japanese cities connected by regular passenger flights from Incheon Airport increased from 22 last year to 26 this year as of Samiljeol.
While international passengers, especially to Japan, increased during the Samiljeol holiday, domestic flight passengers decreased. Between March 1 and 3, domestic flight passengers totaled 452,873, down 12.5% from 517,643 during last year's Samiljeol holiday. The increase in international passengers corresponded with a decrease in domestic passengers. At Gimpo Airport, passenger numbers fell by 15% to 138,058, and at Jeju Airport, they decreased by 10.5% to 198,547.
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