Gangneung Hotels Jump from 80,000 Won to Over 600,000 Won... Korea, China, Japan Golden Holiday Already Fully Booked

As the upcoming "golden holiday" period, lasting up to five consecutive days in early May, approaches, major hotels and resorts across the country have reported reservation rates nearing full capacity. The aftermath of the Middle East conflict has driven up exchange rates and oil prices, increasing demand for domestic travel over overseas trips. Additionally, holidays in neighboring countries such as Japan and China are coinciding with Korea’s golden holiday, resulting in a surge of inbound foreign tourists. At premium accommodations, only the most expensive rooms, priced at between 2 million and 3 million won, remain available. Meanwhile, prices at key tourist destinations have soared-some have risen more than sevenfold compared to usual rates.

Foreign tourists, including those from Japan and China, are arriving at Terminal 1 of Incheon International Airport. Photo by Kim Hyunmin

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According to industry sources on April 29, Lotte Hotel & Resort’s Seoul city properties, including L7 Myeongdong by Lotte Hotel and Lotte City Hotel Myeongdong, as well as Lotte Resort Sokcho and Lotte Resort Buyeo, have recorded reservation rates exceeding 95% for May 1-4, essentially reaching full occupancy. Lotte Hotel Jeju and Lotte City Hotel Jeju have also reached around 90% reservation rates.

During the same period, Josun Hotels & Resorts’ major properties in Seoul, Busan, and Jeju have exceeded an 85% booking rate. Eland Park’s Kensington Hotels & Resorts, which operates key resorts and hotels in Seoul, Seorak (Gangwon Province), Gyeongju (North Gyeongsang Province), Hadong (South Gyeongsang Province), and Jeju, have also surpassed 90% occupancy, nearing full capacity. In the industry, when more than 90% of all rooms are filled-taking into account maintenance, repairs, and contingency planning-it is considered an exceptional period.

From this year, May 1-Labor Day-has been designated an official public holiday, meaning that by taking leave on May 4, people can enjoy a five-day break including Children’s Day on May 5. This has further fueled domestic travel demand, and as travelers rush to secure rooms, early bookings have surged. The overlap with Japan’s "Golden Week" (late April to early May) and China’s "Labor Day" (May 1-5) holidays has also made finding available rooms even more difficult.

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According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization, the number of Japanese tourists visiting Korea during this golden holiday period is expected to reach 80,000 to 90,000, representing an 18-20% increase in daily average compared to the same period last year. The number of Chinese tourists is also projected to rise to 100,000 to 110,000-up 22-32% from last year’s holiday period.

In fact, the Grand Hyatt Jeju within the Jeju Dream Tower Integrated Resort, operated by Lotte Tour Development, saw up to 1,550 out of 1,600 rooms booked per day during early May, with more than 70% of guests identified as foreign nationals. At Paradise City, an integrated resort on Yeongjongdo, Incheon, high demand from Japanese casino visitors pushed reservations to over 90% of the 769 available rooms. Furthermore, following its acquisition by Paradise and its reopening last month, the "Hyatt Regency Incheon Paradise City" achieved near-full bookings of its 501 rooms for the first time since its renovation and reopening.

An industry source commented, "With growing interest in traveling to Korea among foreign tourists, reservations are now dispersed not only across traditional hotspots like Seoul, Busan, and Jeju, but also to nationwide properties favored by locals, including the Gangwon region. Foreign visitors’ travel purposes are diversifying, from climbing Seoraksan to beachside running, and small-city-focused tourism trends, similar to those in Japan, are also spreading."

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Room rates for the few remaining available rooms at major tourist destinations have also jumped sharply. According to Triple, a hyper-personalized travel platform operated by Nol Universe, the lowest price for an Executive Grand Deluxe Room at The Shilla Seoul on May 2-the peak of the holiday-has been set at 1.86 million won per night. This room, which includes lounge and outdoor pool access, normally costs about 600,000 won on weekdays in May-more than three times less than the holiday rate. At Grand Hyatt Jeju, only suite rooms priced close to 3 million won remain available. Elsewhere, the lowest available rate at Shilla Stay Haeundae, which is usually 159,000 won on weekdays in May, has risen to 593,000 won during the golden holiday, while Skybay Hotel Gyeongpo in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, saw its weekday rate of 82,000 won soar to 607,000 won during the holiday-an increase of more than sevenfold.

An industry insider said, "With soaring demand for rooms at major tourist destinations, even customers holding resort memberships find it difficult to reserve rooms during their preferred dates. As a result, competition to secure rooms at hotels-where there is no distinction between members and non-members-has become much fiercer. With foreign tourist numbers continuing to rise, bookings for the summer peak season and even beyond are already filling up."

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