Nearby overseas destinations such as Japan and Vietnam are emerging as popular choices among Korean travelers during the upcoming Chuseok holiday, with travel demand rising while spending per traveler has declined slightly from a year earlier.

According to a survey of 1,000 Korean travelers conducted by global travel platform Skyscanner, 56 percent said they plan to travel during Chuseok.

Flight searches for departures from Korea between Sept. 13 and Oct. 3 surged 92.4 percent from searches for the corresponding period around last year’s Chuseok, based on searches made between Jan. 1 and July 31 of each year.

Despite the rise in travel demand, average spending per traveler is expected to fall slightly to 1.33 million won ($960), down from a year earlier.

According to Skyscanner search data, Tokyo was the most popular overseas destination, followed by Nha Trang in Vietnam, Japan's Sapporo, Shanghai, Taiwan capital Taipei, Da Nang in Vietnam, Sydney, Bangkok, Vietnam's largest island Phu Quoc and Osaka, Japan. Nine of the top 10 destinations were in Asia, reflecting Korean travelers’ preference for relatively short-haul trips.


don@heraldcorp.com