“I was looking at the travel package for Mount Baekdu, and since it was a Jeju Air flight, I immediately canceled it. I felt scared and thought I couldn't get on.”
Kim Yeon-joo, a 32-year-old office worker who had booked a trip to Mount Baekdu, said on the 31st, “A travel package for around 300,000 won is relatively inexpensive, so I was planning to depart with a friend in February next year.” Kim plans to consider traveling products composed of major airline flights, even if it costs more, instead of those that include domestic low-cost carrier (LCC) flights.
According to related industries, major travel agencies in the country have been inundated with cancellation inquiries for travel packages scheduled for early next year. In the case of Jeju Air flights, there are many instances where cancellations or requests for exchanges to other airlines like Jin Air are made. A travel agency official noted, “Cancellations of travel packages that include Jeju Air account for about 60% of all cancellation cases,” adding that this figure is “2 to 3 times higher than usual.”
As of 1 p.m. the previous day, Jeju Air reported approximately 68,000 cancelations of airline tickets. Domestic flights accounted for about 33,000 cancellations, while international flights saw around 34,000. An industry official said, “In addition to cancellations of airline tickets, there has been a flood of requests to change departure airports from Muan to Incheon,” adding that “the volume of cancellation inquiries has been so high that we don't even have the capacity to tally the number of cancellations.”
As cancellation inquiries continued unabated, travel agencies have begun implementing measures such as waiving cancellation fees. Hana Tour decided to waive cancellation fees for Jeju Air flight products departing by the 10th of next month. Local hotel accommodations and events will also not incur cancellation fees. Interpark Tour has also decided to waive fees when changing to flights other than Jeju Air. Other travel agencies are expected to announce similar cancellation policies.
As thousands of travelers cancel overseas trips daily, the lodging industry is also being hit hard. An official in the lodging industry said, “Cancellations have increased by 20 to 30% compared to usual.” Another official noted, “Even if they don’t cancel, there are many inquiries about whether they can change hotel and resort reservation dates while shifting airline ticket dates,” adding that “more than half of trips scheduled for early next year have been postponed.”
The industry is worried that amid the rapid rise in the won-dollar exchange rate (a decline in the value of the won) due to political instability, the consumption of travel products itself may freeze as a result of the recent disaster. According to the Seoul foreign exchange market, the won-dollar exchange rate was trading at 1,470 won, down 4.10 won from the previous day's closing price of 1,474.10 won, as of 4 p.m. Considering that the won-dollar exchange rate closed at 1,401 won just before the declaration of emergency martial law on Dec. 3, this constitutes an approximately 70 won increase in one month.
An industry official said, “The economic situation next year doesn't look too good, and with bad news piling up, all we can do is sigh,” adding, “It seems unlikely the exchange rate will easily drop, and the disaster itself will likely diminish travel sentiment for the time being. I am more worried about what lies ahead.”