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South Korea witnesses ‘revenge tourism’ as citizens flock overseas after easing Covid curbs

Kim Hoe-jun, who had been socially isolated for two years in his home country of South Korea, booked a last-minute flight to Hawaii, where he had spent his honeymoon six years before, to satisfy his desire for international travel.

 

‘I only purchased the ticket a week ago, but it was a no-brainer. It seemed like I was compensating for the two years when I wasn’t able to travel as much as I used to before COVID,’ o non Friday, he remarked this before boarding a jet from Incheon International Airport.

 

Kim and his wife are among the South Koreans who have rushed to schedule ‘revenge travel,’ a word that has been trending on social media as people hustle to book abroad trips that have been postponed due to coronavirus restrictions.

 

After South Korea eliminated a seven-day obligatory quarantine for properly vaccinated travellers travelling from most countries on March 21, the surge began. Last year, the limitation was lifted, but it was reinstated in December as the highly contagious Omicron variety spread.

 

Despite a record COVID-19 outbreak, the country has largely abandoned its once-aggressive tracking and containment efforts, joining a growing list of Asian countries that have relaxed quarantine restrictions, including Singapore, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand.

 

Koreans appear to be more willing to travel currently. People are less concerned about the consequences of contracting the virus, according to polls, and increasingly believe that prevention is beyond their control.

 

Between March 11, when the removal of the quarantine was announced, and March 27, sales of international flight tickets on 11st, an e-commerce unit of SK Telecom Co Ltd, South Korea’s main mobile carrier, increased by more than eightfold over the previous year, according to the firm.

 

Kim Na-yeon, 27, was overjoyed to be returning to Hawaii, where she had previously resided.

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