Vacationers spend time at Samyang Beach on the southern resort island of Jeju on July 9, 2022. (Yonhap)
JEJU, July 18 (Korea Bizwire) — The number of tourists visiting the southern resort island of Jeju attempting to cut costs by taking car ferries and bringing their vehicles to the island is growing amid sharp increases in the price of plane tickets and rental cars.
According to the Jeju Tourism Association, the number of tourists who visited the island during the period from January to July 14 was estimated at about 7.28 million, of which about 348,000 tourists used car ferries.
Previously, there were almost no tourists who traveled to the island using car ferries.
For the ferry operator Seaworld Express Ferries, the number of customers who booked a passage bound for Jeju during the period from July 23 to August 16 stood at 111,100 and the number of reservations for car consignments stood at 25,000.
These figures marked a sharp increase compared to a year ago when they stood at 67,500 and 17,000, respectively.
“After surveying 100 lowest price cases in light of the issuance of air tickets to Jeju in July, we found that the price of air tickets rose by about 75 percent compared to a year ago, primarily due to the hike in peak season prices and an increase in fuel surcharges,” an official at a travel agency said.
Despite a spike in the cost of renting a car, booking is not easy.
“The July booking rate reached 90 percent as of July 11 and the booking rate for the August 1 to 14 period stands at about 45 percent,” said An official from a Jeju car rental company said,
“For the island, booking is not easy since most of the reservations are made at least one month prior to arrival.”
Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
