Nationwide, each tourism-related company incurred an average loss of 134 million won for about three weeks following the capsized ferry Sewol incident. (image: Seoul Eum-Go/flickr)
SEOUL, May 15 (Korea Bizwire) – As the aftermath of the capsized ferry Sewol incident strikes hard Korea’s tourism industry, the tourism and transportation industries anguish over massive cancellations of reservations.
According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, based on surveys conducted by the Korea Tourism Association and the Korea Association of Travel Agents on sales patterns during the period from the ferry accident to May 11, an average of 330 million won worth of contract cancellation was reported per travel agency in Seoul.
Nationwide, each tourism-related company incurred an average loss of 134 million won for about three weeks following the April 16 incident. Over the same period, operators of theme parks and amusement parks saw an average of 400 million won in losses.
Ulsan (183 million won), North Gyeongsang Province (152 million won), Daejon (137 million won) and South Chungcheong Province (115 million won) were other cities and provinces that marked a high average loss amount per company. North Jeolla Province (33 million won), Sejong (28 million won) and Gyeonggi Province (18 million won) showed a relatively low average loss.
The biggest cause for mass cancellations was school field trips which accounted for 83 percent of the total amount.
The total loss in tourism, transportation, MICE, and theme park industries was tallied to be 54.8 billion won, but the actual loss is expected to be larger since there are many companies which are not registered in the two associations that conducted the survey.
The amount of loss for Jeju Island’s tourism industry was found to be relatively modest in the first place, but the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry said in a public emergency measure meeting on May 9 that the damage may reach over 10 billion won.
Overall, the actual loss in the tourism industry in the recent month is expected to be much higher than recorded. An official of the ministry said, “We will try our best to quickly find out the total amount of loss and come up with support measures for the flagging industries.”
Written by J. H. Kim (jhkim@koreabizwire.com)
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