Vietnam a favorite escape from South Korean winter

The Golden Bridge in the Ba Na Hills, Da Nang City, has proven to be a very popular tourism attraction. Photo by Shutterstock

With 33.7 percent of total reservations, Vietnam is the most popular Southeast Asian destination for South Koreans this year, according to the South Korean news agency.

It cited Hanoi Tour, a prominent travel agency in the Republic of Korea (RoK), as saying South Korean bookings to Southeast Asian countries for December ranked first among all overseas reservations.

Thailand and the Philippines are also popular destinations for South Koreans.

The report said Da Nang’s renowned resorts contributed to Vietnam’s popularity.

It also noted that as winter arrives in the last month of the year, South Koreans look for warmer climes in Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries.

Besides the Southeast Asian nations, Japan occupies 18% of all reservations, while in December 2017, it claimed first place at 44.8%.

Earlier, in June, Ticket Monster Inc., one of the largest travel booking sites in the RoK, listed Da Nang among top 10 summer destinations for South Koreans, based on bookings for July and August.

South Koreans have become one of the biggest groups of visitors to Vietnam in recent years. In 2017, Vietnam welcomed 2.4 million Korean visitors. In the first ten months of this year, the number was more than 2.8 million, a 48.3 percent year-on-year increase, according to Vietnam National Administration of Tourism.

A 15-day visa exemption for South Korean tourists and frequent direct flights between the two countries have also contributed to making Vietnam a top draw.

Besides flights from big South Korean cities like Seoul and Busan, seven direct flights per week between Da Nang and Daegu in the RoK are expected to be launched next month.