Sokor visitors to reach pre-covid levels by 4Q

TOURISTS from South Korea will likely revert to their prepandemic numbers by the fourth quarter of the year. This was the confident prediction of Korean Air Country Manager Byungkwon Lee. He said, “For 2023, our average load factor on Seoul [Incheon] - Naia [Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila] was above 85 percent, which is considered very high.” Department of Tourism (DOT) data showed that last year, there were some 1.44 million arrivals from South Korea, accounting for 26 percent of the 5.45 million total inbound arrivals in the Philippines.

As of April 15 this year, there were 514,146 South Korean tourists, or a 27.4- percent market share of the 1.88- million total arrivals for the period. South korea continues to be the top source market of tourists for the Philippines.

In prepandemic 2019, there were almost 2 million arrivals from South Korea, a 22-percent share of total inbound arrivals then that reached an historic high of 8.3 million. Korean Air flies three daily flights to Manila, using an Airbus A330300 and Boeing 777-300, while it flies daily to Cebu on a B777-200.

“In the new summer schedule starting March 30, we actually maintained our flight frequency to Manila at three times daily and Cebu at once daily. It was significant because the summer is a low season, and normally airlines cut back on services during the low season. But we maintained our frequency,” said Lee. “We are experiencing strong passenger volumes, even in low season, and want to deliver the same level of service to our Filipino passengers that fly with us not only to Seoul, but also to many destinations beyond Seoul to North America and Japan,” he added.

Conversely, more Filipinos were flying to South Korea, confirming the view of many local travel agencies. This is why Korean Air decided to increase their flights to three-times daily between Incheon and Manila this year, said Lee, from two-times daily, when the route was restarted in 2020 after a brief pause during the pandemic.

A separate industry source said the South Korean embassy in Manila has been issuing 1,000 to 1,300 visas to Filipinos, daily. The embassy opened its Korea Visa Application Center in Taguig last August, in response to the growing demand for tourist visas from Filipinos.

Meanwhile, passengers from the Philippines may also fly Korean Air if they want to go to the United States as it offers seamless connections to many points because of its joint venture with Delta Air. “Travelers can enjoy the flexibility and convenience of connecting via Seoul Incheon to North America. Korean Air flies to 13 destinations in North America and Delta flies to four major hubs in the US,” said Lee.

From Seoul, passengers can connect to Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington D.C., Honolulu, Las Vegas, and Boston on board Delta, that also flies to Minneapolis and Detroit.

Lee said connecting passengers can actually take free short tours in Seoul on their layover, while waiting for the flight to the US. “No transit visa is needed,” he said. According to information on the Incheon Airport website, among the short tours include a trip to Orange Dunes Club or Club72 (Hanul Course), for golfing enthusiasts; a culture and food trip to Cheongwadae and the Tongin Market; a visit to Gyeongnbokgung Palace and Insa-dong; nature parks, theme parks, temples, among others. Korean Air has a long history of flying to the Philippines, with services having started in 1975. Next year marks its 50 years of services to the country.