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The Korea Times

For many South Korean families, traditional holiday gatherings may be getting smaller this Lunar New Year, but suitcases are getting bigger.
More than half of flight searches this holiday are for Japan, signalling a sharp shift away from the domestic travel boom that defined the holiday last year.
Flight search data from Skyscanner shows Japan accounts for 51.6 per cent of all Lunar New Year holiday queries by South Korean travellers, with Fukuoka leading at 23.3 per cent, followed closely by Osaka at 23.2 per cent and Tokyo at 13.7 per cent.
The only domestic destination to crack the top 10 is Jeju, at 11.6 per cent – a steep drop from last year, when domestic destinations including Busan, Seoul and Jeju held the top three spots and made up 57 per cent of all searches.
The reversal is driven in part by the calendar.
In 2025, an extra government-designated holiday created a nine-day break without requiring any annual leave, encouraging families to complete traditional ancestral rites before adding a domestic trip.
This year’s official holiday spans just three days, from February 16 to 18, pushing travellers to choose between going home for family rites or going abroad – and many are choosing the airport over the ancestral altar.
“Flight search volume for the early part of the year rose 4.12 per cent compared with an already high baseline last year,” said Jessica Min, a travel expert at Skyscanner.
“With 44 per cent of respondents saying they would travel during the holiday if it’s with family, short-haul destinations that are easy to navigate with multiple generations are drawing the strongest demand.”

The trend, widely described in South Korean media as “aeroplane instead of the ancestral table”, reflects a cultural shift. Industry data shows the concept of “multigenerational travel”, where grandparents, parents and children travel together in place of traditional rituals, has become the defining narrative of this year’s holiday season.
Japan’s appeal is anchored in the weak yen. With the currency hovering near historic lows against the US dollar, dining, shopping and accommodation costs in cities like Osaka and Fukuoka remain significantly cheaper than in previous years.
Booking.com data confirms that Tokyo, Osaka and Fukuoka held the top three spots in accommodation searches for the second consecutive year, with Fukuoka seeing a 22 per cent jump in search interest.
Beyond Japan, Vietnam and China are emerging as strong contenders. Skyscanner data puts both countries at 12.7 per cent of overall searches. Vietnam’s Phu Quoc island recorded the most dramatic surge – a 71 per cent increase in Booking.com search volume compared with the holiday season last year, leaping from 15th to fifth place in accommodation rankings. The resort island’s rise signals a growing appetite for quieter, resort-centred getaways over traditional city-hopping itineraries.
China is benefiting from relaxed visa policies and a roughly 25 per cent expansion in air routes between the two countries. Shanghai bookings jumped 270 per cent year on year, according to travel agency Mode Tour.

Japan’s Sapporo also broke into the top 10 for the first time, with accommodation searches climbing 31 per cent, driven by the Sapporo Snow Festival and the appeal of hot springs and winter landscapes. The city’s rise reflects a broader shift towards seasonal and experiential travel over conventional sightseeing.
Trip durations are also stretching. Trip.com data shows 65 per cent of South Korean travellers are booking trips of four days or longer, with 43 per cent choosing four- to seven-day itineraries and 22 per cent opting for eight to 14 days. Long-haul flight bookings surged 50 per cent, and first-class ticket purchases jumped 83 per cent compared with last year, pointing to a growing premium segment.
Last year, a total of 1.34 million South Koreans travelled abroad during the 10-day holiday window from January 24 to February 2, with 1.05 million departing through Incheon International Airport alone. Daily outbound passengers averaged 134,000, a 13.8 per cent increase from the previous year’s Lunar New Year, making it the busiest such travel period since the airport opened in 2001.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport added 7 per cent more flights and expanded available seats by 5.8 per cent to 4.22 million to absorb the demand. Total inbound and outbound Incheon Airport passenger traffic reached a daily average of 214,000, surpassing the pre-pandemic 2019 peak of 202,000 by 6 per cent.


For 2026, the trajectory shows no signs of slowing: South Korea’s total outbound departures are projected to reach 30.23 million for the full year, up 2.6 per cent from an estimated 29.47 million in 2025, setting a new all-time high.
Sydney and Paris both appeared in the top 10 accommodation searches, suggesting a widening travel radius among a segment of South Korean travellers willing to use the extended break for more ambitious trips.
Five-star hotel bookings rose 59 per cent globally during the Lunar New Year period, with upper-tier properties accounting for roughly 75 per cent of all reservations across major Asian destinations, according to Trip.com.
The inbound picture is equally striking. South Korea-bound flight bookings from overseas rose 88 per cent year on year, with demand spreading beyond traditional source markets in China and Japan to include Poland, Canada and Uzbekistan.
“Travellers’ goals have expanded well beyond visiting tourist attractions – they’re seeking more diverse and personalised experiences,” said Hong Jong-min, Trip.com’s South Korea country manager.
Laura Houldsworth, managing director for Asia-Pacific at Booking.com, echoed that view.
“Korean travellers are maintaining a stable preference for familiar short-haul destinations while showing an increasingly open attitude towards new travel styles that prioritise relaxation and seasonal experiences,” she said.
This story was first published by The Korea Times


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Short holidays and a weak yen drive the ‘aeroplane instead of the ancestral table’ trend


Short holidays and a weak yen drive the ‘aeroplane instead of the ancestral table’ trend.


South Koreans swap ancestral rites for Japan getaways this Lunar New Year

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Short holidays and a weak yen drive the ‘aeroplane instead of the ancestral table’ trend

Short holidays and a weak yen drive the ‘aeroplane instead of the ancestral table’ trend