South Korea is gaining prominence among foreign travelers ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday.
Digital travel platform Agoda announced Sunday that Seoul ranked fifth among "Asia's popular travel destinations" for this year's Lunar New Year holiday, based on its analysis of accommodation search data. Tokyo topped the list, followed by Bangkok in second place, Taipei in third, and Osaka in fourth.
Among foreign visitors planning to travel to Korea during the Lunar New Year holiday, Seoul was the most preferred destination, followed by Busan, Jeju, Incheon, and Pyeongchang in Gangwon Province. Jeju saw a particularly notable 72% increase in accommodation searches compared to last year's Lunar New Year holiday.
"The surge appears to be driven by growing interest in Jeju's unique culture following the success of the Netflix series 'No Gain No Love' released last year," an Agoda official said.
Accommodation searches for Pyeongchang also jumped 40%. This increase is attributed to interest in the Pyeongchang Daegwallyeong Snow Festival, which runs during the Lunar New Year period, as well as demand for winter activities such as skiing and sledding.
Meanwhile, Jeju, Seoul, Busan, Sokcho in Gangwon Province, and Gyeongju in North Gyeongsang Province were among the top domestic destinations preferred by Korean travelers for the Lunar New Year holiday. For overseas travel, Japanese cities including Tokyo, Fukuoka, and Osaka ranked highest. The prolonged weak yen and expanded flight routes to smaller Japanese cities are driving demand.