President Lee Myung-jae ordered government ministries to come up with measures against price gouging at a cabinet meeting in September last year, asking "Is there no way to crack down on rip-off pricing?" Yet as cherry blossoms bloom across the country, accommodation rates at tourist destinations are surging once again.
The Korea Meteorological Administration officially declared the start of Seoul's cherry blossom season on Tuesday, after observing three or more blossoms on the sentinel king cherry tree at the Seoul Weather Observatory in Jongno-gu. The earlier-than-usual bloom coinciding with this weekend has triggered a rush of bookings near major blossom viewing spots.
A check of accommodation booking platforms on Wednesday showed hotel rates around Yeouido and Seokchon Lake near Jamsil in Seoul have risen to two to three times their usual levels for this weekend. High-floor rooms with views of the Han River are almost fully booked, and prices for remaining rooms are climbing rapidly.
The situation is more severe at regional tourist destinations. In Jinhae, South Gyeongsang Province, accommodations that normally cost around 40,000 won have jumped to around 140,000 won — roughly 3.5 times the usual rate — as the cherry blossom season overlaps with the Jinhae Gunhangje military port festival. Accommodations near the Bomun Tourist Complex in Gyeongju are also filling up fast for the weekend, with rates reaching two to three times normal levels. Popular lodgings along the east coast in Gangneung and Sokcho have also sold out early as spring travel demand surges.
Recurring price-gouging controversies ahead of major events are nothing new. During the Busan Fireworks Festival in November last year, nightly rates at accommodations directly in front of Gwangalli Beach in Suyeong-gu reached around 1 million won. Studio and one-bedroom units peaked at over 1.8 million won, with rates of 1.3 million to 1.5 million won common. Considering that the average weekend rate at those properties in October was 200,000 to 300,000 won per night, prices spiked by as much as six to nine times during the festival.
Amid the repeated gouging controversies, President Lee raised the issue directly at a cabinet meeting in September last year. "You suffer a fatal blow trying to gain a small profit from trivial things," he said. "Can we just leave this as a free-market situation? The damage to the public is too great — I think we need to give this serious thought." He also urged the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism to pay particular attention from the perspective of the tourism industry.
However, no concrete institutional measures have emerged since the president's warning, and the same pattern is repeating this spring cherry blossom season. Industry sources say a growing number of travelers are giving up on overnight stays due to soaring rates and switching to day trips instead.
