Travel planning has grown more complicated for Korean workers preparing for summer vacations. Starting May 1, international flight fuel surcharges will rise to Level 33, the highest tier under the current system. For long-haul routes, fuel charges alone will add up to 1.12 million won ($820) for a round-trip ticket. The travel industry is warning that "once the last-minute demand in April subsides, the long-haul market during the peak summer season could be significantly shaken."
Highest Level 33 Applied for First Time
Fuel surcharges are calculated based on the average price of Singapore jet fuel (MOPS), divided into 33 tiers. No surcharge applies when the price is below 150 cents per gallon, and the tier rises one step with each incremental price range above that threshold.
For May, the Singapore jet fuel average (MOPS) reached 511.21 cents per gallon ($214.71 per barrel), confirming the highest Level 33 tier.
As recently as March, before the outbreak of war, the applicable tier was Level 6. It rose to Level 18 in April and then to Level 33 in May, jumping 27 levels in just two months. The 15-level increase in a single month is the largest since the current system was introduced, and it marks the first time Level 33 has actually been applied.
Based on Korean Air rates, May fuel surcharges range from a minimum of 75,000 won one-way (for shortest routes such as Fukuoka) to a maximum of 564,000 won (for longest routes such as Los Angeles, New York, Paris, and London). On a round-trip basis, fuel surcharges alone exceed 1.12 million won for long-haul routes.
Asiana Airlines announced May one-way fuel surcharges ranging from 85,400 won to 476,200 won, with low-cost carriers (LCCs) including Jeju Air and T'way Air expected to release their May figures imminently.
Since fuel surcharges are levied based on the ticket issuance date, a family of four planning a summer vacation could face ticket cost differences ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions of won depending on whether they issue tickets in April or wait until May. The airline industry expects a surge in ticket issuances within this month, when relatively lower tiers still apply.
Brief Boost from Early Ticket Issuance
The travel industry also expects early-issuance demand to rise through the end of this month ahead of the May fuel surcharge hike. "Long-haul summer vacation packages typically see bookings concentrated in March and April, but this year, with the news of fuel surcharge increases, there are more inquiries than usual about issuing tickets within April," a travel agency official said. "However, this is simply existing customers moving up their ticket issuance dates — it does not represent new demand."
New booking indicators are already trending downward. Mode Tour's total booking rate for this month (April 1-16) fell approximately 30% from a year earlier. Long-haul routes to Europe and the Americas dropped nearly 40%. Southeast Asian routes showed a similar decline, compounded by cancellations on some routes, while bookings to Japan held steady at the previous year's level and bookings to China actually rose 15%. The pattern shows that demand weakens first on routes with longer flight times and higher airfares.
Adding to the pressure, observers expect international oil prices to remain elevated, raising concerns that fuel surcharges could exceed even the Level 33 ceiling. "The real turning point will come when summer vacation bookings pick up in earnest," another travel agency official said. "How oil prices move until then will determine the pace of discussions on revising the system."
"Is the era of traveling the world cheaply over?" — the reason travelers planning May trips have been struck as if by lightning.
