70% of Koreans Say They Will Travel Abroad After COVID-19 Vaccine Development

15% "Vaccine Development Within 3 Months" 33% "Will Arrive Within 3-6 Months"

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Je-hoon] A survey found that 7 out of 10 Koreans have intentions to travel abroad following the development of a COVID-19 vaccine.

Incheon International Airport Corporation announced on the 15th that it conducted two rounds of surveys from October 30 to November 20 targeting 1,000 Koreans and 600 foreigners (from China, Japan, and Vietnam), and the results showed this trend.

In the corporation's survey regarding "plans to travel abroad after the development of a COVID-19 vaccine," 70.2% of Koreans and 82.0% of foreigners responded that they planned to travel.

Regarding the timing of overseas travel, the highest percentage was within 3 to 6 months after vaccine development, with 33.4% of Koreans and 35.3% of foreigners. The next highest was within 6 months to 1 year, with 31.4% of Koreans and 28.6% of foreigners. Travel planned after 1 year accounted for 19.9% and 27.1%, respectively, while within 3 months was 15.3% and 9%, respectively.

As for the purpose of overseas travel, over 90% (90.6% of Koreans and 95.7% of foreigners) chose "tourism," while business (8.8% of Koreans, 3.4% of foreigners) and education (0.6% of Koreans, 0.9% of foreigners) were in single digits.

Regarding preferred overseas travel regions, Europeans were the most favored by Koreans at 42.2%, while Asians were the most favored by foreigners at 57.2%. The planned duration of overseas travel was most commonly 7 days to 1 month, with 48.4% of Koreans and 49.2% of foreigners. A duration of 4 to 6 days also showed relatively high preference, with 41.9% of Koreans and 39.6% of foreigners.

When asked about willingness to receive vaccination after the development of a COVID-19 vaccine, 70.9% of Koreans and 75.3% of foreigners answered that they would get vaccinated, with 89.1% of Koreans citing "to travel abroad" as the reason.

Among respondents who do not plan to travel abroad even after the development of a COVID-19 vaccine, half (53.1% of Koreans and 45.2% of foreigners) pointed to "concerns about COVID-19 infection."

Lim Nam-su, Acting President of Incheon Airport Corporation, stated, "This survey shows high expectations for overseas travel demand among both Koreans and foreigners following the development of a COVID-19 vaccine. Therefore, to respond promptly during the recovery period of air travel demand, we plan to thoroughly inspect facility management and passenger services based on Incheon Airport’s excellent quarantine system."