"Hard to Get but Must Charge 200,000 Won..." Resellers Rampant During Christmas Peak Season

Legal Grounds Are Insufficient to Punish 'Dwepali' Resellers

Ahead of Christmas, 'reselling'?buying hotel stays and luxury buffet meal vouchers at face value and then selling them at a premium?is rampant.

Hotel image. This photo is not directly related to the content of the article. Pixabay

On the 24th, numerous secondhand transaction posts appeared on used goods trading sites such as Junggonara and Danggeun, offering hotel and omakase vouchers for transfer. They sold these with a premium of around 100,000 KRW, and in some cases up to 200,000 KRW, under the name of a "reservation fee." Certain sellers were selling large quantities of luxury hotel stays for December 24-25 or 25-26 at hotels like Seoul Shilla Hotel, Lotte Hotel Seoul, Walkerhill, and Signiel. One seller offering hotel vouchers proposed prices 100,000 to 200,000 KRW above the face value, stating they would "negotiate within a reasonable price range."

This behavior extended not only to accommodation vouchers but also to luxury hotel restaurants and omakase vouchers. Buyers purchase vouchers in advance and sell them at higher prices as the Christmas season approaches. Although this 'reselling' repeats every year during the year-end season, the prevailing opinion is that it is difficult to regulate effectively.

The hotel industry states that they cannot know whether consumers purchasing vouchers intend to resell them, and even if they do realize it, they cannot prevent the purchase. Secondhand trading platforms monitor and classify those who repeatedly sell through bulk purchases as professional sellers and restrict their activities. However, due to the lack of relevant laws, there is no proper way to punish those who repeatedly resell at a premium. Previously, due to the ticket scalping issue, laws were established for concert tickets and sports event tickets, providing grounds for punishment. Therefore, experts suggest that the Fair Trade Commission and others consider establishing regulations related to hotel accommodation vouchers and meal vouchers as a solution.