KCCI Survey: Seoul Office Workers to Spend an Average of 776,000 Won
Focus on "Eating and Resting" Consumption... New Trends in Vacation Spending
As the summer vacation season approaches in earnest, a recent survey found that 8 out of 10 office workers prefer domestic travel over international destinations, and plan to spend an average of approximately 540,000 won on their vacation.
The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry announced on the 30th that it had conducted a "Summer Vacation Plans and Policy Tasks Survey" of 800 office workers. According to the results, 8 out of 10 respondents (81.6%) said they plan to take a summer vacation this year. Among those planning a vacation, 83.5% said they preferred to travel within Korea.
Last July, during the summer vacation season, the southbound lanes of the Gyeongbu Expressway at Jamwon IC in Seoul were congested with vehicles. Photo by Yonhap News
Regarding the duration, the most common choice was two nights and three days (38.9%), followed by three nights and four days (22.7%), and one night and two days (21.3%), indicating that short but fulfilling "mini vacations" have become the trend. The most popular travel destination was the Gangwon region (34.9%), followed by Gyeongsang region (27.9%), Jeju (22.4%), Jeolla region (20.0%), the Seoul metropolitan area (13.9%), and Chungcheong region (9.9%). Among office workers planning overseas trips, Japan (50.9%) and Southeast Asia (45.4%) were the most popular choices.
In addition, the survey found that office workers plan to spend an average of 535,000 won per person on summer vacation expenses this year. This represents a 9.4% increase compared to last year (489,000 won).
There were also clear differences in vacation spending by region. Office workers in Seoul planned to spend 776,000 won per person, which was significantly higher than the average, while those in Jeonnam planned to spend only 393,000 won. By age group, those in their 30s planned to spend the most on average (666,000 won), followed by those in their 20s (527,000 won), 40s (494,000 won), and 50s (446,000 won).
When it comes to vacation activities, nearly half (49.3%) chose "resting and enjoying natural scenery" as their top activity, followed by trying local restaurants (21.0%) and sightseeing (20.2%). This indicates that content focused on relaxing and eating is more popular than active vacations. The main expected benefits were stress relief (38.7%) and memory-making (37.5%).
Choi Jayoung, a professor at Soongsil University, stated, "This summer, the consumption trend is shifting toward low-activity, high-rest experiences such as eating and relaxing, rather than simply moving from place to place. In order to expand consumption in local food and lodging industries, it is necessary to respond by providing experience-based content that encourages longer stays."
Kim Minseok, head of the Distribution and Logistics Policy Team at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, emphasized, "Summer vacation is not just a period of rest, but a time that triggers a 'chain effect of consumption.' The movement of office workers across the country itself can act as a catalyst for domestic economic recovery. As the government has announced an active supplementary budget plan, we must not miss the opportunity to connect vacation spending to revitalizing domestic demand through practical support policies such as accommodation discounts and local gift certificates."
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