KORAIL Sells 1.237 Million Lunar New Year Holiday Tickets... Reservation Rate at 59.7%

Korea Railroad Corporation (KORAIL) announced on January 21 that 1,237,000 out of 2,070,000 seats (59.7%) supplied for trains operating during the Lunar New Year holiday have been sold through advance ticket reservations.

Advance ticket reservations for the Lunar New Year were conducted from January 15 to 16 and from January 19 to 21. Although the number of reserved seats decreased by 485,000 compared to last year due to the shorter holiday period, the reservation rate increased by 8 percentage points. Last year's reservation rate was 51.7%, with 1,720,000 seats sold. This year's Lunar New Year holiday lasts for six days, which is four days shorter than last year's ten-day holiday period.

The reservation rates by major routes are as follows: Gyeongbu Line 68.1%, Gyeongjeon Line 60.9%, Honam Line 62.8%, Jeolla Line 66.3%, Gangneung Line 44.6%, Jungang Line 74.6%, and Donghae Line 49.6%.

By date, the highest reservation rate is on February 17, the day of Lunar New Year, at 68.7%. For southbound trains, the highest rate is on February 14 (87.1%), while for northbound trains, it is on February 18 (90.1%). By train type, KTX accounted for 1,037,000 seats with a reservation rate of 69.4%, while regular trains accounted for 200,000 seats with a reservation rate of 34.6%.

Reserved tickets can be paid for starting at midnight on January 22. The payment deadline is January 25. However, for advance reservations made by transportation-vulnerable passengers, the payment deadline is January 28. Tickets not paid for within the deadline will be automatically canceled and sequentially allocated to those on the waiting list.

Remaining seats can be purchased from 3:00 p.m. on January 21 through the 'KORAIL Talk' mobile app, the KORAIL website, station ticket counters, and automated ticket machines.

Starting this Lunar New Year, a 'mystery shopper' (undercover inspector) system will be introduced to prevent illegal ticket scalping on online secondhand trading platforms. If caught, violators will face forced membership termination and legal action, including referral to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the National Police Agency, and other relevant authorities.

Meanwhile, KORAIL is also holding a payback and discount event worth a total of 200 million won for customers who reserve tickets for the Lunar New Year holiday. Winners will be selected either by lottery or on a first-come, first-served basis among customers who make payments using one of seven payment methods, including Naver Pay, Toss Pay, and Kakao Pay, between January 22 and 28. A total of 72,000 winners will be chosen.

Additionally, the top 2,800 customers with the highest payment amounts among those who use the seven payment methods will receive an additional 5,000 won train fare discount coupon. Further details can be found in the notices on the 'KORAIL Talk' app and the KORAIL website.