Over 10 mil. people travel between Korea and Japan in first 5 months in 2025
This photo shows passengers at Terminal 1 of Incheon International Airport in Incheon, May 4. Yonhap
More than 10 million air passengers traveled on routes between Korea and Japan in the January–May period, despite the strengthening yen, the transport ministry said Sunday.
A record 11.25 million passengers flew between Korea and Japan during the first five months of the year, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said in a press release.
The figure represents a 10.7 percent increase from the 10.16 million recorded during the same period last year and a 19.8 percent rise from the 9.39 million in the first five months of 2019, the year before the COVID-19 pandemic severely impacted the airline industry.
Industry officials said that years of a weak yen and the expansion of budget carrier flights to Japan have helped stimulate pent-up travel demand in recent years.
They expect demand to continue rising in the second half, with the number of air traffic between the two countries likely to exceed last year's total of 25.14 million.
The yen continued to rise to an average of 999.96 won in April from 927.97 won in January. But the Japanese currency turned lower last month to 962.28 won, Bank of Korea data showed.
In addition to the recent weakness of the yen, special immigration lanes designated for citizens of each country — set up at airports in Korea and Japan in June to mark the 60th anniversary of diplomatic normalization — are expected to further boost travel demand between the two neighbors, the officials said.