Securing air tickets a mission impossible

By Lee Hyo-sik

Staff reporter

Lee Kyung-soo, 35, plans to marry his girlfriend of three years in early July. Lee and his soon-to-be-wife have already arranged a wedding hall and a place to live without much difficulty.

But when it comes to buying airplane tickets to Hawaii for their honeymoon, it is a totally different story.

``I have been trying to purchase tickets through Web sites of local airlines. But summer tickets for one of Koreans' favorite honeymoon destinations have already been sold out because of a surge in outbound travel," Lee said. "Now I am trying to secure tickets through travel agencies. But they only tell me they can put me on a long waiting list.''

He suggested that soon-to-be-married couples put buying airplane tickets for a honeymoon overseas at the top of their wedding preparation list.

Like Lee, a growing number of Koreans are facing increasing difficulty in buying airplane tickets for Southeast Asian nations and other popular travel destinations.

Additionally, a record number of local travelers are heading to Jeju Island, Korea's southernmost resort island, making it almost impossible to get seats on airplanes to this popular golf spot.

Airline industry watchers say that since the beginning of the year, an increasing number of individuals here have been traveling abroad on the back of the strengthening won and the quick economic rebound. They project travel demand will continue to grow at a much faster pace as summer approaches when most Koreans take a week-long vacation.

Nearly Full Booked

Korean Air said Tuesday that its airplane reservation rate bound for Southeast Asian nations has reached nearly 93 percent, with those of North America, Europe and Japan approaching close to 85 percent, up by as much as 11 percentage points from a year earlier.

Asiana Airlines has also been posting a record-high seat reservation rate for Southeast Asia and other popular travel destinations overseas over the past few months.

``The airline industry suffered a big blow from the unprecedented worldwide economic downturn and other negatives in 2009. But with the strengthening of the local currency and improving macroeconomic conditions since the beginning of the year, more Koreans have started heading overseas, boosting air travel demand,'' a Korean Air official said. The won's appreciation enables outbound tourists to spend more freely and buy more goods cheaply abroad by boosting their purchasing power.

The official expected more individuals to go to Hawaii and other U.S. destinations, thanks to the visa waiver program for short-term Korean visitors.

Asiana Airlines echoed its rival's view, saying many people will travel to Shanghai during the 2010 World Expo and other famous destinations around the world. An Asiana airline official said the overseas travel boom will continue throughout the summer when most Koreans take vacation from work.

On the back of surging air travel demand, Korea's largest air carrier posted 2.6 trillion won ($2.3 billion) in revenue and 220 billion won in operating profits in the first quarter of this year, its largest quarterly figures ever. Asiana Airlines is also expected to come out with a record performance between January and March.

To meet soaring travel demand, the nation's two main airlines and low-cost budget air carriers plan to increase the number of flights linking Incheon and other domestic cities with popular foreign destinations. Additionally, they will raise the number of airplanes operating the Gimpo and Jeju route ahead of the summer holiday season.

With more Koreans going overseas, the nation posted a record-high travel account deficit of $1.99 billion from January through March, compared to a $520 million surplus the same period last year. The Bank of Korea said it was the largest year-on-year deficit increase since the central bank began compiling relevant data in 1980.

Korean travelers spent a total of $4.04 billion in the first quarter, the largest amount in history and up $1.6 billion from a year ago. In contrast, spending by inbound tourists here dropped by $851 million to $2.05 billion.

According to the Ministry of Justice, a total of 2.98 million Koreans travelled overseas in the first three months of the year, up 31.2 percent from a year ago.

해외 항공티켓 별 따기

35살인 이경수씨는 7월초 3년 사귄 여자친구와 결혼할 예정이다. 그와 아내가 될 사람은 이미 결혼식장 예약 및 신혼 집 장만을 별 어려움 없이했다.

그러나 신혼여행으로 갈 하와이행 비행기표 구하는 것은 전혀 다른 이야기다.

그는 처음 항공사 사이트에서 티켓을 구할려고 했지만 많은 한국인이 신혼여행지로 가는 하와이행 비행기표는 이미 다 매진됐다. 그래서 지금 그는 여행사를 통해서 비행기표를 구할려고 하고 있지만 대부분 여행사들은 대기명단 밖에 없다고 말한다.

이경수씨는 곧 결혼하려는 커플들에게 다른 것 보다 빨리 신혼여행 비행기표를 구하라고 조언한다