The number of outbound group travelers on package tours tumbled 20% in the first quarter from a year earlier with those to long-haul destinations such as Europe and the US down, according to industry sources on Monday.Hanatour Service Inc., South Korea’s largest travel agency, saw a 4.4% drop in outbound travelers during the first three months of the year as its customers for international trips fell more than 10% in February and March after growth in January.“We suffered the lagging effect of the martial law and the plane crash late last year,” said a Hanatour official.
Sales of major hotels such as Hotel Shilla Co.and Josun Hotel are estimated to have grown in the first quarter from a year earlier, defying concern that their earnings peaked last year.“We are doing so well that our rooms are virtually fully booked for April,” said an official at Four Seasons Hotel Ltd.in Seoul.Paradise Co., the country’s largest foreigners-only casino operator, is expected to announce an earning surprise in the first quarter.
A softer won is another burden for South Koreans to go abroad as it usually raises travel costs, they added.“Overseas travel bookings plunged about 30% this month compared to a similar period last year,” said another travel agency official.“The second quarter will be worse than the first.”That bolstered concerns over travel agencies’ earnings.
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