South Korean budget airlines are intensively marketing flights to Japan as the end of the year approaches. After the resurgence in Japanese travel demand, which had been affected by earthquake-related worries during the summer, and due to the ongoing weakness of the yen, Japan routes are once again becoming popular.
On the 9th, Eastar Jet revealed that it will launch a special promotion for its unique Incheon-Tokushima route, starting at 10 a.m. on the 10th, commemorating the one-year anniversary of the route’s debut. The service, which commenced on December 26 of the previous year, has completed 300 flights so far, carrying around 45,000 passengers with an average occupancy rate of approximately 80%.
On the same day, T’way Air initiated a collaborative promotion with Kumamoto Prefecture. Focused on the Incheon-Kumamoto route, the campaign will continue until December 21st, with travel options valid up to October 24th of the following year. As part of this partnership, using the discount code ‘FLYDEC’ while searching for flights offers a maximum 15% reduction in ticket prices, and a special coupon worth 20,000 Korean won is also available for round-trip reservations.
Previously, Jeju Air reported that the number of passengers traveling on its Japan routes in November set a new record at about 382,000. This amount marks an increase of roughly 51,000 passengers compared to the same month last year and is approximately 10% more than the previous monthly high of around 348,000 passengers recorded in December of the previous year. In terms of specific routes, the numbers were approximately 121,500 passengers for Osaka, 67,600 for Tokyo, and 64,900 for Fukuoka.
As per the air transportation data released by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on the same day, the total passenger count for Japan routes from January to November this year reached 24,700,016. This represents an increase of about 2 million passengers compared to the same period last year, when the number was 22,795,348.
A representative from the aviation sector said, “With lower demand for long-distance flights because of currency exchange challenges, Japan routes, which have high passenger occupancy because of brief flight durations and ongoing tourist interest, are becoming a reliable income generator.”
