hankyoreh

A member of the National Assembly’s Land Infrastructure and Transport Committee performs an on-site inspection at Incheon International Airport on Oct. 22. (Yonhap News)

A travel bubble is an agreement between countries that have proven their ability to contain COVID-19 to allow individuals who have tested negative for the coronavirus to travel among those countries without any quarantine requirement. Korea and other Asian countries appear to be warming to the idea of signing such an agreement, which is kindling expectations in related industries.

Industry sources and officials at South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport told the Hankyoreh on Oct. 22 that the government is discussing a travel bubble with countries such as Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Singapore.

Hong Kong and Singapore agreed to set up a travel bubble on Oct. 15, the first such agreement in Asia. The news drove up shares of Cathay Pacific on the Hong Kong stock exchange by 10%. In short, investors believe that travel bubble arrangements will help improve the airline’s profitability.

South Korea is also speeding up efforts to reach travel bubble arrangements. “Hong Kong has proposed a travel bubble with South Korea, and the two sides are currently deliberating the idea,” said Kim Won-jin, South Korea’s consul-general to Hong Kong, on Oct. 16.

During a meeting with Jeju Governor Won Hee-ryong on Thursday, Eric Teo, Singapore’s ambassador to South Korea, said he looks forward to “a closer cooperative relationship, including setting up direct flights between Jeju Island and Singapore, after a travel bubble with South Korea is approved.”

An agreement of this sort would likely create a sharp increase in demand for overseas travel, be it for business or pleasure. In a survey of 1,000 people, including 600 Koreans and 400 non-Koreans, carried out on Oct. 20 by the Incheon International Airport Corporation, 52.8% of Korean respondents said they intend on traveling overseas if a travel bubble is set up. The percentage of non-Korean respondents eager to travel was even higher at 72.7%.

“Setting up a travel bubble without endangering disease control is to airlines as noodle-making is to a noodle shop. Even just making that agreement with a few countries would be a lifeline,” a spokesperson for Korean Air told the Hankyoreh in a phone call.

“As soon as a travel bubble opens, we expect there will be a sudden surge in corporate demand for business travel,” said a spokesperson for Redcap Tour, a travel agency.

By Park Su-ji, staff reporter

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