Novotel Ambassador Dongdaemun in Seoul

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South Korean hospitality industry enjoyed a boon this summer as more Korean stayed home for their holidays due to the loss of their favorite short-haul trip choice amid the nationwide boycott against Japan for its trade restriction.

The booking rate in hotels averaged at 79.9 percent in August, up 3.4 percentage points from the same month a year ago and 8.0 percentage points higher from two years ago, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Monday.

Foreign occupancy rate was mostly unchanged at 46.3 percent, up 0.4 percentage point from 2018 and 3.0 percentage points from 2017, suggesting that the additions came from Koreans.

The average cost per room was 131,251 won ($109.5), rising 4.1 percent from 2018 and 2.5 percent from 2017. As a result, total hotel revenue jumped 9.6 percent on year and 15.1 percent from two years ago to 99.6 billion won.

Room occupancy increased in hotels of all stars, with five-star hotels witnessing the fastest bookings growth at 84.8 percent.

The study was conducted on 200 hotels across the country, including 91 in Seoul, 35 in Gyeonggi Province, 21 in Incheon, 22 in Busan and 31 in Jeju Island.

Korea Hotel Association said the sharp rise in domestic demand partly reflects the growing trend to take relaxing staycations at luxury hotels nearby.

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It also saw Korea’s self-imposed travel boycott to Japan to have played a major role. Calls to boycott all Japanese goods and services erupted in early July after Tokyo tightened export curbs on semiconductor and display panel materials considered vital to Korea’s export-driven economy.

Korean visitors to Japan, which normally account for a quarter of all foreign tourists to the country, plunged by nearly half in August, according to the Japan National Tourism Organization.

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