Da Nang a big draw for South Koreans celebrating Mid-Autumn Festival

By Nguyen Quy   August 22, 2019 | 02:26 am PT
Da Nang a big draw for South Koreans celebrating Mid-Autumn Festival
An aerial view of Linh Ung Pagoda on the famous Son Tra Peninsula in Da Nang City. Photo by Shutterstock/Andy Tran.
South Koreans are heavily favoring Da Nang as a Mid-Autumn Festival holiday destination, according to travel search engine Skyscanner.

A report by the U.K.-based search engine for flights, hotels and car rentals, said Vietnam’s Da Nang and Thailand’s Bangkok are the most favored Southeast Asian cities among South Koreans looking to travel abroad for the upcoming holiday. 

Its conclusion is based on search frequencies for travel in September 12-15.

Jeju Island, the largest island in South Korea and the country’s favorite domestic holiday destination, was also the most searched by the nation’s citizens for the holiday.

The Mid-Autumn Festival, called Chuseok in South Korea, is one of the country's biggest holidays and is celebrated according to the lunar calendar. It is the South Korean equivalent to what Americans know as Thanksgiving. The celebration is typically spread across three days.

South Koreans celebrate the holiday from the 14th to the 16th of the eighth lunar month, which falls September 12-14 this year. Normally, they travel back to their hometowns to spend time with their families, have a big party, and pay respects to their ancestors. In the last few decades, however, more and more people are choosing to travel abroad during the holiday.

South Koreans have surpassed Chinese visitors to become the largest group of foreign visitors to Da Nang, with more than 1.4 million arrivals in 2018, up 80 percent from a year ago.

The increase in arrivals has been facilitated by a 15-day visa waiver for South Koreans and frequent direct flights between Da Nang and South Korea’s major cities.

South Korean carriers Asiana and Jeju Air are offering daily flights between Busan and Da Nang.

The city in central Vietnam became the top foreign destination for South Koreans last summer, according to e-commerce website Ticket Monster.

Last December, Jeju Air began daily direct flights between Daegu City and Da Nang. Korean Air, the oldest and largest air carrier in Asia, also launched a direct service between Busan and Da Nang last year.

 
 
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