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Travel demand rebounds to prepandemic levels in 2025 while outbound travel hits new high: Data

Published: 31 Mar. 2026, 16:49

Travelers are seen at Terminal 1 of Incheon International Airport on March 23. [NEWS1]

Both domestic and overseas travel recovered to prepandemic levels last year, with the proportion of outbound travelers reaching a record high, data showed on Tuesday.

According to the data from the Ministry of Data and Statistics, 70.2 percent of Koreans aged 13 and older took at least one domestic trip in 2025, up from the 66.7 percent recorded two years earlier.

The rate had reached 69.2 percent in 2019 before plunging to 39.8 percent in 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The proportion of people who traveled abroad also surged to 31.5 percent in 2025, up from 15.1 percent two years earlier, to reach the highest level on record.

The figure stood at 30.4 percent in 2019 before dropping sharply to 1.1 percent in 2021.

The findings are part of an annual report covering 270 indicators across 12 sectors. The report is designed to comprehensively examine social conditions in Korea. Travel-related data, however, is only available biennially.

Yonhap