Korean travelers seen to prefer short-distance trips for 2025

South Korean holidaymakers will be interested in traveling to less-visited destinations in Asia next year, according to Skyscanner, a UK-based online flight, hotels, car hire options search engine.

The trend forecast was based on the company's tourism data, analysis by industry experts and a survey of 1,000 South Korean holidaymakers, said Brendan Walsh, Skyscanner's head of commercial, at Travel Trend 2025 held at Music Complex Seoul in Jongno-gu, central Seoul, Oct. 15.

“We expect more Korean travelers to flock to some of the less popular cities in Asian countries. Tainan -- a city located in the southern part of the main island of Taiwan -- is ranked the No. 1 slot on Skyscanner’s ranking of most popular travel destinations in 2025 among Koreans,” Walsh said. Okiyama of Japan and Lijiang of China took the second and third spots, respectively.

While other Asian cities, including Vietnam's Phu Quoc Island, Japan's Oita and Aomori and Macao ranked in the top 10 list, Marseille, the second largest city in France, surprisingly secured the No. 4 spot.

“Korean travelers certainly do have a desire for long-distance travel. We think many Korean tourists searched for Marseille after witnessing the scenic views of the city featured at this year’s Paris Olympics,” Walsh said, explaining Koreans' noticeable interest in the French city.

Walsh added that the slight drop in plane ticket prices might have influenced South Korean tourists’ growing interest in Marseille.

Meanwhile, Skyscanner announced that Korean holidaymakers are interested in overseas travel with specific themes including sports, esports, cowboy core, art adventure, garden tours and astrotourism.

“Korean travelers are open to new adventures. One of the noticeable trends is the rise of cowboy core after the popular Korean travel show ‘Adventure by Accident’ featured horseback riding and a stay at a farm,” Walsh said.

He added that astrotourism is another sought-after travel trend for many Koreans, as they wish to experience unfamiliar scenery, such as watching the northern lights.