Ep 79: South Korea Emerges As Asia's Most Exciting Travel Market, with Dr Jaeyeon Choe

Listen to this episode

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Google

Podbean

View All Episodes

About This Episode

30 Jun 2021 • 38m00s

While most Asian borders remain locked, South Koreans are heading off on summer holidays to European destinations. They are also booking ahead for Lunar New Year 2022. So what are the reasons behind this unexpected renaissance in one of Asia’s largest outbound travel markets?

This week, Gary and Hannah welcome Dr Jaeyeon Choe, Visiting Professor at the School of Hospitality & Tourism at Hue University, Vietnam, and a sustainable tourism consultant for Insita Bali, Indonesia.

Jaeyeon discusses recent innovations in domestic tourism, including “one-month stay” packages, camping and outdoor cooking tutorials. Now, with an accelerating vaccination rate, Koreans are eager to travel overseas once more.

Ordinarily, this time of year would see large numbers of summer vacationers flying to South East Asian destinations, so will ASEAN’s allure remain in future? [Spoiler Alert: Vietnam and the Philippines are hot picks.] We also talk about innovative booking trends, such as flexible packages and gamified TV travel promotions, an ongoing travel agency revival - and the rekindled passion for travel among Korean honeymooners.

Show notes

Dr Jaeyeon Choe’s LinkedIn profile here.

« Next Episode Ep 80: June in Review: Delta Variant Derails Tourism Planning Previous Episode » Ep 78: Preparing Hotels for a New Travel Era, with The Phuket & Bali Hotel Associations

View All Episodes

Latest Episodes Catch up with the pods you may have missed

Play

21 Sep 2026 • 32m49s

Ep 319: AirAsia Fights Back: Why is '70 Million' the South East Asian Carrier's Most Important Strategic Forecast?

43 million. 15,000. 250. 154. 60%. 40%. 34%. Restating its statistical credentials is a vital part of AirAsia’s battle to reclaim the media narrative that it was starting to lose last week, reassure passengers and investors and arrest its market cap rout. As it reiterates its importance to ASEAN’s air travel landscape, the crucial number to watch is 70 million. During a combative press performance on Friday, AirAsia Co-Founder, Tony Fernandes, attacked media reporting, repeatedly stated that the KL-based, ASEAN-centric carrier group is financially viable and is seeking funding to recapitalise its debts at a lower borrowing cost not to stay afloat.

Play

14 Sep 2026 • 20m54s

Ep 318: How Deep Are AirAsia's Financial Troubles? And How Vital is AirAsia to the Air Travel Landscapes of South East Asia & Asia Pacific?

“It’s hard to imagine how South East Asia’s air travel landscape would look without AirAsia.” This podcast episode examines AirAsia’s financial crisis and regional significance. The airline group operates 7 carriers across 5 countries and serves as a vital connector throughout ASEAN and broader Asia-Pacific markets. The episode details AirAsia’s current struggles, including an RM831 million second-quarter loss attributed to the 2026 Iran War fuel crisis. The airline has reduced capacity by up to 25% and seeks approximately US$1.