SOUTH KOREA has decided to ease mandatory quarantine rules gradually to attract more international travelers to the country as part of efforts to support a rebound of the tourism industry.
The government said the gradual relaxation of entry rules would help businesses that have been hit hard by the prolonged Covid-19 pandemic.
According to a Korea Times report, the decision was made during a government meeting on tourism strategies that was chaired by Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum on Friday.
South Korea had in early October signed a travel bubble agreement with Singapore and it will go into effect tomorrow (Monday).
The agreement aims to exempt or ease rules on mandatory quarantine for travelers who have been fully vaccinated, to and from both countries.
The government said it will expand the list of countries for quarantine-free travel gradually after monitoring the Covid-19 situation in each nation.
Singapore is the second destination with which South Korea signed a travel bubble agreement, after Saipan.
Authorities plan to gradually resume visa waiver and no-visa entry programmes that have been suspended due to the pandemic.
International flights will also resume at regional airports at the end of this month.
The South Korean government hopes the easing of rules will allow it to capitalise on the popular tourism promotional video series, "Feel the Rhythm of Korea," Tottenham Hotspur striker Son Heung-min and the Netflix hit series "Squid Game", to attract more international travelers to the country.
"We are aiming to attract 25 million international tourists in 2025," Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hwang Hee said.
The largest number of international travelers the country saw in a year was in 2019, when 17.5 million people visited South Korea.
The minister said the government will inject 649 billion won (US$550 million) in tourism related funding next year to help the tourism industry recover swiftly from the pandemic.
Meanwhile, Yonhap news reports that South Korea has extended its special advisory against overseas travel for another month due to the continued spread of Covid-19.
The foreign ministry said on Saturday that those planning on traveling are recommended to cancel or postpone non-essential trips abroad until Dec 13, as the rise of variant cases in many countries poses a risk to their health.
The travel advisory was first imposed in March and has been extended every month as many countries struggle with outbreaks of various coronavirus variants and continue to restrict entry for people arriving from overseas.
The ministry added that it will consult with the health authorities and foreign embassies before easing some of the travel restrictions in phases, depending on the scope of recent outbreaks, the vaccination rate and quarantine measures in the relevant countries.