South Korea will be allowing fully vaccinated travelers from around the world to enter and travel throughout the country without any quarantine measures beginning 1 April.
The news was released in an announcement on the country's official tourism website, Imagine Your Korea. Quarantine exemptions can be obtained for people who have received their last dose of a full COVID-19 vaccine regimen in the last six months or who have had their booster shot after their full course of the vaccine.
Travelers are required to upload their vaccine records to Q-CODE before entering Korea, as well as other information like their passport number and entry information including airline, departure country, phone number and more; the program will provide people who upload their vaccine status a QR code, which they must then scan upon entry.
There are still some exemptions to this new quarantine-free entry rule: travelers from Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine and Myanmar must still quarantine for seven days; the announcement did not explain why travelers from these countries remain exempt from this new rule.
South Korea has exploded onto the international tourism scene due largely in part to its entertainment, which has captivated millions through the songs of Korean pop groups like BTZ or ATEEZ, along with its wealth of Korean dramas, most notably "Squid Game", which topped Netflix's most-watched list back in 2021.
Today, travelers can enjoy taking a variety of 360-degree virtual reality tours through some of South Korea's most amazing places, from its Changdeokgung Palace, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the filming locations of the historical K-drama "Kingdom", to a K-pop tour of Seoul's Gangnam district.
The Korea Tourism Organization's use of popular culture and technology will help spread excitement about the country, leading to a greater number of international travelers as the country relaxes some of its entry requirements.
Travel advisors who specialize in travel to Asia or who sell mainly to younger generations should especially be aware of this new change in entry requirements to South Korea, as well as the potential wave of clients wanting to travel there. Those wanting to learn more about selling South Korea to clients should take the Travel Agent Academy's Korea Travel Specialist program.
