ONDA attended global partner events hosted by Booking.com and Trip.com, exchanging insights with travel companies from around the world. How do global travel platforms see the Korean market?
Hi there — this is Weekly ON, your hospitality newsletter. ONDA just got back from global partner events hosted by Booking.com and Trip.com, where we swapped notes with travel companies from all over the world. So how do the big players see Korea?
⚠️ All rights reserved. Cite this piece as 'ONDA (온다)' when quoting.
In This Issue
🏨 Global OTAs: "Korea's importance will only grow"
💡 'Early vacationers' turn June into peak season
⌨️ #GuestHouseConversions #JejuInboundTravel #HotelUpgrade #PetFriendlyTravel #EcommerceTravelProducts
🏨 Industry Story
Global OTAs: "Korea's importance will only grow"
ONDA recently received two major nods from the global OTA world: Booking.com named us their 2024 Advanced Connectivity Partner, and Trip.com tagged us as a 2024 Preferred Partner.
That means we've now secured official partnerships — and passed the rigorous tech certifications — with all four of the world's top OTAs: Expedia, Airbnb, Booking.com, and Trip.com.
Last month we were invited to Booking.com's CLICK.2024 and Trip.com's ENVISION.2024 — their annual global partner summits. We spent a few days comparing notes with travel companies from dozens of countries. Here's what we learned.
Korea's rising profile — and the tech-partner gap
One takeaway stood out: Korea has moved up the priority list. Both companies stressed that Korea is a critical market. One exec we spoke with predicted that Korea's tourism infrastructure won't be able to keep up with inbound demand in the near future — the surge is coming faster than expected.
During the networking sessions, multiple global leaders floated their interest in investing in Korean tech companies — specifically those that can help digitize and distribute accommodation inventory. That's exactly why both platforms are paying close attention to ONDA.
We also saw clear data on Korea's growing pull as a destination. On Trip.com's platform, Korea now ranks 4th globally by destination popularity.
If you dig into Korea Tourism Data Lab metrics, the trend is unmistakable: inbound traveler numbers have climbed steadily over the past year. With K-pop's global reach and favorable exchange rates, now is the moment to capture international visitors.
But there are challenges to solve if Korea wants sustainable tourism growth…
👉<Read the full story>
📬 ONDA News
👉<Download the Pension Sales Guidebook>
💡 Hospitality Trends
'Early vacationers' make June the new peak season
June is emerging as an early peak for domestic travel. According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's 2023 National Travel Survey, domestic leisure trips in June 2023 hit 21.22 million — up 3.8% year-over-year. Meanwhile, the traditional summer peak months (July and August) saw far slower growth: 0.7% and -0.9%, respectively.
Why the shift? Lower prices and fewer crowds. Budget-conscious travelers are spreading their trips outside the July–August crunch.
There's also a structural change: more schools now allow field-trip absences during the term and designate sandwich holidays as discretionary vacation days. That's made family travel more flexible — and less concentrated in the summer break.
The trend is set to continue this year. A recent Jeju Air survey found that 18.9% of respondents prefer traveling in May or June — well above the 13.4% who chose July or August. And with the Accommodation Sale Festa running all through June, domestic travel demand is expected to spike even higher.
👉**<Full story>**
⌨️ Keyword News
1️⃣ Guest house / hostel conversions 👉[full story]
TL;DR: Seoul motels are rebranding as guest houses and hostels
The story: Motels in areas popular with young international travelers — Sinchon and Hongdae especially — are converting to guest houses and hostels. Owners are renovating interiors, ditching day-use rentals, and focusing on overnight stays for foreign visitors.
The numbers: As of March 2024, Seoul had 1,469 motel operators — down 589 from 2019. Meanwhile, pension and guest house operators more than doubled to 1,492.
2️⃣ Jeju inbound travel 👉[full story]
TL;DR: Foreign visitors to Jeju quadrupled YoY
The story: Through April 2024, Jeju welcomed 4.39 million visitors — up 1.7% from last year. But the real story is the 540,000 foreign tourists, nearly four times last year's figure.
Spending: Domestic visitor card spending dropped 4.9%, while foreign visitor spending surged over 80%, fueling optimism that Jeju's tourism recovery is finally gaining traction.
3️⃣ Hotel upgrades 👉[full story]
TL;DR: Global hotel chains expanding in Seoul and beyond
The story: Hyatt, Accor, and other luxury brands are opening five-star properties in Seoul this year. Korean hotel operators are also investing in upgrades and renovations to compete.
Why now? Luxury "hotel-cations" have taken root domestically, and inbound travel is bouncing back fast. Q1 2024 saw 3.4 million foreign arrivals — up 98.5% YoY.
4️⃣ Pet-friendly travel 👉[full story]
TL;DR: Korean hotels ramping up pet-friendly services
The story: With 15 million pet owners in Korea, pet-owning families ("petfam") are now a core travel segment. Hotels are responding with expanded pet-friendly offerings.
Spending power: According to the Korea Tourism Organization (2022 data), travelers with pets spend 5.1x more on day trips and 2.2x more on overnight trips compared to non-pet travelers.
5️⃣ E-commerce travel products 👉[full story]
TL;DR: Korean e-commerce platforms doubling down on travel
The story: E-commerce giants are beefing up domestic and international travel offerings. Most are participating in the Accommodation Sale Festa (through June 30) with extra discounts stacked on top.
The logic: As Chinese e-commerce platforms flood the Korean market, local players are pivoting to categories where trust still matters — and travel is one of them. Consumers still prefer Korean platforms when booking trips.