Aju Business Daily

SEOUL -- Taiwanese travelers who are thirsty for overseas trips have bought up tickets for a one-time event flying over South Korea's scenic southern resort island of Jeju. Tickets were all sold out in four minutes after sales began on September 11.

The event has been jointly arranged by the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), a state tourism promoting body, Taiwan's traveling agency Ezfly and Tigerair, a Taiwanese low-cost carrier (LCC). An airplane carrying 120 Taiwanese travelers who paid $68.8 for the trip will take off from Taipei on September 19 and return home after circling around the island without landing.

In a survey of 518 Taiwanese people, KTO found that 82 percent yearned for "traveling overseas" while 71 percent picked South Korea as the most want-to-visit country. Flights between Jeju and Taiwan have been restricted to prevent the spread of COVID-19. When travel restrictions are eased, ticket buyers can reserve accommodation in Jeju.

South Korea has not imposed a complete travel ban on foreigners. However, foreign travelers should be isolated at designated facilities for two weeks at their own expense to see if they are infected with the novel coronavirus.