Hanatour resumes normal operation after 18-month hiatus from Covid-19

South Korea’s top travel agency Hanatour Service Inc. has resumed normal operation in response to growing hope for foreign travel after the government’s move to review a shift to post-Covid amid global vaccination rollouts.

The company said on Friday all of its 1,200 employees, except those on maternity and other temporary leaves, have returned to work as of Oct 1.

The travel agency had sent most of its employees on temporary leave of absence, including both paid and unpaid, since April last year after the global travel industry came to a halt due to the pandemic.

The company also had let go some 1,000 employees through voluntary early retirement program in March this year. As of December 2020, its head counts stood at 2,200.

The travel industry is eager to resume business with growing expectations for international travel demand soaring again, propelled by accelerated vaccine rollouts that will lead to the shift to “living with Covid” strategy.

Travel bookings are already rising in Korea. Travel agencies have taken reservations for trips to ‘travel bubble’ countries like Saipan and Guam, as well as to popular honeymoon destinations including Hawaii and Maldives.

As the country’s No. 1 travel agency resumes normal operation, others are expected to rapidly follow suit.

Lotte Travel Development Co. recently organized a travel package to Switzerland, its first in a year and a half. The package was for 8-day trip to the European country that allows entry without quarantine restrictions for visitors who test negative for Covid-19. Travelers to Korea are also exempted from quarantine curbs if they complete vaccination.

[ⓒ Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]