Coronavirus Blights Koreans' Summer Holiday Plans

/Yonhap

The coronavirus epidemic has blighted many people's summer holiday plans and is virtually guaranteed to keep them in the country.

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Employment portal Job Korea asked 1,023 salaried workers about their vacation plans, and only 9.1 percent said they intended to go anywhere this summer, while 59 percent said they are watching the situation and have not made plans yet.

Some 22.9 percent said they do not plan to go anywhere, and 6.4 percent had postponed their plans.

One 41-year-old parent of two children said he is staying home. "The summer vacation has been shortened for my children and the coronavirus situation prompted us to postpone our vacation plans until after October", he said.

But he said he worries about other vacationing families. "Many parents are concerned when they hear about a classmate going to a water park or Jeju Island", he said. "Children grow jealous, and parents worry about possible infection".

A 32-year-old worker is wondering where she should go on holiday with her husband. As of Thursday, people who travel within Korea are not required to place themselves in self-quarantine after returning home. 

A staffer at the Ministry of Health and Welfare said, "Only people who crossed paths with confirmed cases or display symptoms themselves are required to go into self-quarantine and get tested".

But some private kindergartens and nursery schools are are imposing their own cautionary measures, asking children who have been out of town for trips to stay at least a week at home before returning to the schools. "If we go on holiday I won't be able to send my child to nursery school for a week afterwards, and this has made me seriously weigh the benefits of staying home", the 32-year-old said.

Some people are keeping their plans very quiet to avoid alarming the neighbors and are not uploading any holiday photos on their social media.

The Korea Tourism Organization asked epidemiologists to come up with a guide for safe vacationing available at korean.visitkorea.or.kr. It advises vacationers to wear face masks at all times and maintain safe distances from others.

Operators of swimming pools are advised to take reservations or implement time limits on visitors to prevent overcrowding.

Kim Jin-yong, a physician at Incheon Medical Center, said, "Swimming pool water is disinfected with chlorine so viruses are destroyed quickly. The problem with crowded swimming pools is infection through droplets from the breaths of carriers".

Experts advise vacationers to stay away from popular restaurants and opt for less crowded venues instead. "The biggest threat comes from removing face masks", Kim said. "Distances between tables should be at least 1 m, and if that's not possible, choose another restaurant".