The U.S. has tightened scrutiny on foreigners amid fresh provocations following incidents involving Venezuela and Iran. That, combined with cost and safety concerns, is nudging travelers toward closer destinations in East Asia—China, Japan, Vietnam and the Philippines—rather than long‑haul trips.
Travel and retail companies are leaning into Savecation for April: think cashback that pays real cash instead of points or coupons, plus time‑limited airfare and hotel deals on booking platforms. Those offers are tempting travelers to finally book trips they’d put off.
Asia‑Pacific cashback leader ShopBack Korea runs a weekly “Travel Tuesday” promotion every Tuesday to boost travel perks. Major OTAs like Booking.com, Trip.com, Agoda, Klook and Hotels.com take part. Users who go through ShopBack on Tuesdays get higher cashback rates—and because ShopBack pays actual money back to bank accounts rather than points, travelers see immediate savings.
YeogiEottae (a Korean domestic booking app) is running a “Domestic Travel Open Run” discount campaign. It offers first‑come, first‑served discounts on high‑demand hotels every Monday and Thursday. The event page lists special‑rate properties and a variety of discounts designed to lighten the load on domestic travelers’ wallets.
For the Open Run, the platform issues a 30% discount coupon to the first 20 customers who book select properties. It also features discounts of up to 85% on popular hotels. Highlighted properties include ▷Jeju Shinhwa World Hotel & Resort ▷Paradise Hotel Busan ▷Hanwha Resort Seorak Sorano Main Building.
MyRealTrip is running a large “MyRealTrip Mega Deal” promotion through March 31, offering up to 64% off overseas accommodations in more than 30 cities worldwide, including Korean guesthouses. Timed for cherry‑blossom season and the spring travel surge, the deals cover hotels in Japan, Southeast Asia, Europe and the Americas. In Vietnam, hotels in Da Nang, Nha Trang and Phu Quoc are offering upgrades or a free night plus discounts up to 40%. Korean guesthouses in Europe and the Americas are included with discounts up to 50%. Customers who book during the promotion can stack up to 70,000 KRW (approximately $52.50) in extra discounts and receive add‑ons like eSIM deals and tour/activity coupons.
Featured routes include ▷Incheon–Phu Quoc ▷Incheon–Paris ▷Incheon–Rome ▷Incheon–Frankfurt ▷Incheon–Barcelona ▷Incheon–Sydney ▷Incheon–Kalibo (Boracay) ▷Incheon–Nha Trang ▷Busan–Sapporo ▷Jeju–Fukuoka ▷Jeju–Taipei (Taoyuan). Discounts start at up to 30% per route, and T’way plans to add routes based on customer demand.
Korean Air is running a fare discount campaign on four Greater China routes from Busan through April 30: Busan–Shanghai (Pudong), Busan–Qingdao, Busan–Beijing and Busan–Taipei. Customers who book round‑trip Economy or Prestige fares via Korean Air’s site or app can get 7% off Shanghai (Pudong) and Qingdao, and 10% off Beijing and Taipei. Travel must occur between April 1 and June 30. Korean Air will also hold a drawing to award round‑trip Great‑China tickets and gift coupons to participating customers.
The Korea Airports Corporation, together with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Korea Tourism Organization and Naver, is running a “Travel Month” promotion that awards Naver Pay points for domestic round‑trip ticket purchases. For 16 routes (excluding Gimpo–Gimhae and Jeju), customers who book round‑trip tickets on Naver and fly April 1–May 31 can receive up to 20,000 Naver Pay points per booking (5,000 KRW / approximately $3.75 per person). Bookings are open through May 31, and points will be credited at the end of June.
KB Kookmin Card check‑card users get an immediate 10% discount on bookings. From April 6, KakaoBank check‑card (Mastercard) holders will receive new benefits, with more card payment promotions planned.
NOL, the travel and leisure platform by Nol Universe, is running an early‑bird spring promotion through March 31 covering domestic and international travel and performances. NOL offers a coupon pack worth 180,000 KRW (approximately $135.00) for domestic accommodation bookings and issues a limited number of 10% off domestic leisure coupons daily at 10 a.m. For Jeju travelers, NOL provides a first‑come, first‑served 5% Jeju accommodation coupon and a 12% off Jeju leisure product coupon every Monday. The platform also issues daily airfare coupons worth up to 80,000 KRW (approximately $60.00) at 10 a.m., and during March it offers up to 7% off Japan accommodations and 10% off tours and tickets. For performance bookings, NOL provides a dedicated 2,000 KRW (approximately $1.50) discount coupon, and everyone who reserves tickets for NOL’s exclusive run of the musical “Death Note” receives a photocard and a curtain‑call photo opportunity.
