Local authorities in Jeju Island are looking to impose tourism fees to support environmental sustainability. - UNSPLASH
SEOUL (The Straits Times/Asia News Network): From its blue skies, canola blossoms to endless coastal roads, Jeju Island in South Korea has long been touted as the 'Hawaii of Asia' and is an increasingly popular holiday destination for domestic and foreign tourists.
But its booming tourism comes with a price: An overload of garbage and sewage.
To preserve its environment, local authorities are looking to impose tourism fees, according to a report by The Korea Times on Tuesday (April 18).
Tourists are expected to pay an average of 8,170 won (S$8.20) each day for entering Jeju.
Some of the fees will include 1,500 won for each night of stay on the island.
Those who rent a car or minivan will be charged 5,000 won and 10,000 won respectively for each day. Tourists who rent a bus will be charged five per cent of the rental fee.
The fees are now under review, said the Jeju Special Self-Governing Province on Sunday.
If it is passed at the National Assembly of South Korea, the fees will add 141 billion won to the government coffer after the first year and 167 billion won in the second year, according to the authority’s forecast in the report.
The move is reportedly not welcomed by all South Koreans, according to Seoul Economic Daily.
Some South Korean netizens expressed their unhappiness online, saying that the fees are “excessive”.
For Singaporean Anna Lim, the fees are reasonable and she will continue to plan her visit to Jeju next year.
“It is a small amount, and honestly, if it helps to preserve Jeju island’s environment, I don’t see what’s the problem,” the 28-year-old office assistant told The Straits Times.
More than 13 million people visited Jeju between Jan 1, 2022 and Dec 25, 2022, according to the Jeju Tourism Association.
This is 16 per cent higher from the same period in 2021. More than 99 per cent of them were domestic tourists, given that international travel was restricted during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Over the years, the island has seen an overload of garbage and sewage with the influx of tourism. This has prompted local residents to nudge local authorities to consider implementing the fee.
In 2022, The Herald Insight reported that the island has been suffering due to an overload of garbage that ends up in the sea. This has threatened the island’s marine ecosystem and the livelihood of its residents.
Jeju’s government tried to introduce an entry fee in 2012, but faced opposition, according to The Korea Times.
In August 2022, the island’s government requested the Korea Environment Institute, a state-run research company, to study the feasibility of the entry fee for the island.
The island’s government plans to propose the Bill to the National Assembly by the end of this year, as the research will be completed by August.
Last week, Jeju Governor Oh Young-hun said at a provincial council that the introduction of the measure is “being very carefully planned” so that it can draw citizens’ support from across the country.
The island’s move comes as Hawaii lawmakers are also mulling over a US$40 (S$53) or US$50 “green fee” for tourists to better safeguard Hawaii’s natural resources.
