Published on
August 7, 2025
To strengthen its foothold in the Chinese travel market, Korean Air has officially partnered with Ctrip, the largest online travel agency in China, which operates under Trip.com Group. This partnership, which was signed on Wednesday during a meeting at Ctrip’s headquarters in Shanghai, offers the South Korean airline new opportunities as it tries to expand its market share of Chinese visitors with the hope of fostering greater cultural exchanges between the two countries.
This partnership will allow Korean Air to run a flagship store on Ctrip’s platform, providing direct access to their services for Chinese customers. This initiative will further be enhanced by the creation of specially crafted travel packages, which will integrate Korean Air flights and specially devised marketing for corporate customers and leisure travelers. The two companies also plan to boost sales with collaborative marketing campaigns designed to capture the increasing interest in travel to South Korea.
Korean Air services 26 routes to 20 cities in China and operates more than 200 flights a week. The collaboration with Ctrip is anticipating to enhance the integrated access to Korea and make travel more convenient for Chinese customers. The airline aims to align with the travel tendencies of Chinese customers through various special offers following the newly available opportunity to travel internationally.
Boosting Chinese Tourism with Visa-Free Entry for Group Tourists
This partnership is being formed concurrently with a notable change in South Korean policy which, aiming to attract more Chinese travelers, will implement visa-exempt entry for Chinese group tourists between September 29, 2025 and June 30, 2026. The policy seeks to boost South Korean tourism, which in the past has been a strong market for Chinese tourists. As emphasized by the South Korean prime minister’s office, the policy is meant to act as a stimulus for Korean tourism activities after the COVID-19 pandemic, which severely limited global travel.
During the policy approval meeting, Prime Minister Kim Min-seok remarked on the importance of fostering the domestic tourism market alongside the international travel economy. With the expectation that the visa exemption will increase Chinese travelers to visit South Korea, officials are optimistic that it will support small and medium enterprises, helping the economic recovery of South Korea.
Dai Bing, the Chinese ambassador to South Korea, praised the new South Korean policy of visa-free travel for issued visas as benefiting Chinese visitors to South Korea. Ambassador Dai further noted that China permits South Koreans to travel without a visa starting in November 2024. Following this change, there has been notable increase in travel and exchanges between the two countries, and Korea expects that the new visa-free policy for Chinese visitors will further accelerate these patterns.
Growing Demand and Cultural Exchange
Korean Air’s collaboration with Ctrip is in step with the increasing attention given to South Korea as a tourist destination. The Korea Tourism Organization reports that Chinese visitors contested as South Korea’s greatest foreign tourist’s in 2024 with close to 4.6 million visiting the country. This trend continued in 2025 with a 13.8% growth in arrivals from China in the first half of the year, totaling 2.52 million.
Expected to take effect later this year, the visa waiver is likely to make it even easier for Chinese travelers to visit South Korea by eliminating the need for a visa. Considering this, the timing of Korean Air’s new partnership with Ctrip is truly remarkable. With the increasing appetite for overseas travel following the pandemic, the airline stands ready to take advantage of this boost in tourism.
Partnership Perks and Strategic Implications
There are many advantages for the two companies associated with the Korean Air and Ctrip partnership. Ctrip has granted Korean Air direct access to its store, which enables Korean Air to reach with tailored packages and marketing directly to Chinese customers. For Ctrip, being partnered with one of the leading airlines of South Korea adds to its reputation, and this enables Ctrip to expand its services and add more international flights.
The partnership also supports South Korea’s efforts to bridge the cultural gap between the two nations. With the collaboration of Korean Air and Ctrip, travel to South Korea is facilitated for Chinese travelers, thereby improving the cultural understanding between the two countries.
Corporate travelers are the primary focus of this partnership, and specialized business services and travel packages developed for the well-heeled business traveler are offered. These services are expected to result in a sustained influx of premium tourists to South Korea, thereby strengthening the airline’s presence in China.
Conclusion: A Stronger Future for South Korea’s Tourism and Airline Industry
The collaboration of Ctrip with Korean Air marks a significant advancement in strengthening Korean Air’s presence in China and further tapping into the increasing interest in traveling to South Korea. This collaboration in conjunction with South Korea’s new visa exemption for Chinese group travelers provides a perfect opportunity for business expansion. This collaboration is beneficial for Korean Air not only for expansion of their services and routes, but also for the benevolent purpose of assisting in cross-cultural exchange and understanding between the two countries.
Reopening borders for international travel and tourism is a hopeful sign of progress for both countries as they recover from the pandemic’s challenges. With bespoke services and special offers for easier access for Chinese travelers, Korean Air and Ctrip are poised to spearhead growth in the emerging market. The alliance, along with the exemption of visas, is projected to spark a fresh wave of tourism from China to South Korea and vice versa, boosting both countries’ economies while strengthening relations.
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