Bamboo Airways, an ambitious Vietnamese startup, is expanding its international route network with two new routes to Seoul. Utilizing Airbus A321neo aircraft, the carrier will expand with fourteen new weekly flights between leisure destinations in Vietnam to the South Korean capital city.

Bamboo 787
Bamboo Airways is ready to start flights to Seoul, South Korea from Vietnamese destinations. Photo: Bamboo Airways

New flights to Seoul

Bamboo Airways will fly to Seoul from Da Nang and Cam Ranh per a press release. Both routes will operate with a once-daily frequency. Overall, this will mark fourteen new weekly frequencies between Vietnam and Seoul. The schedule is as follows:

  • Da Nang to Seoul-Incheon departs at 16:10, arrives in Seoul at 22:30
  • Seoul-Incheon to Da Nang departs at 23:35, arrives in Da Nang at 2:15 in the morning (the next day)
  • Cam Ranh to Seoul-Incheon departs at 21:40 and arrives at 4:20 the next morning
  • Departure from Seoul-Incheon to Cam Ranh leaves at 5:30 and arrives at 8:20

All times are local. According to reporting from Routes Online, service between Cam Ranh and Seoul will commence on November 15th while service between Da Nang and Seoul will commence on October 17th.

Bamboo Airways
Bamboo Airways will use Airbus A321neo aircraft on their route between Vietnam and Seoul. Photo: Bamboo Airways

The red-eye Seoul to Da Nang and Cam Ranh to Seoul could be grueling. These are some longer flights. However, Bamboo Airways indicated that, onboard, passengers should expect hot meals on the flight.

Bamboo Airways flight attendant
Bamboo Airways will offer a meal service on these flights. Photo: Bamboo Airways

Onboard Bamboo Airways to Seoul

Bamboo Airways will not offer lie-flat seating onboard their A321neos. As a leisure route, there tend to be more price-sensitive travelers. Seoul is an important destination and Bamboo Airways will compete with the likes of VietJet Air, Air Seoul, Asiana Airlines, and Korean Air among others. Furthermore, Vietnam Airlines also flies to several points in Vietnam from Seoul. In fact, Vietnam Airlines' 787-10 is flying to Seoul, albeit from Ho Chi Minh City.

Vietnam Airlines
Vietnam Airlines is flying a Boeing 787-10 to Seoul. Photo: Boeing

Will these routes be a success?

Bamboo Airways has some pretty ambitious plans that include flying an A380 to the United States, although it is unclear if Bamboo Airways will go through with this. But, for now, Bamboo Airways still sees room to expand. The airline is celebrating some significant milestones and even painted an A321 in a special livery commemorating their one-millionth passenger milestone.

Bamboo Airways
Bamboo Airways celebrated its one-millionth passenger with a special livery. Photo: Bamboo Airways

However, with intense competition, it is unclear if Bamboo Airways could make these routes a success. Only time will be able to tell if these routes work for the airline. Bamboo Airways has not announced any sort of partnership with airlines that would bolster connections in Seoul. Korean Air and Vietnam Airlines, for example, as Skyteam partners, codeshare and offer connections.

Bamboo Airwayds 787
Bamboo Airways has not announced any airline partners in Korea. Photo: Bamboo Airways

Will you fly Bamboo Airways between Seoul and Vietnam? Let us know in the comments

Routes Online was the source for some schedule data as indicated in the article.