Following news of South Korea easing up on travel restrictions, the low-cost subsidiary of the Singapore Airlines Group, Scoot, has taken the opportunity to launch a new route connecting Singapore and Jeju. The Island will be Scoot's second destination in South Korea, with the first being Seoul.

Inbound to Jeju

Often dubbed the "Hawaii of East Asia," Jeju offers itself as a year-long holiday getaway. The island is also one of the most popular vacation spots in South Korea. Passengers traveling with Scoot can soon look forward to fuss-free travel between Singapore and Jeju, with the planned lifting of the temporary suspension of visa-free entry into Jeju for international tourists as of June 1st. The news was celebrated by the airline's Chief Commercial Officer, Calvin Chan:

“South Korea boasts a variety of successful cultural exports with the K-wave fandom that has turned into a worldwide phenomenon, in addition to gastronomic highlights. We are excited about the opportunity to serve demand between Singapore and Jeju, connecting customers directly to the Island, a renowned location for popular K-pop music videos and K-drama settings."

Scheduled to commence from June 15th, the new route will operate thrice-weekly as a non-stop flight service. The thrice-weekly flight schedule is in slight contrast to Scoot's four-times-weekly flights to Seoul.

Approximately a six-hour flight journey, the new route will be utilizing the low-cost carrier's Airbus A321neo aircraft, the latest aircraft type to be introduced into the fleet in June last year. The single-aisle aircraft featuring 236 seats has a more extended range and sports premium black leather seats and amply sized overhead compartment bins. The ambient lighting technologies also aid in reducing jetlag, improving air quality, and reducing noise emissions.

A milestone achieved

Interestingly, the new Jeju flight service launch is only just the opening act to Scoot's celebrations to commemorate an important milestone. Chan further hints that Scoot is going to be offering more surprises in the coming months, as he says:

"The launch of our Jeju flight service is a prelude to Scoot’s celebrations as we commemorate a decade of flights this June. We have spent the last ten years defying the norms of low-cost travel while continuing to offer our customers connectivity, flexibility, and the highest standards of safety. We look forward to continuing to support the revitalization of international tourism and further grow our network for essential and leisure travel."

Having first commenced flight operations back on June 4th, 2012, Scoot has grown its network to house 73 destinations across 16 countries and territories in Asia, Australia, the Middle East, and Europe. As of end-April, the Singapore-based low-cost carrier served about 45 destinations, including the resumption of previously ceased routes such as Hat Yai and Kota Kinabalu. In terms of its fleet, Scoot has more than 55 aircraft, both narrowbodies and widebodies, with another three on order.

The large number of aircraft and the impressive route network has been serving Scoot relatively well in its decade, especially in aiding the ongoing recovery from the residual effect of the pandemic. More than 1.45 million passengers flew on both Singapore Airlines and Scoot aircraft in April, which was close to an almost 63% increase from March. Scoot is looking to hit past 60% of pre-pandemic levels alongside Singapore Airlines by the end of this month.

The anticipating line

There are undoubtedly plenty of things that Scoot could be planning for its celebration of a well-achieved, relatively revolutionary decade. From even cheaper airfares to exclusive in-person events, the list does seem endless. And with the recovery of Singapore's aviation industry at a good pace, it is also possible that Scoot will have more route launches in the coming months, perhaps new routes to more European destinations or possibly even the US.