KTX Tickets to Be Available for Booking Two Months Before Departure Starting in October

[Financial News] Starting in October, KTX and other rail tickets will be available for booking two months before the departure date.
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) and Korea Railroad Corporation (KORAIL) on the 18th, the rail ticket booking window will be extended from one month to two months before departure starting October 1.
The measure is intended to allow domestic and international tourists to secure rail tickets in advance while planning their trips. Many foreign tourists have been able to purchase airline tickets two months before departure, but rail tickets were previously available for booking only one month ahead, making it inconvenient to finalize their travel plans within Korea.
With the longer booking window, foreign tourists will be able to plan their domestic rail itineraries at the same time they purchase their airline tickets. Korean travelers will also have more time to reserve tickets when preparing for vacations or peak-season trips.
Meanwhile, rail travel by foreign visitors to Korea is growing rapidly. From January through August this year, 6.69 million foreign passengers used the railways, up 68% from the same period last year.
MOLIT and KORAIL are also improving reservation services for foreign users. French, German and Mongolian will be added to the foreigner-only website, which currently offers seven languages, including English, Chinese, Japanese, Thai and Vietnamese. The number of supported languages is expected to reach 10 by the end of the year.
Payment options will also be expanded. A system is being developed to support widely used global mobile payment services such as WeChat Pay and Alipay, in addition to overseas credit cards including Visa, Mastercard and UnionPay.
Kim Tae-byeong, director general of the Railway Bureau at MOLIT, said, "We will help foreign tourists travel conveniently not only within the Seoul metropolitan area but also to destinations across the country. We will continue expanding rail services to global standards so that both domestic and international passengers can experience the improvements."
[email protected] Choi Ga-young Reporter