Korail Attempts to Accommodate Lunar New Year PyeongChang Passes

(ATR) Korea Rail says a new purchasing period will be opened for foreign travelers holding a multi-day rail pass for the PyeongChang Olympicsto buy tickets for use during the Korean Lunar New Year.

A new email from Korea Rail to frustrated travelers, who may be shut out of tickets during the Feb. 14-18 period, was passed to Around the Rings. Korail previously told international travelers that they will have to wait hours after Koreans to secure seats during this period despite holding multi-day passes. The situation has caused confusion and anger for Olympic tourists, and was first reported by the Korea Herald.

Travel during the Lunar New Year, known as Seollal, is considered a very high demand event and sells out within minutes.

"We truly appreciate and welcome everyone who are visiting Korea for Olympic Winter Games Pyeongchang 2018, and thank you for your interest and support on Pyeongchang Korail Pass," the email says. "However, to resolve hardships that Pyeongchang Korail Pass holders may face, we have made additional special reservation plan:

- Special reservation period: January 25th 10:00A.M. to January 29th 16:00P.M. (Korean Standard Time)

- Available trains: KTX (Incheon-Seoul ↔ Gangneung station) for Seollal period (February 14th to 18th 2018) only

- Limited option: 2 seats per person for a day & up to 6 seats per person during the Seollal period in total"

Korail said the new reservation period with a limited option was a "fair provision to every passholder" and that standing room tickets will be available on trains during the Seollal period.

Limited information about the Seollal period has left Olympic travelers scrambling to get necessary high-speed rail tickets to see the 2018 Games. High costs of accommodations in Gangwon province and the newly built rail line has encouraged some international travelers to stay in Seoul when attending the Games.

Without train tickets, many tourists could face up to a four-hour trip each way to attend events in Gangwon. A number of new expressways have been built in South Korea in anticipation of the Olympics, but will not fully mitigate the distance from Seoul to PyeongChang.

PyeongChang 2018 has already scrapped using the high-speed rail to transport athletes to the Games. Buses will be used because that is the only way the athletes will be able to travel with their gear.

Written by Aaron Bauer

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