Vacationers visit a valley to beat the summer heat. [Newsis]
Vacationers visit a valley to beat the summer heat. [Newsis]

Temperatures pushing past 40 degrees Celsius are reshaping where Koreans choose to spend their summer, driving a sharp shift away from outdoor destinations and toward air-conditioned indoor spaces.

Demand for indoor facilities such as shopping malls and movie theaters has risen, while trips to outdoor tourist destinations have fallen sharply.

Navigation app operator Tmap Mobility said Wednesday that it compared destination-setting counts for major sites nationwide from July 27 through Sunday — when the heat wave intensified — against the same period a year earlier. The shopping category rose 5.2 percent, while the travel and leisure category fell 16.5 percent.

Within the shopping category, hypermarkets saw a 26.2 percent increase in destination settings and department stores a 4.5 percent rise.

Indoor cultural venues posted even sharper gains — movie theaters surged 52.1 percent, science museums 42.7 percent and performance halls 39.2 percent.

Outdoor leisure destinations, by contrast, took a heavy hit. Water and marine sports facilities plunged 52.5 percent, while observation decks and lakes fell 50.4 percent and 49.1 percent, respectively.

Waterfalls and valleys dropped 47.9 percent, and theme parks and hot spring resorts declined 37.7 percent and 23.4 percent, respectively.

Beaches held up better than other outdoor spots, slipping just 11.2 percent.

The most-navigated beaches this summer included Anmok Beach in Gangneung, Songdo Beach in Busan, Hamdeok Beach on Jeju, Mallipo Beach in South Chungcheong Province and Jinha Beach in Ulsan.

Tmap Mobility said it has updated its services to reflect the shift in travel patterns, offering recommendations for indoor outings, local restaurants and festivals.

Through its "Pop-up & Exhibition" feature, users can browse information on indoor events at shopping malls, galleries and pop-up stores, while the "Local Restaurants" section highlights eateries popular with residents or seeing a recent uptick in visits.


husn7@heraldcorp.com