Ock Ji-sook, a self-described budget traveler in her 30s, plans to visit Kyoto, Japan, instead of Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, this spring to enjoy cherry blossoms alongside historic buildings. She says that the total expense of traveling to Japan is lower when accommodation, food and other costs are included, even though round-trip tickets on a low-cost carrier to Japan are about 200,000 won ($136), higher than the roughly 140,000 won for a domestic round-trip KTX bullet train. “A trip to Japan can be considered more cost-efficient, especially since it offers more exotic and foreign experiences, which are among the most attractive aspects of travel,” she said. Ock represents nearly one-third of respondents who picked high prices as the primary reason for avoiding domestic travel, according to a survey released Thursday. The survey was conducted jointly by Airbnb, an online home rental platform for travelers, and Embrain, a pollster, from Jan. 13 to 19. A total of 27.9 percent of respondents cited high travel costs when asked why they refrain from taking trips within the count