SEOUL - Nearly 500 flights to and from the South Korean tourist island of Jeju have been cancelled because of harsh winter weather, the authorities said on Tuesday, disrupting the final day of the Lunar New Year holiday for travellers.

All 466 domestic flights and 10 international flights scheduled to fly to and from Jeju International Airport were cancelled, an airport spokesman said.

Korean Air confirmed it had cancelled 88 of its daily flights in and out of the island.

Tuesday saw some of the coldest temperatures of the season.

Heavy snow and strong winds are expected to hit southern parts of the country, including Jeju.

The weather authorities issued cold wave alerts for most of the country, with morning lows dropping to minus 16.4 deg C in Seoul and to minus 25.5 deg C in the northern county of Cheorwon, according to Yonhap news agency.

Yonhap reported that hundreds of ferry voyages across the country were also cancelled.

Tuesday was the last day of the Lunar New Year holiday, which is one of South Korea’s two biggest holidays. REUTERS