As extreme heat continues day after day, ‘mall-cations’ (shopping mall + vacation) enjoyed during lunch hours are taking hold as a new trend among office workers.

At lunchtime on the 6th, with the heat wave hovering around 36 degrees continuing, office workers in suits with ID cards around their necks stood in long lines in front of arcade machines at ‘Yeouido IFC Mall’ in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. On the third basement level here, the ‘Newtro Game Festival’ has been underway since the 24th of last month. ‘Tetris’, ‘Bubble Bobble’, and ‘Street Fighter’ classic arcade machines, along with experiential machines such as ‘Pump’ and ‘Initial D’, have been installed, totaling over 30 units. No fee is charged. As office workers flock in after lunch, the place is full every day. Im Ga-hee (24) said, “We eat and then gather with teammates to enjoy a quick round or two,” adding, “We even bet coffee on the results and are having fun during our lunch break.”

At the same time, the ‘The Hyundai Seoul’ department store next door was also filled with office workers. The underground passage that runs from Yeouido Station through IFC to The Hyundai Seoul is popular among nearby office workers as a space where they can escape the heat to eat and spend their breaks. A said, “It is so hot that I do not even have the nerve to go outside,” adding, “It is much better to take care of meals inside the building or simply have food delivered.” An employee at a restaurant inside IFC Mall said, “Over 90% of weekday lunchtime customers are office workers from nearby,” adding, “Perhaps because of the heat wave this year, we have seen more office worker customers.”

That day, the Jamsil branch of Lotte Department Store and Lotte World Mall in Songpa-gu, Seoul, were also packed with people who work at nearby offices. These venues are also all connected via underground passages to Jamsil Station (Lines 2·8), making them popular mall-cation spots.

B, who was packing food at a fast-food outlet in the mall, said, “Because it is so hot, I make sure to take care of everything indoors in the same building or in spaces connected underground,” adding, “There are too many people to eat in the store, and I do not dare go outside, so I am going to take it to eat at the office.”

Another advantage of a mall-cation is being able to enjoy a stroll through the cool underground spaces after a meal or window-shop around the mall. In front of a pop-up store by a famous YouTuber held that day at Lotte World Mall, office workers continued to stop by to see lizards and fireflies. C said, “My child likes lizards, so I had been interested in them, but I did not expect to see lizards in a place like this during lunchtime.”