INCHEON, South Korea — Travelers who used nursing rooms at Incheon International Airport to get free hot water for instant noodles drew criticism after parents complained that the facilities were being misused for purposes unrelated to infant care.
Videos and posts shared on Chinese social media platforms, including Xiaohongshu, showed travelers describing the nursing rooms as a “travel hack” for preparing cup noodles at the airport.
One user wrote that convenience stores at the airport did not provide hot water and suggested that travelers use the nursing rooms instead. Other posts included directions to nearby convenience stores and nursing rooms inside the airport.
Some users also shared encounters with airport staff who reportedly stopped them from using the facilities.
“I thought eating was the only thing prohibited, but they wouldn’t even let me get hot water,” one user wrote, adding that they had only intended to take water before leaving.
The posts prompted backlash from South Korean parents and caregivers, who said the nursing rooms are intended to provide clean and quiet spaces for feeding infants and preparing baby formula during travel.
The facilities are designed for families traveling with young children, and complaints have grown over what parents described as increasing misuse of the rooms by other travelers.