Jeju Fire Festival

The Jeongwol Daeboreum Field-Burning Festival, also known as the Jeju Fire Festival, has secured its position as one of the major festivals representing Jeju. It will light up Jeju with the theme: “Using fire to spread the message of hope out into space.”

This year, the title of the festival has changed to the Jeju Field-Burning Festival. The festival period has also changed. It now runs from the first Thursday of March to the Sunday of the same week, also the time of gyungchip, a day marked in Korea for when animals end their hibernation and begin to come out of their holes and homes in preparation for spring.

The Jeju Field-Burning Festival is for cattle and horses by burning off old and wilted grass, as well as to kill vermin on the fields. According to the tradition, from late winter until early spring, the local villagers would start a fire on the fields. This was called bangae, one of the oldest stock farming skills. The festival has reinterpreted this tradition with a modern look and made itself a marketable tourism product.

The festival started off in 1997 and has become one of the major winter festivals in Jeju since 1999. It is now notable across not just the nation, but internationally as well, as it was certified as a recommended festival by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in 2001. A festival magazine also nominated this festival as number one amongst the other top festivals in Korea. The Jeju Field-Burning Festival means “spring in the air” and thus marks the celebration of the arrival of spring, and the festival will entertain visitors with a variety of activities and programs in addition to  field burning.

The Jeongwol Daeboreum Field-Burning Festival, also known as the Jeju Fire Festival, has secured its position as one of the major festivals representing Jeju. It will light up Jeju with the theme: “Using fire to spread the message of hope out into space.”

This year, the title of the festival has changed to the Jeju Field-Burning Festival. The festival period has also changed. It now runs from the first Thursday of March to the Sunday of the same week, also the time of gyungchip, a day marked in Korea for when animals end their hibernation and begin to come out of their holes and homes in preparation for spring.

The Jeju Field-Burning Festival is for cattle and horses by burning off old and wilted grass, as well as to kill vermin on the fields. According to the tradition, from late winter until early spring, the local villagers would start a fire on the fields. This was called bangae, one of the oldest stock farming skills. The festival has reinterpreted this tradition with a modern look and made itself a marketable tourism product.

The festival started off in 1997 and has become one of the major winter festivals in Jeju since 1999. It is now notable across not just the nation, but internationally as well, as it was certified as a recommended festival by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in 2001. A festival magazine also nominated this festival as number one amongst the other top festivals in Korea. The Jeju Field-Burning Festival means “spring in the air” and thus marks the celebration of the arrival of spring, and the festival will entertain visitors with a variety of activities and programs in addition to  field burning.

[Performnace]
- Jeju Festival Flash Mob for Prosperity and a Fire Festival Concert
- Opening Ceremony and Jeju Citizens Fire Fringe Performance
- Prayer of Hope Ceremony by German Team
- Saejejuin special events for foreigners (foreign permanent residents, foreigners in Korea)
- Special Performances of the International Sister Cities (Jeju•China•The United States•Germnay)
- Music Concert and Jeju Fire festival Early Spring Concert

[Hands-on activities]
- Torch marching for the good fortune
- Putting the Oreum to the Torch
- Walking the Jeju Sorigil (road of sounds)
- Jeju Traditional Food
- Field Fire Flying Kite
- Oreum Hiking
- Horseback riding

[Contest activities]
- Youth Community Festival
- Making Oreum‘Nul’ (wood pyre) Contest
- Jeju Baengnana Singing Contest
- Deomdoldeolgi Contest (stone lifting) (for tourists, foreigners)
- Neokdungbegi Tournament (korean traditional dice)

[Others]
- Café for foreigners
- Oreum Laser & Graffiti Show
- Fireworks at the Top of the Oreum
- Making Hope Trees

[Folk Market]
- Jeju Clean Agro-Fishery Products Grand Sale
- Local agriculture products promotion Booth
- Local Specialty
- Multi-cultural Food Restaurants