Commemorating the event of PyeongChang 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and G-2 (Game-2; two years before PyeongChang 2018 Olympics), Hello PyeongChang Winter Festival will be held from February 4 to 6 around Gangneung Dano Park with various programs including an opening ceremony with performances by K-POP singers, cultural and arts groups, traditional performances themed on Gangwon-do traditional culture, World DJ festival, cultural art performance by EATOF (East Asia Inter-Regional Tourism Forum), and professional arts groups’ performances. Reservation for the festival is available through the official website. Individual foreign guests are also able to make a reservation for the festival. In addition to the pre-welcoming ceremony, PyeongChang Connected Test Events will be held with Jeongseon Alpine Ski Contest, PyeongChang Bogwang Snowboard Contest and Pyeongchang Freestyle Ski Contest. Other festivals in Gwangwon-do including PyeongChang Winter Music Festival, (Feb 25-28, Alpensia and Yongpyong), Daegwallyeong Snow Festival (Jan 15-Feb 10, areas of Hoenggye-ri, Daegwallyeong-myeon) and PyeongChang Godeureum Festival (Jan 15-24, Areas of No.2 bridge of Joyanggang River, Jeongseon-eup) will offer more of the winter atmosphere to visitors.

Located within a forest of 2.4 kilometers of bamboo, this festival is full of activities celebrating the beauty and function of the bamboo plant. More active visitors can test their skills during some of the festival’s scheduled river sports, such as ‘Log Rafting’ and ‘Water Bicycling’. After working up an appetite, visitors can please their palate with some of Damyang’s famous cuisines and other world foods featured at the Cultural Experience Center. For additional sightseeing opportunities, visit some of the other attractions in the area, such as the Damyang Soswaewon, Damyang Gwanbangjerim, Damyang Jungnogwon, Metasequoia, and more.

Sulwha Cultural Exhibition offers a venue to remind visitors of the actual value of traditional artcrafts and communicate with modern art in a way that helps to combine and develop the traditional with modern. This exhibition aims to provide the opportunity to share the meaning and value of balance and harmony, a philosophy of Sulwhasu, that always exist but may be difficult to recognize in daily life, such as inside and outside, subjects within their environments, and traditions and modernism.

The Seocheon Camellia Octopus Festival will be held in Maryang-ri, Seo-myeon, Seocheon-gun. Visitors can enjoy the sight of blooming camellia flower trees and fresh caught baby octopus from the West Sea. Various events will be held such as baby octopus fishing, a Seocheon retrospective photo exhibition, local agricultural product sales, music performances, and more.

G-Star 2012 is a global game exhibition taking place from November 8th through 11th at BEXCO in Busan. It is hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism (MCST) of Korea together with the Busan Municipal City, and aims to improve the domestic game industry and introduce new gaming trends and the latest technologies. This year, 434 companies from 31 countries (the largest scale to date) will participate in the event under the theme of ‘Game, Touching the World’ Along with the game exhibition, there will be various programs including a business consulting session, recruitment fair, networking party, seminars and talks, game zone, Korea-China Game Culture Festival and so on. Admission is 6,000 won for adults and 3,000 won for children. Tickets are available online (Interpark) and at the door.

Bukcheon Cosmos and Buckwheat Festival is one of the best autumn festivals in Hadong-gun, a district located in Jikjeon-ri, Bukcheon-myeon. This festival is comprised of a wide range of events including exhibitions, hands-on programs, music concerts in flower gardens, the 7080s concert, a photograph contest, photo exhibition of Bukcheon Cosmos Station, caricature drawings and more.

Designated as the first Slow City in Asia, Cheongsando in Wando-gun hosts the annual Cheongsando Slow Walk Festival. The festival is held every April, which is the best time of the year to enjoy the canola blossoms and barley with the sea in the background. During the festival, visitors can participate in various cultural events and exhibitions, and enjoy the spring scenery.

Ganggyeong Salted Seafood Festival is known for its freshest and finest quality, which is made with recipes handed down from from generation to generation, retaining the unique, authentic taste of salted fermented fish.All the ingredients are imported directly and prepared in modern facilities. Today, the market accounts for half of the nation’s total sales of salted seafood.The Ganggyeong Festival has grown to become a major industrial festival in Korea, and originally started off in an effort to boost local economy and enhance the fish market merchants’ incomes in 1997 when the IMF financial crisis hit the nation. Salted fish merchants made the festival in a large-scale, getting bigger and better each year.Especially since 2007, the festival has changed its official title to Ganggyeong Fermented Seafood Festival. The festival has in the spotlight and has now established itself as a healthy fermented food item in the world food market, breaking away from the notion of being simply salted, preserved food.

The Anmyeondo Beach Shrimp Festival is held every fall in Taean County, Chungcheongnam-do Province where the area is famous for harvesting enormous tiger prawns. During the festival, visitors can sample a variety of fresh shrimp as well as crab, gizzard shads (Herring), abalone, and clams at reasonable prices. The festival also offers a list of exciting programs such as celebrity guest performances, a fireworks show, singing contest, shrimp-peeling contest, and shrimp-catching contest. Shrimp and prawns in the Taean area are known for their succulent taste. They can grow in size to 20cm and are best enjoyed during the fall. Anmyeondo Beach is also home to many by popular year-round attractions including Kkotji, Sambong, and Anmyeondo Natural Recreation Forest.

Ulsan has produced iron for 2,000 years stretching back through the Samhan Dynasty and then the Joseon Dynasty (1392~1910). In the 1960’s it began it’s rise as the major iron industrial center of Korea. The region’s traditional iron culture is the theme of this festival. Activities include a traditional folk game called ‘Soeburi (a game played by making iron)’, Pungmul (folk music) performances, and learning programs.