Jeongseon Arirang Festival

🗓️ 2026.10.01 ~ 2026.10.04

The Jeongseon Arirang Festival is Jeongseon-gun’s representative cultural tourism festival, held to carry forward the history, cultural value, and tradition of Jeongseon Arirang, one of the Republic of Korea’s most iconic folk sounds. Arirang is listed as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, and this festival is built around promoting that value through a broad range of performances, parades, experience programs, exhibitions, and cultural arts events.

The festival is designed for all generations, with programming that brings together tradition and modernity. It is also notable as a resident-participatory event: local residents are directly involved in planning and operation, not just in attending. This approach helps the festival contribute to the local economy and tourism through programs linked to Jeongseon’s cultural and tourism resources. The larger goal is to establish the event as the Republic of Korea’s representative Arirang cultural festival and to develop it into a global cultural tourism festival that resonates with people around the world.

Main Programs

• Opening ceremony theme performance
• Chilhyeon Ritual

Side Programs

• Arirang Parade
• National Arirang Singing Contest (Children/Youth category, General category)
• A(Arirang)-POP Dance Competition

Visitor Participation Programs

• Experience programs operated by institutions and organizations

Other Details

• Night market operation
• Local food
• Food trucks

Location and Admission

📍 Address: Bongyang-ri, Jeongseon-eup, Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province

💰 Fee: Free

Contact and Links

📞 Inquiry: 033-560-3013~5

⭐️ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/arirangfestival_official

🖥️ Website: https://arirangfestival.kr/

🛏️ Accommodations near the event

Jeongseon Arirang is a regional variant of the Korean folk song Arirang, associated with Jeongseon county in Gangwon Province. It differs from the standard Seoul-style Arirang that most people recognize. Its tempo is slower, melodic lines are longer and more irregular, and singers often use vibrato and pitch variation that sound closer to oral narrative than to a fixed tune. The text is in the local dialect and covers themes common in regional work songs: parting, longing, physical labor, and the surrounding landscape.

Historically sung by farmers, miners, and travelers, the song served practical and social functions. Its rhythmic structure could coordinate labor, while its lyrics gave voice to isolation and attachment to place. Because it was passed down orally, versions vary from singer to singer. The improvisational element is not decoration but part of how the form works: singers adapt lines to occasion, mood, and audience.

Jeongseon Arirang was included in the 2012 UNESCO listing of Arirang as intangible cultural heritage. The listing is not a single composition but a cluster of regional traditions. Jeongseon Arirang is often called the oldest of these, but claims about age are hard to verify because written records are scarce. What can be said is that its vocal style differs sharply from the polished versions heard in concerts and popular media, and it has been maintained as a living practice in the region. Performances typically use gayageum or daegeum accompaniment, though the voice remains central.

The Jeongseon Arirang Festival is one place where this repertory is regularly performed. The festival gives local singers a formal context to pass songs on to younger generations and introduces visitors to a style of Arirang they are unlikely to hear elsewhere.

Goyang Autumn Flower Festival

🗓️ 2026.10.01 ~ 2026.10.11

The 2026 Goyang Autumn Flower Festival will be held at Ilsan Lake Park, where autumn hues meet a cool breeze. Under the theme “Autumn Palette,” the park will be filled with colorful autumn flowers, as if a palette of diverse paints had been spread across the landscape. Visitors can enjoy the deepening mood of autumn in the city while strolling through gardens and flowerbeds where seasonal flowers, including cosmos and zinnia, harmonize.

The festival also provides a range of exhibitions and experiences to enjoy with family, lovers, and friends, along with photo zones to leave memories against the backdrop of flowers and nature, and resting spaces in which to relax and take in the season. A flower market adds another way to enjoy the festival: visitors can see and purchase Goyang’s excellent flowers up close. In particular, the festival includes a commemorative flowerbed for the 100th anniversary of Hangeul Day and a special photo zone previewing the 30th anniversary of the 2027 Goyang International Flower Show. Because anyone can visit freely without a separate admission fee, it is an ideal place for a light autumn outing.

The main program highlights are as follows.

1. Autumn Theme Garden and Photo Zones

   • Creation of colorful autumn flower gardens and photo zones reflecting the exhibition theme “Autumn Palette”

2. Flowerbed Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of Hangeul Day

   • Presentation of a commemorative promotional flowerbed expressing the meaning of Hangeul Day through flowers and gardens

3. 2027 Goyang International Flower Show 30th Anniversary Photo Zone

   • Operation of a special photo zone to preview the 30th anniversary and a citizen participation message wall

4. Flower Market

   • Operation of a flower sales venue where various floral species can be encountered and purchased

5. Water Bicycle Experience

   • Water bicycle experience to enjoy the scenery of Ilsan Lake Park and autumn flowers together

With beautiful lake scenery and colorful autumn flowers harmonizing throughout the park, visitors can encounter the most beautiful moment of this autumn at the 2026 Goyang Autumn Flower Festival.

📍 Address: 595 Hosu-ro, Ilsandong-gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do

🛏️ Accommodation near the event

💰 Fee: Free

📞 Inquiry: 031-908-7750

⭐️ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flowerex/

What is Ilsan Lake Park?

Ilsan Lake Park is a landscaped public park in Ilsan, Goyang, about 30 km northwest of Seoul. It covers roughly 280,000 pyeong (about 1.15 million square meters) and was built around an artificial lake with a circumference of about 3.5 km, making it one of the largest lake parks in South Korea.

The park’s main features are open lawns, lakeside walking and cycling paths, water plazas, and seasonal flower beds. The path around the lake is flat and well maintained, so it is used by joggers, cyclists, and families as well as by visitors who simply want to walk. Benches, restrooms, and cafés are spaced along the route, and there is no entrance fee.

In autumn, ginkgo and maple trees add color, and the flower beds are replanted with late-blooming species. This is also when the Goyang Autumn Flower Festival is held in the park. The festival draws large crowds, so for a quieter visit, weekday mornings are better. Apart from festival periods, the park functions mainly as a large, accessible place for ordinary recreation, and it is close enough to Seoul for a day trip.

Gyeryong Military Culture Festival

🗓️ 2026.10.01 ~ 2026.10.05

The Gyeryong Military Culture Festival is a defense-themed cultural event held in Gyeryong City, where the headquarters of the Army, Navy, and Air Force are located. First held in 2007, it marks its 16th anniversary this year. From Thursday, October 1, 2026, to Monday, October 5, 2026, the festival will take over the permanent stage, auxiliary stages, and the entire runway of Gyeryongdae, opening with performances by top-tier artists such as Sohyang and Forestella and continuing with military band and honor guard performances, special performances by Army performance teams, and the largest-ever road parade—a large-scale downtown parade involving approximately 700 participants.

Throughout the five days, visitors can also take part in a range of military culture experiences, including military equipment and shooting experiences, extreme ranger challenges, comprehensive barrack experiences, and VR/AR experiences. With programs designed for all ages, the festival also includes a history special lecture by Professor Shin Byung-joo, a 20m-large LED special video hall, and a children’s theme park, all contributing to Gyeryong’s unique defense culture festival.

Opening Ceremony

The opening ceremony features a citizen-participatory theme performance by Sohyang, an opening performance, a celebratory performance by Forestella, and a fireworks show.

Main Stage

The main stage hosts military band and honor guard performances, Army performance teams, and invited acts including Son Tae-jin, Gil Ryeo-won, and Dynamic Duo.

Auxiliary Stage

The auxiliary stage offers citizen participation and special performances, including Hidden Singer impersonator performances and military band and honor guard performances.

Experience Programs

• Special Experience Hall — Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps promotion zones with equipment and shooting experiences, plus an Extreme Experience Zone featuring a children’s ranger challenge.
• Special Video Hall — a 20m-large LED video hall screening Yi Seong-gye’s Dream, Legend of Sindoan alongside a history special lecture by Shin Byung-joo, known as the historical background commentator for You Quiz and The Man Who Lives with the King.
• Barracks Experience Ground — a comprehensive barracks experience course including a shooting range, rappelling, a high-altitude mock tower, and survival games.
• Barracks Experience Hall — the latest treadmill games, VR/AR experiences, and a children’s theme park with air bounce, snack collage experiences, and balloon and magic shows.

Side Events

Side events include the downtown parade, Imagination Festival, Gyeryong Haneul Sori-gil exploration, and a health walking event.

Runway

The runway hosts guerrilla events such as Nanjangpan Gut, a bubble show, and a retro youth stage.

📍 Address: Gyeryongdae Runway, Seokgye-ri, Sindoan-myeon, Gyeryong-si, Chungcheongnam-do

🛏️ Accommodations near the event

💰 Fee: Free (Limited to some programs, experience fees are paid)

📞 Inquiry: 042-840-2621~4

⭐️ Instagram

🖥️ www.gcfct.org

Gyeryong City, in South Chungcheong Province, is the headquarters site of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces. The Gyeryongdae compound houses the headquarters of the Army, Navy, and Air Force. Having the three services in one location allows their command staffs to work together on joint operations without the coordination problems that come with widely separated bases. While the Ministry of National Defense in Seoul handles policy and administration, operational command and control of the military is exercised from Gyeryong.

The city contains a number of other military installations, training facilities, and defense agencies. Gyeryongdae and its surrounding area are protected by restricted airspace and strict security measures.

The public dimension of this military role is visible most clearly in the annual Gyeryong Military Culture Festival. The event opens parts of the military world to civilians, with displays of equipment, demonstrations, and programs designed to explain the armed forces. For most visitors, it is the main point of contact with the institutions based in the city.

Gyeryong is not a commercial or administrative capital. It is a working military headquarters, and that function determines what the city is and how it operates.

Cheonan Heungta-ryeong Dance Festival

🗓️ 2026.10.01 ~ 2026.10.05

The Cheonan Heungtaryeong Dance Festival continues its 23-year history since its first event in 2003. It has been selected as a Cultural Tourism Festival designated by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism a total of 8 times, and it has been selected as a representative local performing arts festival for 6 consecutive years. It has been designated as an Honorary Cultural Tourism Festival since 2020, and was selected as an ‘Ilpum Festival’ (first-class festival), the highest grade, for two consecutive years in Chungcheongnam-do’s ‘One County One Product Festival’ evaluation.

『Cheonan Heungtaryeong Dance Festival 2026』 will be held for 5 days from October 1 to October 5, 2026. During the festival period, various dance-related programs such as the National Dance Competition, the International (World) Dance Competition, and the Street Dance Parade will take place. The festival is an urban global dance festival operated using the downtown spaces of Cheonan Comprehensive Stadium and the area around Cheonan Samgeori Park. Admission is free, so visitors can move between competition venues, parades, and food areas without a ticket.

Programs

Main Programs

• National Dance Competition – A national-level competition bringing together Korean dancers from across the country.
• International (World) Dance Competition – A competitive program welcoming overseas and Korean participants.
• Street Dance Parade – A parade that moves through the downtown festival area, turning streets into performance spaces.

Side Programs

• Cheonan International Street Dance Championship (CIDC) – An international street dance championship hosted in Cheonan.
• Pump It Up World Championship – A global competition for the dance rhythm game Pump It Up.
• 2026 Korea Dance Awards – An awards program recognizing achievements in dance.

Consumer Participation Programs

• Experience booths – Hands-on booths offering a range of activities for festival visitors.
• Food zone and food trucks – Food and drink options available throughout the festival area.
• Children’s career experience zone – A dedicated area where children can take part in career-related hands-on activities.

Other Contents

• Overseas team parade – International teams parade through the festival district.
• Random play dance – An open, participatory dance activity set to randomly selected songs.
• Cheonan’s unique folktale, Neungso-jeon – A program based on the local folktale.
• Fringe performances – Smaller-scale performances staged alongside the main competitions.

Visitor Information

📍 Address: 208 Beonyeong-ro, Seobuk-gu, Cheonan-si, Chungcheongnam-do (Baekseok-dong)

🛏️ Accommodation near the event

💰 Fee: Free

📞 Inquiry: 041-900-7021

⭐️ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cheonanfestival/

🖥️ Website: https://cheonanfestival.com/ko/

What is Heungtaryeong?

Heungtaryeong is a traditional Korean folk song. The name combines heung—a word for joy, excitement, or a lifted mood—with taryeong, a term for a type of Korean song or melody. It is thus a tune meant to express and share a sense of collective enjoyment.

The music has a quick, bright rhythm that tends to draw clapping, swaying, and dancing from listeners. It has long been used at communal gatherings and celebrations, where its repeating phrases let audiences join in easily. That participatory quality is central to Heungtaryeong: it is not primarily a piece to be watched or appreciated from a distance. It works best when people take part, whether they are trained dancers or first-time attendees. This makes it a fitting musical center for a dance festival, since the performance succeeds only when the crowd joins the motion.

Cheonan Heungtaryeong Dance Festival

🗓️ 2026.10.01 ~ 2026.10.05

*The following festival details are from the previous year’s (2025) festival; details for the 2026 festival are currently being updated.*

The Cheonan Heungtaryeong Dance Festival is a festival that emphasizes participation and communication, designed so that visitors do not simply watch, but can directly learn dances and participate in performances. This hands-on approach sets it apart from conventional dance festivals, where the audience typically remains on the sidelines. Here, you are invited to step into the rhythm yourself—whether you are a seasoned dancer or have never tried a single step.

Beyond the dancing, the festival also contributes to the revitalization of the local economy by operating promotional booths for local agricultural specialties and sales booths for small and medium-sized enterprise products. It is an opportunity to taste and purchase regional goods while enjoying a packed cultural program, making it a meaningful outing for both culture lovers and those curious about local flavors.

Festival Programs

1. Main Programs

• National Dance Competition – A stage for domestic dancers to showcase their skills across various genres.
• International Dance Competition – Dancers from around the world gather to compete, bringing a global spectrum of styles and techniques.
• International Street Dance Championship – A high-energy battle of street dance crews, where urban styles take center stage.
• Street Dance Parade – A vibrant procession through the streets, turning the city itself into a performance venue.
• International Dance Festival Alliance – A collaborative platform that connects dance festivals worldwide, fostering exchange among artists and organizers.
• Korea International Contemporary Dance Competition – A competition dedicated to contemporary dance, highlighting innovative choreography and expressive movement.

2. Side Programs

• National Dance Sport Championship – A competitive showcase of ballroom and Latin dance disciplines.
• Korea Dance Awards – A ceremony recognizing outstanding contributions and achievements in the dance community.
• Pump It Up World Championship – A thrilling competition based on the popular rhythm game, where players demonstrate precision and stamina.

3. Consumer Participation Programs

• Learning to Dance – Hands-on classes where visitors can learn street dance, traditional dance, and more, led by instructors who guide participants from the basics to a short routine. This is the heart of the festival’s participatory philosophy—no experience required.

4. Other Contents

• Experience Booths – Interactive stations offering a closer look at dance culture and related activities.
• Food Zone – A dedicated area with a variety of food options to keep your energy up between performances and workshops.

Event Information

📍 Address: 208 Beonyeong-ro, Seobuk-gu, Cheonan-si, Chungcheongnam-do (Baekseok-dong)

🛏️ Accommodation near the event

💰 Fee: Free

📞 Inquiry: 1566-0155

⭐️ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cheonanfestival/

🖥️ Homepage: https://cheonanfestival.com/ko/index.php

What is Heungtaryeong?

Heungtaryeong is a traditional Korean musical form built around the concept of heung (흥) — a word often used to describe the sense of joy and lively energy that emerges when people share music and movement. In Korean folk music, a taryeong is a type of song or rhythmic pattern, and Heungtaryeong is one expression of that tradition. It typically features the buk barrel drum, the janggu hourglass drum, and the lead singer’s calls, which together create a steady, driving rhythm. The music is not designed for passive listening; it invites participation through clapping, stomping, and dancing.

At the Cheonan Heungtaryeong Dance Festival, this musical tradition serves as the common ground for performances, workshops, and competitions. The festival brings together dancers and audiences from different countries, using a rhythm that has been played in Korea for centuries as a bridge between them. The structure of the music gives both experienced performers and newcomers something clear to respond to: a beat that asks for movement. The festival’s setting in Cheonan, a city with its own history of dance and folk culture, makes the connection between the music and the event feel less like a theme and more like a continuation of what the rhythm was always meant to do.

Ground Forces Festival

🗓️ 2026.10.01 ~ 2026.10.05

The 2026 Ground Forces Festival is the Republic of Korea’s largest military culture festival, hosted by the Army. It is a non-profit event for public interest, aimed at promoting the Army’s development and future policies to the public, increasing trust in the military, and spreading positive values. It will be held for five days from Thursday, October 1st to Monday, October 5th at the Gyeryongdae runway in Chungnam. In the 22nd edition of the festival this year, under the theme “Republic of Korea Army Protecting the Daily Lives of the People,” there will be exhibitions and boarding experiences of the latest Korea-US combat equipment, and demonstrations of Army TIGER+ and drone-bots. Visitors can directly verify AI and advanced science and technology-based combat systems and the various changing aspects of the Army through demonstrations, exhibitions, and experiences at the Army Policy Promotion Hall. Additionally, a variety of high-quality military cultural performances such as military band and honor guard performances, Taekwondo demonstrations, military police MC mobile demonstrations, Army performance team acts, and road parades can be encountered.

The festival is structured around four program groups, covering everything from large-scale demonstrations to family-friendly activities. The program is free, and the five-day schedule gives visitors time to explore both the combat systems and the cultural side of the event.

Main Programs

• Opening ceremony
• Army Policy Promotion Hall (AI-based systems, intelligent smart units, etc.)
• Mechanized unit Army TIGER+ and drone unit demonstrations
• Korea-US combat equipment exhibition
• Road parade, etc.

Side Programs

• Korea-US drone competition
• Gyeryongdae tour
• 6.25 War Medal of Honor search
• Mobile medical examination vehicles
• Ground Forces stamp tour, etc.

Consumer Participation Programs

• Combat equipment boarding experience
• Military motorcycle boarding experience
• Hyungung simulated firing
• A photo with the “Special Army”
• KCTC MILES experience
• Survival experience
• Family photo shoot, etc.

Other Contents

• K-Defense Kookbang Ilbo photo contest
• Army symbol henna
• Gyeryong-i shuttle train
• Air bounce
• Pull-up king selection, etc.

Visitor Information

📍 Address: Seokgye-ri, Sindoan-myeon, Gyeryong-si, Chungcheongnam-do

🛏️ Accommodations near the event

💰 Fee: Free

📞 Inquiry: 042-550-5310~2

⭐️ Instagram

🖥️ Website

What is Gyeryong?

Gyeryong (계룡) is a city in South Chungcheong Province, South Korea. Its name comes from Gyeryongsan, or Chicken Dragon Mountain, but the city is better known as the country’s military capital. Since the 1990s, it has hosted the consolidated headquarters of the Republic of Korea Army, Navy, and Air Force, making it the only city in South Korea where all three branches command from one location.

The military presence shapes the city in practical ways. Barracks, command centers, and training ranges sit alongside residential areas and forested hills. The equipment used by troops stationed here is the same hardware displayed at the Ground Forces Festival, which takes place in the city each year. This gives visitors a direct look at the routines and tools of the armed forces in a working garrison, rather than a staged exhibition. The festival is not a separate attraction grafted onto the city; it grows out of the activity that already defines daily life there.

Jeongseon Arirang Festival

🗓️ 2026.10.01 ~ 2026.10.04

The following food information is from the previous year’s (2025) festival; information for the 2026 festival is currently being updated.

The Jeongseon Arirang Festival is the representative cultural tourism festival of Jeongseon-gun, held to inherit and develop the history, cultural value, and tradition of Jeongseon Arirang, a representative sound of the Republic of Korea. Arirang is listed as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, and this festival offers a chance to experience that heritage through performances, parades, experience programs, exhibitions, and cultural arts events where tradition and modernity harmonize. The event is designed for all generations to enjoy together and is operated as a resident-participatory festival: local residents directly take part in planning and operation. Through programs linked with local cultural and tourism resources, it also contributes to revitalizing the local economy and attracting tourists. Building on the cultural value of Arirang and the unique traditions of Jeongseon, it aims to establish itself as the Republic of Korea’s representative Arirang cultural festival and to develop into a global cultural tourism festival that people around the world can empathize with.

What to see and do

Main Programs

• Opening Ceremony Theme Performance
• Chilhyeon Ritual

Side Programs

• Arirang Parade
• National Arirang Singing Contest (Children/Youth category, General category)
• A(Arirang)-POP Dance Competition

Consumer Participation Programs

• Experience programs operated by organizations and groups

Other Details

• Night market operation
• Local food
• Food trucks, etc.

The program lineup offers something to watch, something to join, and something to taste. Visitors can enjoy the parade, the singing contest, and the A-POP dance competition, while those looking for a more hands-on experience can take part in the programs run by local organizations and groups. The night market and food trucks provide local food and casual dining options throughout the event.

Practical information

📍 Address: Bongyang-ri, Jeongseon-eup, Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon State

🛏️ Accommodations near the event

💰 Fee: Free

📞 Inquiry: 033-560-3013~5

⭐️ Instagram: arirangfestival_official

🖥️ Website: arirangfestival.kr

What is Jeongseon Arirang?

Jeongseon Arirang is a Korean folk song transmitted orally in Jeongseon County, a mountainous region of Gangwon State. It is one of the regional variants of Arirang, distinct from the standardized version most Koreans know. Its melody, rhythm, and vocal delivery differ noticeably: the tempo is slower, phrases are longer, and the singer uses a pronounced, wavering vibrato. The effect is less like a catchy tune and more like a sustained, expressive call.

The lyrics are sung in the local dialect. Many verses refer to specific places in Jeongseon, such as the Donggang River and Nochusan Mountain, while others deal with work and separation: miners in mountain tunnels, farmers on highland fields, and family members waiting for news from those who have left. These scenes are ordinary, but the vocal style gives them emotional weight.

Jeongseon Arirang was not written down for most of its history. It survived through performance, changing gradually as each generation passed it on. In 2012, UNESCO added Arirang, including regional versions such as Jeongseon Arirang, to its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. In Jeongseon, the song is still heard at festivals and local events—less as a museum piece, more as a familiar way of describing life in the mountains.

Gimje Horizon Festival

🗓️ 2026.10.01 ~ 2026.10.05

The following information regarding food at the festival grounds is based on the previous year’s (2025) festival; information for the 2026 festival is currently being updated.

Set against the vast golden fields of Gimje, the Gimje Horizon Festival is the only honorary representative cultural tourism festival in Korea, as designated by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, to be built around traditional farming culture. Its main stage is Byeokgolje, the oldest and largest irrigation facility in the country, and the festival draws on this heritage to offer visitors a full immersion in rural life: cooking rice on a traditional hearth, catching grasshoppers, harvesting rice, and threshing grain by hand. The program also includes the nation’s first Presidential Cup National Nongak (farmers’ music) Competition, along with time-honored folk events such as the Twin Dragon Play, rooted in the legend of Byeokgolje, and the Ipseok Tug-of-War, a ritual prayer for a bountiful harvest—both of which welcome on-site participation.

Main Programs

Presidential Cup Horizon National Nongak Competition

The only Presidential Cup competition among national festival competitions, where nongak teams representing their regions from across the country come together to compete. Visitors can feel the essence of traditional Korean farmers’ music in a single venue, as the country’s finest performers of this vibrant folk tradition vie for the highest honor.

Byeokgolje Legend Twin Dragon Play

A representative traditional event and cultural performance based on the twin dragon legend associated with Byeokgolje, the very stage on which the Gimje Horizon Festival unfolds. The play features situational play performances with the participation of residents from Buryang-myeon, Gimje-si, lending the retelling of the ancient story a distinct local authenticity.

Bountiful Harvest Prayer Ipseok Tug-of-War

A representative traditional event and cultural performance operated with the participation of residents from Gyowol-dong, Gimje-si. Based on a traditional folk game performed to pray for a bountiful harvest on the first full moon of the lunar year, it invites festival-goers to join the pull and take part in the collective wish for abundance.

Experience Programs

Land Art Zipline Experience

A unique leisure sports experience crossing over the large-scale land art (rice paddy experience center) created at Byeokgolje. It pairs the thrill of ziplining with sweeping views of the festival’s iconic rice paddy artworks.

Cooking Rice in a Traditional Hearth

A hands-on experience where families cook cauldron rice in a small traditional hearth and sit down to eat it together. It offers a genuine taste of everyday farming life, equal parts educational and heartwarming.

Horizon Kite Flying

The largest kite-flying program in the country, in which various kites are flown simultaneously across the open field. The sight of countless kites rising into the sky captures the festival’s expansive, horizon-wide spirit.

Side Programs

LED Land Art

At nightfall, the land art—which depicts Ssarikong-i, the festival’s character, wearing Hanbok—becomes a glowing landscape, illuminated with lighting that matches the festival’s theme. It welcomes visitors with the abundance and warmth of the horizon after dark.

Ssarikong-i Bale Art Exhibition

A bale art exhibition that conveys the festival’s sensibility, displaying a range of drawings from the Ssarikong-i character to popular characters. The straw-bale artworks add a rustic, playful character to the festival grounds.

Horizon Final Fantasy Show

The highlight of the festival night: a grand media show combining lasers, lighting, fireworks, and multimedia. It serves as a spectacular closing attraction that brings each day of the festival to a memorable end.

Food and Other Information

• Regional Specialized Food Booths: Representative foods from Gimje’s towns, townships, and villages, along with dishes from top local restaurants selected through the ‘Matbo-jago Competition’—an initiative to identify Gimje’s best restaurants and eradicate poor-quality food at regional festivals.
• Horizon Majung Street: Snack booths catering to the younger generation, offering a lively street-food experience on the festival grounds.
• Agricultural and Special Products Direct Market: A market selling raw agricultural, livestock, and fishery products, processed goods, and special products produced in Gimje, allowing visitors to take home a taste of the region.

📍 Address: 442 Byeokgolje-ro, Buryang-myeon, Gimje-si, Jeonbuk Special Self-Governing Province

🛏️ Accommodation near the event

💰 Fee: Free (Some programs have a fee)

📞 Inquiry: 063-540-3172

⭐️ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gimjehorizonfestival/

🖥️ Website: http://festival.gimje.go.kr/

Gimje, a city in North Jeolla Province, sits at the center of one of South Korea’s main rice-producing regions. The Gimje Plain, one of the country’s largest areas of continuous farmland, has long been cultivated through irrigation systems and coordinated village labor. The plain’s broad, flat fields give the city its nickname—often rendered as the “granary of Korea”—and provide the setting for the annual Horizon Festival.

Farming traditions are still visible in Gimje. Local events preserve practices such as juldarigi, a tug-of-war game, and the use of durumi, traditional weeding tools. Rice-planting and harvest songs are performed during the farming calendar, and the Dongjin River continues to supply water to the surrounding fields. In autumn, the ripened rice turns the plain golden, a seasonal change that attracts visitors and photographers.

The city also maintains physical evidence of its agricultural history. Irrigation ponds, dikes, and historical farming implements are displayed at local museums and heritage sites, offering a concrete record of how the region adapted to its environment. For visitors, Gimje provides an unpolished view of rural life in Korea: agriculture sets the rhythm of daily work, and the landscape itself reflects that labor.

Gyeryong Military Culture Festival

🗓️ 2026.10.01 ~ 2026.10.05

The following festival details are from the previous year’s (2025) festival; details for the 2026 festival are currently being updated.

“Gyeryong’s Dream, K-Military Culture Soaring to the World!” The Gyeryong Military Culture Festival will take place from Sept. 17 (Wed) to Sept. 21 (Sun) at the Gyeryongdae runway and throughout the downtown area. The 2025 Gyeryong Military Culture Festival, a luxury festival of the Republic of Korea, plans to raise the status of military culture and present various contents that all generations can enjoy together through diverse performance programs—such as the opening celebration performance, genre-specific Military Culture Festa concerts (Rock, Trot, K-POP), invited military band and honor guard performances, and road parades—as well as various experience side events including the Extreme Special Experience Hall. In particular, this year, a ‘Wellness Life Special Exhibition Hall’ will be operated to showcase new festival content that fuses military culture with lifestyle.

The festival’s appeal lies in its range: large-scale performances sit alongside hands-on military experiences, and the genre-specific concerts are programmed so that visitors of different generations will each find a stage to enjoy. The Wellness Life Special Exhibition Hall is the most distinctive addition this year, signaling an effort to extend military culture beyond ceremonial displays and into everyday life. For those seeking deeper engagement, the overnight camp and training programs offer a level of immersion that a single-day visit cannot match.

Official Events

Opening ceremony and celebration performances.

Exhibition Events

Operation of the Wellness Life Special Exhibition Hall, Extreme Special Experience Hall, etc.

Performance Events

Military Culture Festa genre-specific concerts (Rock, Trot, K-POP), 3-service military bands and honor guards, busking performances, citizen arts group performances, road parades, etc.

Experience Events

2-day 1-night “Our Family” Barracks Camp, Yong-doryeong Circular Train, survival combat experience, barracks training experience, etc.

Side Events

Imagination Festival, Gyeryong Pat-geori Festival, Global Culture Competition, etc.

📍 Address: Jeongjang-ri, Sindoan-myeon, Gyeryong-si, Chungcheongnam-do

🛏️ Accommodations near the event

💰 Fee: Free

📞 Inquiry: 042-840-2621~4

🖥️ Website: www.gcfct.org

Gyeryong-si is known in South Korea as a military city. It contains Gyeryongdae, the headquarters compound for the Republic of Korea Army, Navy, and Air Force. The central commands of all three branches are located here, which is uncommon and gives the city a distinct administrative function.

The military presence affects local employment, housing, and public services. In recent years, Gyeryong-si has also developed a military-themed tourism sector. Museums and monuments explain the history and structure of the ROK armed forces. Experiential programs let civilians handle equipment, observe training methods, and learn about base life.

The annual Gyeryong Military Culture Festival is part of this effort. It features demonstrations, exhibitions, and participatory activities designed for visitors. The festival draws domestic tourists as well as international visitors interested in Korea’s defense institutions.

Dobong Hangeul Festival

🗓️ 2026.09.30 ~ 2026.10.12

Hangeul is a writing system born from considering the human heart, connecting the thoughts and intentions of one another. Hangeul conveyed the hearts of the people who struggled to express their meanings and served as a hope that firmly protected the spirit of our nation even amidst a dark history. Dobong-gu, Seoul, is a place imbued with the breath of historical figures who created, protected, and enjoyed Hangeul—from Princess Jeongui, the daughter of King Sejong, to Kansong Jeon Hyeong-pil and Widang Jeong In-bo, who protected our language and script during the Japanese colonial period, and the poet Kim Su-young, who sang of freedom in Hangeul.

The year 2026 marks the 580th anniversary of the proclamation of Hunminjeongeum and the 100th anniversary of the establishment of Hangeul Day and the creation of Hunmaengjeongeum, the script for the visually impaired. In recognition of these milestones, the Dobong Cultural Center is hosting the 15th Dobong Hangeul Festival, “Piercing Through the Darkness, Connecting Hearts.” The festival reflects on the heart toward people contained in Hangeul and the intentions of those who protected it in the darkness of the era. It aims to connect the history of creating, protecting, and enjoying Hangeul with the figures and cultural resources of Dobong, offering a space where visitors can share in that history through exhibitions, performances, and experiences.

Main Programs

• Princess Jeongui Outing — a program drawing on the connection between Princess Jeongui, King Sejong’s daughter, and the Dobong area.
• Hangeul Calligraphy Performance Art — a live performance format that showcases the artistic possibilities of Hangeul as a writing system.

Side Programs

• Exhibition Yard — chronological exhibition, special exhibition, poem and painting exhibition, and more
• Performance Yard — orchestra, culture sharing performance group, and more

Consumer Participation Programs

• Experience and Play Yard — making Braille keyrings, traditional games, and more

Other Contents

• 20th Dobong Writing and Drawing Contest
• Joseon Royal Court Cultural Experience
• And more

📍 Address: 16 Haedeung-ro 32ga-gil, Dobong-gu, Seoul (Banghak-dong)

🛏️ Accommodations near the event

💰 Fee: Free

📞 Inquiry: 02-905-4026

🖥️ Homepage: https://www.dobong.or.kr/main/main.php?categoryid=02&menuid=02&groupid=01

Hangeul and the Dobong Hangeul Festival

Hangeul is the alphabet used to write Korean. It was introduced in 1443 by King Sejong the Great and promulgated in 1446 under the title Hunminjeongeum, “The Proper Sounds for Instructing the People.” The project was intended to provide a practical writing system for Koreans, who at the time had to rely on Classical Chinese for written communication. While Chinese characters remained the preserve of educated elites, Hangeul was designed to be learnable by the general population.

The original set of 28 letters was later reduced to the 24 used today. The design reflects principles of articulation and sound. Consonants are based on the shape of the speech organs used to produce them; for example, the letter for a velar sound is drawn to suggest the back of the tongue blocking the throat. Vowels are composed from straight lines and dots representing heaven, earth, and the human figure. This makes the script easy to describe and reason about, and it has been of continuing interest to linguists.

Hangeul is also significant in Korean cultural history. It has been used for centuries in poetry, fiction, and public documents, and it has survived periods in which its use was discouraged. In South Korea, its creation is commemorated each year on Hangeul Day, and the 580th anniversary is being marked in 2026.

The Dobong Hangeul Festival is one of the events held for this occasion. It includes workshops on calligraphy and letter design, performances that use Hangeul in music and theatre, and displays of historical and contemporary printed materials. The festival is organized around the script itself—how it was made, how it works, and how it continues to be used in daily life.