Gangjin Bay Reed Festival Opens Amid Autumn Rain... 'Half-Price Travel' Also Available

69 programs, including performances and hands-on activities, through November 1
Opening ceremony features a wish for selection for rural and fishing community basic income pilot
KCM and The One to perform October 31... Half-Price Travel applications open through November

The 11th Gangjin Bay Dancing Reeds Festival opened on October 24 at Gangjin Bay Ecological Park in South Jeolla Province, amid autumn rain.

According to Gangjin County on October 25, the festival will run for nine days, through November 1. A total of 69 programs, including performances, hands-on activities and exhibitions, will be held against the backdrop of Gangjin Bay’s ecological resources, including its reed fields, wetlands and migratory birds.

On the 24th, tourists walk through the reed fields under umbrellas in the rain at Gangjinman Ecological Park in Gangjin County, South Jeolla Province, where the 11th Gangjin Bay Dancing Reed Festival was held. Provided by Gangjin County.

Tourists, county residents and representatives of institutions and civic groups attended the opening ceremony. Following pre-ceremony performances by local arts groups and invited performers, a performance was held to wish for Gangjin County’s selection for the pilot project on basic income for rural and fishing communities.

Singer Kim Yong-bin also gave a celebratory performance. Despite the rain, tourists and fan club members came to the venue.

A tourist in their 60s who said they had come from Suwon said, “I was wondering where to go this fall, and came to Gangjin, which is famous for its Half-Price Travel program. The gentle rain actually makes me feel that the trip from Suwon was all the more worthwhile.”

Two sisters in their 40s from Jangheung visited the festival after buying ancestral rite supplies at Gangjin-eup Market. “We used our receipts from purchases in town to take part in activities such as leathercraft,” they said. “The rain actually made the place feel more atmospheric.”

A celebratory performance is underway at the opening ceremony of the 11th Gangjin Bay Dancing Reeds Festival, held on the 24th at Gangjin Bay Ecological Park in Gangjin County, South Jeolla Province. Photo provided by Gangjin County.

At the festival site, the “Gangjin Bay Reed Forest Eco-Exploration Team” offers guided walks through the reed forest with a nature interpreter. Visitors can also explore the Gangjin Bay Ecology Experience and Promotion Center, which has an observatory overlooking the reed beds, a 4D theater and a tidal-flat ecology exhibition room.

A “Reed Gazing” contest, where participants relax while looking out at the reed forest, is also planned. The winner will receive 200,000 won. To mark the festival’s 11th anniversary, visitors can also take part in “Catch 11 Seconds!” and try to stop a stopwatch at exactly 11 seconds.

There is also a hands-on activity space for children. At the “Gangjin Bay Kids Zone,” they can make conch-shell whistles, pins and mirrors. The “Gangjin Bay Play Park Zone” offers golf hole-in-one challenges, table tennis, basketball, curling and more.

A program lets visitors find Gangjin’s signature characters, the “Gangjin Friends,” at eight locations around the festival site and verify their visits using NFC. Those who also complete registration for “Gangjin Pum-ae ON Resident” can receive mileage worth up to 10,000 won. A stamp tour is also available, with participants collecting stamps at each location to complete a picture of the reed forest.

Performances will continue through the festival’s final weekend. On October 31, the children’s show “Robocar Poli Sing-Along Show” and “The Vocal,” featuring KCM, Ko Yu-jin and The One, will take the stage. On November 1, the final round of “Reed Forest Star,” in which tourists can participate, and a performance by singer Lee Hyun are scheduled.

The festival site also features a direct-sale market for outstanding agricultural and specialty products, a food area, the Gangjin Sunset Market and a celadon auction.

Gangjin County is also accepting applications for its “Gangjin Half-Price Travel” program in conjunction with the festival. Eligible trips must take place between October 20 and November 30. The existing program rules will continue to apply to applicants traveling through November.

Applications for trips in December will open at a later date. To reduce the concentration of spending at specific stores and in certain business categories, and to increase spending by visitors from outside the region, the county plans to apply revised criteria to applications for December trips. The program’s 2 billion won budget is funded entirely by the national government’s Local Extinction Response Fund.

Gangjin County Governor Kang Jin-won said, “As we wished for at the opening ceremony, I hope good news reaches Gangjin that we have been selected for the pilot project on basic income for rural and fishing communities. We will do our utmost to ensure that residents and tourists alike can enjoy the festival safely and comfortably through its final day.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.