Gangwon State to Link Gangneung, Sokcho and Yangyang via Yangyang Airport, Launch 16.9 Billion Won Tourism Zone Next Year

Gangwon Province Launches Full-Scale Effort to Develop a Tourism Zone Centered on Yangyang Airport
Forms Steering Committee with Three Cities and Counties
Details Transportation Connections and Stay-Focused Content

Gangwon State is moving to create a tourism zone linking Gangneung, Sokcho and Yangyang, with Yangyang International Airport as its gateway. The plan is to develop tourism infrastructure and content so foreign tourists can fly into the airport, visit Gangwon's east coast directly, travel conveniently among the various areas and stay longer.

View of the Gangwon State Government Office. Courtesy of Gangwon State.

Gangwon Province said on October 27 that it had formed a tourism zone steering committee with Gangneung City, Sokcho City and Yangyang County, and held a working-level meeting on October 26 to discuss next year's projects.

The project is part of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's “Development of Tourism Zones Centered on Regional Airports” initiative, which will run from 2027 to 2030. It is intended to address the concentration of more than 80% of foreign visitors to Korea in the Seoul metropolitan area and increase arrivals through, and visits to regions served by, five regional airports: Yangyang, Gimhae, Daegu, Cheongju and Muan.

For the first year of the project, next year, a plan is under consideration to invest a total of 16.9 billion won in the Yangyang Airport tourism zone, including 12.2 billion won in national funding and 4.7 billion won in local funding.

The nine areas eligible for support are developing an integrated brand and promoting it overseas; attracting foreign tourists through regional airports; boosting tourism at cruise ports of call; improving transportation convenience and connections; making local payments more convenient; developing specialized tourism content; Hallyu tourism; and a K-Food Road.

Gangwon Province and the three cities and counties are developing detailed projects focused on three areas where it is easier to reflect local input: improving transportation convenience and connections, developing specialized tourism content, and Hallyu tourism. The Korea Tourism Organization will directly lead the other six areas, including developing an integrated brand, overseas promotion and improving payment convenience.

Gangwon Province plans to attend the “Second Regional Meeting on the Five Tourism Zones Centered on Regional Airports,” hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in Sejong City on October 29, to discuss the direction of next year's projects.

“The tourism zone project is an important opportunity to bring foreign tourists directly to Gangwon's east coast, with Yangyang Airport as the gateway,” said Son Chang-hwan, head of Gangwon Province's Global Headquarters. “We will create a tourism zone where visitors can travel conveniently and stay longer, and develop it into a new growth engine for tourism in Gangwon.”

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