The Korea Times

Will Hongdae’s busking zone survive Seoul’s new rail plan?

In almost any Korean neighborhood, news of a new subway station is greeted with celebration. In western Seoul's Hongdae area, however, a recent announcement has sparked rare rebellion. Merchants and buskers on Red Road, a landmark pedestrian strip at the heart of the neighborhood’s youth culture, are leading an unusually fierce campaign against the planned construction of the Daejang-Hongdae Line terminus there, even as commuters, nearby residents and property owners along the route hail the project as a long-awaited upgrade to western Seoul’s rail network. The Daejang-Hongdae Line is a roughly 20-kilometer metro project that will link Bucheon's Daejang-dong and Goyang's Deogeun-dong, both in Gyeonggi Province, with key hubs in Seoul’s Yangcheon and Gangseo areas, cross Gayang Bridge and reach Mapo District’s Hongdae area. Twelve stations are planned. The line, backed by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and built by a private consortium with a 2.1 trillion won budget, is promoted as a "transportation revolution" for southwestern Gyeonggi Province and western Se

Dec 31, 2025By Lee Hae-rin

Will Hongdae’s busking zone survive Seoul’s new rail plan?

Society

China delists 15 Korean universities from recognized overseas institutions

China has removed 15 Korean universities from its list of recognized overseas higher education institutions, raising fresh concerns in Korea’s academic community, where Chinese students make up one of the largest shares of foreign students in the country. The Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange (CSCSE), a body under China’s Ministry of Education that certifies foreign degrees for use in the domestic job market and civil service recruitment, updated its list of accredited overseas institutions in late October, striking 270 schools worldwide, including 15 from Korea. Among the Korean institutions removed are Korea National Open University, Gangneung-Wonju National University, Mokpo National University and Chungbuk Provincial University, according to sources in the local education sector. A number of the delisted schools are regional universities struggling with financial pressure and demographic decline, but the latest update also affected national universities. The removal means these universities are effectively shut out of the Chinese student market. The CSCSE will no lon

Dec 30, 2025By Lee Hae-rin

China delists 15 Korean universities from recognized overseas institutions

Society

Family of late Vietnamese graduate demands gov’t apology over fatal immigration raid

Two months after a young Vietnamese woman fell to her death during a government immigration raid, her grieving father on Tuesday continued a relay of 108 bows in front of the presidential office in Seoul, demanding an official apology and the suspension of what advocates call "human-hunting" crackdowns on migrant workers. The father of the late Tu Anh, 25, knelt before the fountain square near Cheong Wa Dae for a second consecutive day, joined by human rights activists urging the government to take responsibility for her death. "I regret not stopping my daughter when she decided to study in Korea," said Vu Van Sung. "Her mother still trembles every evening around 6:30 — the time she died. It feels like her soul is still wandering, and we cannot find peace." According to the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Committee for Justice for Tu Anh and the Network to Eliminate Discrimination against Migrant Workers, Tu Anh fell from a third-floor factory building in Daegu’s Seongseo Industrial Complex on Oct. 28 at around 6:30 p.m. while trying to avoid an immigration enforcement team. She was pronounced dead

Dec 30, 2025By Lee Hae-rin

Family of late Vietnamese graduate demands gov’t apology over fatal immigration raid

Society

Slow-aging guru’s wellness brand unravels amid authorship issues, sexual abuse dispute

Once hailed as the doctor who taught Koreans how to grow old slowly, Jung Hee-won is watching his "slow aging" brand fall apart. Allegations of stalking, sexual coercion and claims that he took credit for a former employee’s work have triggered corporate boycotts, the loss of prestigious public roles and a broader reckoning over power, gender and credibility in Korea’s latest wellness industry. From slow-aging guru to policy insider Jung, 41, rose to fame as a geriatrician at Seoul Asan Medical Center, turning complex data on frailty and chronic disease into a simple promise: slow aging. A graduate of Seoul National University College of Medicine, he built his authority treating and studying older patients as Korea grappled with rapid population aging and a growing national focus on healthy longevity. He packaged this philosophy as "slow aging," framing it as the opposite of "accelerated aging," and turned it into social media content and bestselling books offering practical routines on diet, exercise and daily routines for people in their 30s to 50s. Television and radio amplified hi

Dec 29, 2025By Lee Hae-rin

Environment & Animals

PHOTO Winter wall of ice

People watch an ice climbing wall at Pandae Ice Park in Wonju, Gangwon Province, Sunday, as a cold snap persisted throughout the month, leaving the rocky surface encased in ice. While the mercury was expected to go up Monday, it will plummet again Tuesday and subzero temperatures will continue even during the daytime throughout the week. Yonhap

Dec 28, 2025By Lee Hae-rin

Society

Coupang’s delivery empire built on social trust faces reckoning after data breach

Coupang’s rise in Korea’s online retail market was built not just on technology and speed, but on a culture of social trust, in which valuables left out in public are rarely stolen. Now, as the company, often described as "Korea’s Amazon," faces a major data breach and growing public backlash, it is accused of exploiting that communal trust while underinvesting in data security to protect its margins. In most Korean cities, it’s common to see smartphones and laptops left unattended on café tables, or products displayed outside stores for hours without anyone touching them. Parcels are often left unattended at doorsteps for hours, even days or weeks. That social trust became the foundation of Coupang’s contactless delivery model during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. In dense clusters of urban apartments, with few restrictions on night work and a society comfortable with sharing front-door access codes with delivery workers, the company was able to promise express and dawn delivery services for groceries and daily necessities by 7 a.m., often for orders placed with just a few

Dec 25, 2025By Lee Hae-rin

Coupang’s delivery empire built on social trust faces reckoning after data breach

Travel & Food

Hotels roll out winter strawberry afternoon tea experiences

This winter, Korea’s top hotels are offering strawberry afternoon tea for a limited time, turning the country’s iconic seasonal fruit into a lavish dessert experience for both locals and international visitors. These offerings reflect broader lifestyle trends, such as the "seasonal core" and "buy-now-or-miss-it" movements, which emphasize enjoying ingredients at their peak freshness. At Courtyard by Marriott Seoul Namdaemun, the premium bakery cafe The Twenty Two Namdaemun Bakery is offering its Red Atelier afternoon tea service featuring strawberries sourced from different regions around Korea. The set, which serves two for 90,000 won ($60) through late February, includes four strawberry desserts, welcome drinks and coffee as it highlights regional varieties such as Sancheong, Janghee and Geumsil strawberries. JW Marriott Hotel Seoul’s The Lounge is offering a Berry-holic afternoon tea through March 30, pairing five strawberry desserts with five savory bites, including lobster canapes and deviled eggs. Guests can opt for tea and coffee selections or add a strawberry Bellini cock

Dec 24, 2025By Lee Hae-rin

Hotels roll out winter strawberry afternoon tea experiences

Travel & Food

AI and experience-driven choices to redefine travel in Korea next year

As Korea’s tourism industry looks toward 2026, it is sharpening its focus on personalization, regional travel and experience-driven spending, shaped by shifting traveler behavior, the growing use of artificial intelligence (AI) and a weaker won that has affected some overseas demand. Industry data and global surveys suggest that both inbound and outbound travelers are moving away from rigid itineraries in favor of trips that reflect their identities, values and even fantasies, increasingly relying on AI to help decide where to go, what to do and whom to travel with. More diverse inbound routes and regions Travel platform Trip.com expects overseas demand for travel to Korea to continue broadening in 2025 and into 2026, with visitors coming from a wider range of departure cities rather than just major hubs. Bookings to Korea are rising not only in traditional markets like Japan, mainland China, Taiwan, Vietnam and Hong Kong, but also from secondary cities such as Tokushima, Datong, Kagoshima, Kumamoto and Tashkent, where new or expanded direct flights have improved access. This suggests

Dec 24, 2025By Lee Hae-rin

AI and experience-driven choices to redefine travel in Korea next year

Society

2025 Top 10 National News Power shifts, nuclear ambitions, issues abroad reshape nation

Korea’s political and social landscape was turned upside down in 2025, as the nation saw a president ousted, his longtime rival swept into power and key institutions pushed to their limits at home and abroad. Koreans lived through a year of high drama that redefined the balance of power in Seoul and reshaped the country’s role on the global stage. At the same time, crises ranging from a paralyzing state data center fire to mass detention of Korean engineers in the United States exposed the vulnerabilities that accompany Korea’s status as a hyperconnected, export-driven democracy. Beyond politics, 2025 also laid bare the human cost of transnational crime and technological change. Rescue operations for Koreans trapped in Cambodian scam compounds, fierce debate over abolishing the prosecution’s headquarters and a surge of artificial intelligence (AI)-driven cheating at top universities all forced hard questions about accountability, ethics and the rule of law. Meanwhile, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, a green light for nuclear-p

Dec 24, 2025By Lee Hae-rin and Park Ung

[2025 Top 10 National News] Power shifts, nuclear ambitions, issues abroad reshape nation

Travel & Food

Visitors to Korea to hit record 18.7 mil. this year, outpacing pre-pandemic high

Korea is on track to welcome a record 18.7 million visitors by the end of 2025, surpassing the previous high of 17.5 million set in 2019, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced Tuesday. The surge comes as the country continues to recover from the pandemic-era dip in travel, with international tourists returning in large numbers and a growing interest in Korea’s cultural attractions and shopping districts driving the historic rebound. This year’s strong inbound momentum came from robust growth across major markets. Visitors from China rebounded sharply, while arrivals from Taiwan grew 27 percent compared to last year. Japanese travelers surged to 3.61 million, the highest in 13 years. Middle East and Asian markets expanded by 11.8 percent, and visitors from Europe and Oceania increased by 14 percent. The achievement marks a full rebound of the country’s tourism sector after years of pandemic-induced decline, driven by the global appeal of K-culture and diversified marketing efforts targeting key international markets. The record number translates to roughly one visit

Dec 23, 2025By Lee Hae-rin

Lee Hae-rin

Read more

Will Hongdae’s busking zone survive Seoul’s new rail plan?

China delists 15 Korean universities from recognized overseas institutions

Family of late Vietnamese graduate demands gov’t apology over fatal immigration raid

Slow-aging guru’s wellness brand unravels amid authorship issues, sexual abuse dispute

PHOTO Winter wall of ice

Coupang’s delivery empire built on social trust faces reckoning after data breach

Hotels roll out winter strawberry afternoon tea experiences

AI and experience-driven choices to redefine travel in Korea next year

2025 Top 10 National News Power shifts, nuclear ambitions, issues abroad reshape nation

Visitors to Korea to hit record 18.7 mil. this year, outpacing pre-pandemic high

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