Lifestyle - The Korea Times

Busan hotels increase prices by 10 times for BTS concert

A poster for the “BTS Yet to Come in Busan” concert to be held in October in support of the city's World Expo 2030 bid / Courtesy of Big Hit MusicBy Lee Hae-rinHotels and other accommodation options in Busan have come under fire for canceling previous reservations and overcharging for rooms by as much as 10 times or more coinciding with a BTS concert that will be held in October to support the port city's bid for World Expo 2030.The group's agency Big Hit Music announced on Wednesday that the concert “BTS Yet to Come in Busan” will take place at a special concert venue to be set up in northeastern Gijang County. It will be the first concert with all seven members since the group held a Seoul concert in March and declared a halt to group activities back in June.A minimum estimate of 110,000 people will visit the city for the spectacle. The concert venue will accommodate an audience of 100,000 people free-of-charge while also being live-streamed via a giant screen at Busan Port's international terminal outdoor parking lot, for another 10,000 spectators.However,

Aug 28, 2022By Lee Hae-rin

Busan hotels increase prices by 10 times for BTS concert

How Busan prepares for BTS' October concert

Jeju World Heritage Festival makes joyful live return

Staff members of the 2022 Jeju World Heritage Festival shine flashlights inside Manjanggul on Jeju Island, during a press tour to promote the festival, Aug. 24. Courtesy of World Natural Heritage Village Preservation AssociationBy Kwak Yeon-sooJEJU ISLAND ― The World Heritage Festival on Jeju Island, which seeks to promote the cultural significance of the volcanic island's UNESCO World Natural Heritage sites, will return for the third year with a promise to be bigger and more exciting than ever. It marks the return of the in-person event that was put on hold as the festival had to cancel live events and offer online alternatives last year due to COVID-19 restrictions.The World Heritage Festival was launched in 2020 to promote UNESCO-designated cultural heritage and natural heritage sites in Korea. This year, Jeju was chosen along with the cities of Andong and Yeongju in North Gyeongsang Province and Suwon in Gyeonggi Province to hold the festival. Under the theme of “Connect,” the 2022 World Heritage Festival in Jeju Island will be held from Oct. 1 to 16 at three sites ―

Aug 25, 2022By Kwak Yeon-soo

Jeju World Heritage Festival makes joyful live return

Space out: empty your mind until you find inner peace

Visual artist Woopsyang, center, wearing a “gat,” a Korean traditional hat, attends the 2019 Space-out Competition in Jamwon Hangang Park on April 21, 2019. Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan GovernmentSpace-out Competition returns after three-year hiatus By Lee Hae-rinSeoul's annual Space-out Competition will return to its signature venue, the Han River, next month, after a three-year hiatus amid the COVID-19 pandemic.The Seoul Metropolitan Government said, Monday, that this year's competition will be held on the Jamsu Bridge on Sept. 4 starting at 3 p.m., while the bridge is blocked to vehicular traffic. When registration for the event opened on Monday, over 2,000 people registered to participate in the event on that day.This year, a total of 50 teams will participate, each team consisting of a maximum of three people. The Space-out Competition is a performance art event that actively encourages exhausted city dwellers to do nothing and to free themselves from the stress of everyday life by rewarding the most zoned out.The event originated from the personal experience of th

Aug 24, 2022By Lee Hae-rin

Space out: empty your mind until you find inner peace

Jeju pushes to adopt e-travel authorization for visitors from visa-free countries

Jeju Immigration Service / YonhapJeju, South Korea's southernmost island, is pushing to adopt an e-travel authorization system for foreigners from visa-free nations starting next month, officials said Friday.The plan to introduce the Korea Electronic Travel Authorization (K-ETA) came after dozens of Thai tourists who recently entered Jeju broke away from tour groups, or were forced back home over suspected overstay attempts.The K-ETA is an online electronic travel authorization that foreign visitors from visa-free nations need to obtain before entering Korea for the purposes of tourism, visiting relatives or business. They are required to submit personal and other information through a website or a mobile application.South Korea first introduced the K-ETA in September last year for 112 countries with which it has visa-waiver agreements or other similar arrangements to allow no-visa entry. But Jeju was excluded from the application considering its unique legal status as an autonomous region.The Ministry of Justice earlier said it was pushing to adopt the K-ETA for Jeju as well.On Frid

Aug 19, 2022

Jeju pushes to adopt e-travel authorization for visitors from visa-free countries

11 DMZ hiking trails to open next month

Hikers walk along the DMZ Peace Trail in the demilitarized zone in Goseong, June 14, 2019. All eleven peace-themed hiking trails along the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas will open to the public next month. YonhapAll eleven peace-themed hiking trails along the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas will open to the public next month, the government said Thursday.The trails in Ganghwa, Gimpo, Goyang, Paju, Yeoncheon, Cheorwon, Hwacheon, Yanggu, Inje and Goseong will be available from Sept. 13 to December, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. Goseong has two different trails.The DMZ, which is about 250 km long and 4 km wide, is one of the world's most heavily fortified borders, with the rival Koreas technically in a state of conflict, as the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a truce, not a peace treaty.Tourists can experience ecological, cultural and historical values of the DMZ while traveling the long routes on foot and by car, the ministry said.The government opened to the public three hiking routes in Paju, Goseong and Cheorwon on a tri

Aug 18, 2022

Hit TV series leads to surge in visitors to southern region of Korea seeking glimpse of dolphins

Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins / Courtesy of Ministry of Oceans and FisheriesLocals welcome tourism boom, but environmental activists worry about impact on marine ecosystemBy Lee Hae-rinThe popular TV series, “Extraordinary Attorney Woo,” has created a tourism boom in the nation's southern region.The southeastern coastal city of Ulsan and the southern resort island of Jeju, which are already popular tourist destinations, have seen an influx of even more tourists since the drama featuring a lawyer with autism spectrum disorder, named Woo Young-woo, became a hit. In the TV series, whales are Woo's favorite animal. Ulsan, also known for its whale sighting opportunities, has benefitted from the popularity of the drama.According to the Ulsan Namgu City Management Corp., 4,924 passengers rode on the city's whale tour boat as of the middle of August, already accounting for 76 percent of last year's total number of passengers. The average number of people riding on the boat has also more than doubled to 259 over the past year.The pandemic-hit region is welcoming the return of t

Aug 18, 2022By Lee Hae-rin

Hit TV series leads to surge in visitors to southern region of Korea seeking glimpse of dolphins

More tourists opt to visit Jeju Island by ferry

The 27,000-ton Beyond Trust ferry arrives at the port of Jeju in this file photo taken on Dec. 11, 2021. Newsis By Lee Hae-rinMore tourists are choosing to cut travel expenses by taking ferries when visiting Jeju Island due to the soaring prices of flight tickets and car rentals this summer. According to Jeju Tourism Association (JTA), Saturday, over 480,000 people have visited the island by ferry so far this year. The figure constitutes 5.7 percent of the 8.58 million domestic travelers that have visited the island in 2022 so far. The number of visitors taking ferries to the island has gone up 1 percent from last month, when it was 4.7 percent, with 348,000 people, as of mid-July. The rising costs of airfare and car rental services have led more travelers to take their own vehicles and travel by ferry, such as the 27,000-ton ferry, Beyond Trust, plying the route between Incheon and Jeju, and the 3,500-ton Santa Monica, sailing between the southeastern city of Mokpo

Aug 14, 2022By Lee Hae-rin

More tourists opt to visit Jeju Island by ferry

Han River sunset cruise: Seoul's new tourist focal point

People watch the sunset on Seonyu Bridge on Han River in 2009. Korea Times fileFerris wheel, floating stage, car-less bridge to complete sightseeing projectBy Ko Dong-hwanSeoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, who has been serving again as mayor since the April 2021 by-election, has been pushing ahead with what he feels the nation's capital needs. During his first overseas trip since taking office, to Singapore late last month, Oh visited the Gardens by the Bay, a 101-hectare urban outdoor recreation space. There, struck by the beauty of the sunset in the city-state's southern coastal district, Oh said, “The tourism industry, which can revitalize Seoul's economy, now also needs investment so that it can move toward the future,” and, “We are going to implement the 'Great Sunset Han River Project' to enable people to enjoy the Han River in Seoul.”Oh believes that the best place in Seoul to maximize that experience is along the Han River, which divides the city between north and south, and where he pursued his Han River Renaissance Project when he was mayor before in 2007.&ldqu

Aug 10, 2022By Ko Dong-hwan

Han River sunset cruise: Seoul's new tourist focal point

Visa regulation pits Jeju islanders against justice ministry

Tourists line up to catch a taxi at Jeju International Airport, July 22. Newsis Locals call for visa-free Jeju to attract more foreign tourists, but justice ministry stands firm on introduction of electronic travel authorization By Lee Yeon-wooThe scenic southern resort island of Jeju used to be called “Samdado” or an island that has plenty of three things _ wind, stone and women.But nowadays they are not the only things the island is endowed with.With its breathtaking scenery, picturesque beaches and volcanic landscape, the island is crowded with tourists almost all year round. Pale sands, blue seas, swaying palm trees, steep seaside cliffs, and many more beautiful attractions lure tourists to the island, making it a hub of the tourism industry. Before the coronavirus pandemic, an average of 1.4 million travelers, both Koreans and foreign tourists, visited the island annually.After years of COVID-19-driven lockdowns, foreign tourists came back. But the islanders ar

Aug 9, 2022By Lee Yeon-woo

Visa regulation pits Jeju islanders against justice ministry

Seoul to create sunset-viewing facilities along Han River

Getty Images BankThe Seoul city government will push to create a number of sunset-viewing spots along the Han River to enhance the capital's attractiveness as a tourist city, officials said Monday.The so-called Great Sunset Project calls for building various sunset-viewing infrastructures in the riverside areas of Sangam, Yeouido, Yongsan, Nodeul Island, Banpo, Ttukseom and Jamsil, the officials said.The sunset viewing facilities envisioned by the city government include a Ferris wheel tentatively named "Seoul Eye," a combination of an art stage on the water and grandstand, and culture-themed pedestrian bridges, they said.In particular, the Seoul Eye will be designed to be bigger than the Singapore Flyer, known as the world's largest observation wheel that is 165 meters high and that up to 780 people can ride at the same time, they noted.Seoul's riverside art stage will be modeled after Singapore's floating performance venue called The Float at Marina Bay, which features a 27,000-seat grandstand and a 120-by-83 meter steel platform. It will be used for K-pop concerts, musical and ope

Aug 8, 2022

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