Culture Ministry Selects Korea's Representative Tourism Souvenirs and Tourism Photos for This Year

'Sunrise at Mopo Rock,' which won the gold prize at the '2021 Korea Tourism Contest.' (Photo by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism)

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghyun Choi] The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on the 8th that it held the ‘2021 Korea Tourism Contest’ with the Korea Tourism Organization and finally selected 12 tourism souvenirs and 216 photographs that showcase the charm of Korea both domestically and internationally.

In the tourism souvenir category, the contest was held under the theme ‘Regain Travel, Find Korea’ to introduce various tourist destinations in Korea amid the travel halt caused by COVID-19. A total of 404 products and ideas containing attractive content from all over the country were submitted.

After the judging process, the Presidential Award was given to ‘Chuncheon Potato Bread,’ a potato-shaped bread representing Gangwon Province that reflects regional characteristics. Chuncheon Potato Bread is made from a variety called ‘Rose Potato’ developed locally and received excellent evaluations for its virtuous cycle with the region. The Prime Minister’s Award was given to the ‘Najeon Celadon Inlaid Melon-shaped Bottle Pattern Wooden Tray’ and the ‘Chess Souvenir Using Gyeongju Cultural Heritage.’ In addition, three awards from the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism and six awards from the President of the Korea Tourism Organization were selected, totaling 12 attractive tourism souvenirs representing Korea.

'Chuncheon Gamja Bread,' winner of the Presidential Award in the Tourism Souvenir category at the '2021 Korea Tourism Contest'

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism plans to purchase the winning souvenirs to support distribution. Some of these will be donated to medical staff working hard to overcome COVID-19 so that they can take a moment to relax by recalling Korea’s beautiful tourist destinations.

The photography category was held under the theme ‘Beautiful Flower Tourist Destinations in Four Seasons’ to introduce Korea’s beautiful landscapes and attractive tourist spots domestically and internationally. Reflecting the increasing consumption of digital content, video and smartphone photography categories were newly added, and a total of 3,321 entries were submitted.

The Presidential Award goes to ‘Snow Scenery of Myeongokheon,’ which shows Korea’s beautiful winter landscape. This photo captured Myeongokheon, a summer tourist spot famous for crape myrtle trees, in an unfamiliar snowy scene, creating a picturesque work with a couple dressed in hanbok and pure white snowflakes. The Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Award was given to ‘Sunrise at Mopo Rock,’ which shows Korea’s mysterious scenery with a small waterfall and dawn at sea, and ‘Beautiful Four Seasons of Our Country,’ which introduces beautiful flower tourist destinations nationwide. In addition, five awards from the President of the Korea Tourism Organization, 88 honorable mentions, and 120 smartphone photos as special awards were selected as winners.

'Myeongokheon’s Snow Scenery,' winner of the Presidential Award in the Photography category at the '2021 Korea Tourism Contest'

This year’s awards ceremony will be held online at 2 p.m. on the 9th, considering the COVID-19 situation. Anyone can participate through the YouTube channel.

A pop-up store where you can directly see the winning works will be operated from the 10th to October 6th in the basement level 1 of Seongsu Naknak in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. Not only this year’s but also past tourism souvenir winners can be purchased, and the photography category winners will be exhibited together.

A Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official said, “We hope that attractive domestic travel destinations will be widely known through these winning works and breathe new life into Korea’s tourism, which has been stagnant due to COVID-19,” and added, “We will continue to support discovering diverse tourism content including souvenirs and photographs to widely promote the charms of various regions in Korea.”