'Hwacheon Sancheoneo Festival' Surpasses 1 Million Tourists 17 Days After Opening

Sancheon-eo Ice Fishing and Numerous Attractions Popular, Box Office Success
Maintaining Best Ice Quality with 20 Years of Experience, Trusted as the Safest Festival

[Asia Economy Reporter Ra Young-cheol] The '2023 Eoreumnara Hwacheon Sancheoneo Festival,' resumed after 3 years, surpassed 1 million cumulative tourists on the 23rd, 17 days after its opening.

Hwacheon-gun announced on the same day, "As of 2 p.m. on the 23rd, about 100,000 people visited the festival site, and a total of over 1.03 million tourists have visited since the opening on the 7th."

The scene of the Hwacheon Sancheoneo Festival captured by drone
[Photo provided by Hwacheon-gun]

Hwacheon-gun cited various attractions and activities besides ice fishing as factors contributing to the success of the Sancheoneo Festival.

Tourists who finished fishing for Sancheoneo did not leave immediately but stayed in Hwacheon, enjoying indoor ice sculpture plazas, snow sculptures, Santa post office, snow sledding and ice sledding, and sky cutting activities.

Bubble suit experiences, the Jo Kyung-chul Astronomical Observatory booth, science classes, warming rest areas, the Hokuk Experience Center, and the Winter Culture Village were also provided.

Night fishing, first introduced in 2016, was also a factor in the festival's popularity. The 'reverse thinking' strategy of providing free night fishing admission tickets with accommodation was evaluated as effective.

The strategic move targeting the Lunar New Year holiday market also accelerated the festival's success. Anticipating an increase in family travel demand, unlike in the past, all festival programs operated normally.

They also actively marketed to attract interest from foreign independent travelers residing in Korea who could not return to their hometowns.

In particular, the Ethiopia Promotion Hall, where descendants of Ethiopian War veterans directly participated, reminded tourists of the meaning of peace and offered the aroma and taste of coffee beans sourced from the 'homeland of coffee.'

Ice Sculpture Plaza
Photo by Hwacheon-gun

Although it rained during the festival period, Hwacheon-gun, which learned from long experience that 'the strength of ice containing foreign substances significantly decreases,' chose to refreeze the ice.

Thanks to this, the Hwacheon Sancheoneo Festival, which opened on the 7th, welcomed tourists with transparent and solid ice over 38 cm thick. As of the 23rd, the average ice thickness reached 40 cm.

Choi Moon-soon, Hwacheon-gun governor, emphasized, "Many people asked why we break ice with a little muddy water, and each time I answered, 'That is exactly the method of the Hwacheon Sancheoneo Festival that has not changed for 20 years.'"

He added, "Maintaining the ice surface safely, where tens of thousands of people come and go daily, is a goal that cannot be exchanged for anything."

The '2023 Eoreumnara Hwacheon Sancheoneo Festival,' which surpassed 1 million tourists, will continue until the 29th.