‘When the Camellia Blooms’ and ‘Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha’, Recent Attention on the Setting of ‘Season of Kkokdu’
Tourists Continue to Visit to Enjoy the Drama’s Emotion and Afterglow Blended with Pohang’s Scenery
Korea Tourism Organization Selec
Pohang City is emerging as a Hallyu tourist destination as K-dramas naturally blended with the region's beautiful natural scenery gain popularity.
In particular, as tourists continue to visit to enjoy the emotions and lingering impressions of the dramas, the city is simultaneously achieving both regional promotion and economic revitalization.
Additionally, the Korea Tourism Organization designated the theme for recommended travel destinations in February as ‘Hallyu Pilgrimage,’ selecting six cities’ tourist attractions, including Pohang’s Cheongha Gongjin Market and Guryongpo, as well as drama and music video filming locations that have captivated viewers worldwide.
The selected Pohang locations, Cheongha Gongjin Market and Guryongpo, were major filming sites for the popular Hallyu dramas ‘When the Camellia Blooms’ (2019) and ‘Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha’ (2021), respectively.
Along with these places, Pohang’s stunning scenery such as Sabang Memorial Park, Gonryunsan Mountain, Wolpo Beach, Igari Anchor Observatory, Guryongpo Seokbyeong-ri, and Janggi Yangpo Port, featuring beautiful and romantic seaside and peaceful rural landscapes, captured viewers’ attention during the broadcasts.
Even now, countless tourists visit these filming locations, which are Pohang’s tourist attractions and ‘hot places’ to take memorable photos, not only on weekends but also on weekdays, to enjoy the lingering emotions and healing effects of the dramas.
They contribute to the local economy by purchasing Pohang specialties such as gwamegi (half-dried Pacific saury) and squid at Jukdo Market, Guryongpo Market, and Cheongha Gongjin Market, and merchants agree that this also helps enhance Pohang’s image as a tourist city.
In particular, the natural coastal scenery of Pohang has been exposed to the public as a filming location for the currently airing MBC Friday-Saturday drama ‘The Season of Kkokdu,’ spreading by word of mouth as a travel destination shared on social media.
This drama was filmed at picturesque Pohang sea views, including a pension overlooking the sea at Odogani Beach in Heunghae-eup, Sabang Memorial Park, and cafes in Songra-myeon, promoting these attractive ‘tourist spots.’
The city plans to further differentiate its tourism competitiveness by developing the drama-known local tourist sites into unique tourism items.
First, on Odori, where cafes line the coast with spectacular views, a viewing platform will soon be installed to easily and conveniently see natural artworks such as columnar joints, which is expected to help increase tourists and revitalize the local economy.
Also, in Guryongpo, which gained great popularity through ‘When the Camellia Blooms,’ plans include media art screenings on the central stairs of Guryongpo Park, now a tourist attraction, and content development for gourmet tourism, actively promoting a planned public contest-type regional tourism development project to enhance marine tourism competitiveness.
Park Sang-jin, head of the Convention and Tourism Industry Division, said, “The dramas are greatly helping not only to promote local attractions and specialties but also to widely publicize Pohang’s various charms beyond the nation to the world. We will strive to make Pohang a tourism cultural city where every moment feels like a drama and every step is a journey.”
Currently, about four dramas are being filmed or negotiated using local tourist attractions as backgrounds in Pohang, and since last year, more than 30 media outlets have introduced Pohang’s diverse tourism infrastructure through various entertainment, educational programs, and YouTube content.
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