See You After 4 Years! ... '4th Republic of Korea & 29th Haman Watermelon Festival'

Food, Experiences, and Activities

Haman-gun, Gyeongnam Province, will hold the "4th Korea & 29th Haman Watermelon Festival" from April 21 to 23.

This festival will be held as an in-person event at the multipurpose lawn field of Hamju Park, featuring various programs such as exhibitions, hands-on activities, direct sales markets, food stalls, performances, and consumer participation events.

The 4th Korea & 29th Haman Watermelon Festival held as an in-person event for the first time in 4 years. (Photo from the 2019 festival)

Earlier, from March 31 to April 1, a pre-promotion event including free watermelon tasting linked to the Gunhangje Festival was held at Jinhae Central Market. Twenty-five people, including executives of the Haman Watermelon Festival Committee and the Haman Nongyo Preservation Society, participated to promote the watermelon festival in advance.

This year’s festival will be held in conjunction with the Haman Citizens’ Day event, the Virgin Boatman National Singing Contest, and the Haman Street Dance Festival, offering a colorful program.

The festival’s main programs include ▲ Haman Watermelon Promotion Hall, eco-friendly and smart agricultural materials exhibition, watermelon carving contest exhibition and other exhibitions ▲ direct sales events such as Haman Watermelon direct sales and Haman specialty products and processed goods direct sales ▲ food stalls including watermelon punch sharing, free watermelon tasting, and watermelon tavern ▲ watermelon photo zones, watermelon processed food tasting experiences ▲ family experience events such as insect experiences and exhibitions ▲ kids’ zone activities including air bounces, tall clown magic balloon giveaways, and watermelon face painting, presented by 34 organizations across 7 categories.

The award categories include the Premium Watermelon Contest, Watermelon Family Carving Contest, and Watermelon Singing Contest. The Premium Watermelon Contest will strictly judge watermelons submitted by region on the 21st and award prizes in five categories: Grand Prize, Gold Prize, Silver Prize, Bronze Prize, and King Watermelon at the opening ceremony on the 22nd. The Grand Prize winner will receive a certificate from the Rural Development Administration Director.

Watermelon Family Carving Contest.

The Watermelon Family Carving Contest will send Haman watermelons by courier to the first 100 family teams who wish to participate. After completing their works, participants must arrive at the festival venue by 11 a.m. on the 22nd for exhibition and judging. Awards will be presented at 2 p.m. the same day. Eligibility requires families of three or more members, including elementary school students and preschool children.

The Watermelon Singing Contest is open to all ages and genders, with registration limited to the first 20 applicants each day on April 21 and 22 at 3 p.m. The finals will be held on April 23 at 2 p.m. on the special stage at the multipurpose field of Hamju Park.

Kang Dae-hoon, chairman of the Haman Watermelon Festival Committee, said, “This year’s watermelon festival has prepared more delicious and diverse watermelons than ever to create a direct exchange between watermelon producers and consumers. We have prepared many experiential programs befitting the reputation of Korea’s watermelon festival. We ask for your great interest in the sweet and high-quality Haman watermelons.”

With a cultivation history of over 200 years, Haman watermelons are grown in fertile soil with abundant sunlight in the Namgang and Nakdonggang river basins, resulting in high sugar content. The watermelon cultivation geographical indication was registered by the government in 2008 (National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service), and in 2016, Haman Watermelon was designated as an industrial special zone by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.

Those wishing to participate in the carving contest and singing contest can contact the Haman Watermelon Festival Committee by phone for detailed registration information.

Detailed schedules and participation methods for the festival can be found on the Haman-gun Office website and the official SNS of the Haman Agricultural Technology Center.