70,000 People Gather at 7-Year-Old 'Suwon Munhwajae Yahaeng (Night Tour)'

Suwon Mayor Lee Jae-jun is participating in the Suwon Cultural Heritage Night on the 13th, enjoying conversations with visitors.

From the 11th to the 13th of last month, approximately 75,000 people participated in the '2023 Suwon Cultural Heritage Night Tour' held around Hwaseong Fortress in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. This is the highest number of visitors since the COVID-19 pandemic, exceeding last year's attendance by 20,000.

The Suwon Cultural Heritage Night Tour began in 2017 and this year marked its seventh edition. The main event is a festival where visitors stroll through the nighttime streets of the UNESCO World Heritage site, Hwaseong Fortress, to fully enjoy its charm. This year's festival, themed around the "8 Nights (8-ya)," featured a variety of programs utilizing cultural heritage, including nightscape viewing, performances, historical experiences, and exhibitions.

Due to the impact of Typhoon Khanun, some outdoor programs were restricted on the 11th, but on the 12th and 13th, the area around Hwaseong Fortress was crowded with families, friends, and couples. On the 13th, Suwon Mayor Lee Jae-jun visited the event site to watch exhibitions and performances and spent time with citizens.

The theme of the Suwon Cultural Heritage Night Tour, the 8 Nights (8-ya), includes ▲ Nightscape (viewing cultural heritage at night) ▲ Night Walk (walking the streets at night) ▲ Night History (listening to historical stories at night) ▲ Night Painting (viewing paintings at night) ▲ Night Performance (watching performances at night) ▲ Night Market (nighttime commerce) ▲ Night Food (eating food at night) ▲ Night Stay (overnight accommodation).

Visitors enjoyed various programs such as media art and the Muye 24-gi martial arts performance, and listened to the history of Hwaseong Fortress with cultural tourism guides, making the most of the summer nights.

This year, local residents, artists, merchants from Haenggung-dong and Nammun Rodeo Market, local cooperatives, and university students in the area actively participated in preparing and operating the festival. Additionally, 88 night restaurants, cafes, and workshops in Haenggung-dong joined as participating businesses in the night tour.

A Suwon city official stated, "Over the course of seven years, the Suwon Cultural Heritage Night Tour has firmly established itself as Korea's representative night tour," and added, "We will prepare even more enriching programs next year."