Cherry Blossoms Fall, Azaleas and Roses Arrive

Nowon-gu, 2024 Bulamsan Azalea Festival Held from 16 to 28 at Bulamsan Healing Town
Jungnang-gu, Jungnang Rose Festival Held for 8 Days from May 18 to 25 along Jungnang Stream

The cherry blossoms that heralded the spring festival have fallen, and the season of azaleas and roses has arrived.

Seoul's autonomous districts, including Nowon-gu and Jungnang-gu, are busy preparing for the Azalea and Rose Festivals.

Bulamsan Azalea Hill, Nowon-gu

100,000 Azaleas in Full Bloom... Nowon-gu Azalea Festival Opens

Nowon-gu, Seoul (Mayor Oh Seung-rok) will hold the '2024 Bulamsan Azalea Festival' from the 16th to the 28th, timed with the azalea blooming season. Along with 100,000 azaleas, there will be facility-specific experience programs such as making spring flower badges and barefoot walking, and on weekends, various cultural programs including bubble shows, circus performances, and music concerts will be held.

Started in 2022 and now in its third year, the Bulamsan Azalea Festival is one of the five major festivals representing Nowon. Every spring, the festival takes place at the district’s iconic spot, Bulamsan Healing Town (Azalea Hill), where 100,000 vividly crimson azaleas create a spectacular view.

Bulamsan Healing Town is a representative healing space that includes not only Azalea Hill but also the 'Butterfly Garden,' where you can observe butterflies alive throughout the seasons, the 'Nowon Garden Support Center' with a greenhouse caf? and a companion plant hospital, and the 'Forest Healing Center.' The district plans to enrich the Bulamsan Azalea Festival by operating various cultural programs utilizing these main facilities.

Specialized programs by facility include ▲Butterfly Garden’s 'Making frames using real butterflies' ▲Nowon Garden Support Center’s 'Making spring flower badges and mirrors' ▲Forest Healing Center’s 'Barefoot walking' and 'Immersive experience' ▲Woodcraft experience booth’s 'Making pencil holders commemorating the Azalea Festival.' Participation fees range from free to 5,000 KRW, and participants can join after on-site registration on the day. The outdoor library 'Book Shelter Banggeut' is operated for all ages to enjoy together. The district plans to exhibit big books and pop-up books and install bean bags on the lawn for comfortable reading. On weekends, the Lululala troupe will perform children’s puppet shows and run picture book reading (Reading-in) programs.

Various cultural performances are also prepared. Performances will be held on four weekend days (April 20, 21, 27, 28), three times a day (2 PM, 3 PM, 4 PM) at the Azalea Hill Healing Shelter. Visitors can enjoy clown play 'Black Crown,' bubble show 'Gyeongsangdo Soap Bubbles,' the performance group The Clown’s 'The One Who Spins, The One Who Runs, The One Who Flies,' magic show 'Magic Cat,' African percussion 'Sun of Africa,' and circus 'Hondul Hondul.'

Essential festival elements such as ▲food and ▲flea market (Bulamsan Healing Market) are also prepared. 'Cafe Forest' will sell seasonal special drinks like azalea-colored lattes and azalea-shaped cookies, and food trucks will operate for light snacks. The market, involving the Social Economy Center, Urban Agriculture Network, and bookstore cooperative Madeuli, will offer simple foods, handmade soaps, books, and accessories for purchase.

The district will set up an operations headquarters in front of Bulamsan Butterfly Garden to distribute leaflets and manage crowds. To facilitate crowd control, the deck path in Azalea Hill will be operated as a one-way route.

Special parking measures have also been arranged. In addition to the permanent parking lot at Bulamsan Healing Town (52 spaces), temporary parking lots will be opened on four weekend days at Yeongsin Girls' High School (100 spaces), Wongwang Elementary School (50 spaces), and Junggye Middle School’s playground (40 spaces). During the festival from 9 AM to 6 PM, some roads will have relaxed parking enforcement to allow temporary parking. For more details, please check the Nowon-gu Office website.

Mayor Oh Seung-rok said, “This year’s azaleas are expected to be larger and more vibrant than usual due to favorable weather conditions,” adding, “We have prepared diverse programs that harmonize with the 100,000 azalea flowers, and we hope families and couples will have a happy time at the Bulamsan Azalea Festival.”

2023 Seoul Rose Festival Held Along Jungnangcheon Riverside

2024 Jungnang Seoul Rose Festival: The Most Beloved Festival by Residents and the Most Beautiful Festival in Seoul

The 'Most Beautiful Festival in Seoul,' the 2024 Jungnang Seoul Rose Festival, will be held for eight days from May 18 to 25 along the Jungnangcheon area.

The main event, the Grand Rose Festival, will take place over two days from May 18 to 19, and on May 25, a related event called the 'Jungnang Artist Festival' will be held around Gyeomjaegyo Bridge.

This year’s festival aims to be a community-led and unified event by Jungnang residents, targeting regional economic revitalization and the development of Jungnang’s rose culture through three strategies. The first is expanding programs that residents can participate in, such as ▲Rose Parade ▲Jungnang Residents Singing Contest ▲Neighborhood Sharing Yard operations.

The second strategy is to declare the festival period as 'Jungnang Rose Week' and link the festival with nearby commercial districts and cultural events to attract more tourists and promote local economic revitalization.

The final strategy is to strengthen the rose theme. From the Rose Market to products using the Seoul Rose Festival BI (Rose Tem), rose exhibitions, and the Rose Art Garden, visitors can experience everything about roses. A map showing the distribution of 209 species and ten million roses planted in Jungnang Rose Park will be produced to help visitors fully enjoy the blooming roses.

Jungnang-gu Mayor Ryu Kyung-gi said, “Our top priority is to create a festival that Jungnang residents can enjoy and be happy with, followed by a successful festival that attracts many visitors from across the country,” adding, “Above all, we will make every effort to ensure safety management so that everyone can watch and enjoy the festival safely.”