Namyangju City Invites You to the Gwangneung Forest Festival and Jeong Yak-yong Cultural Festival

Gwangneung Forest Festival to be Held on 28-29 in Jinjeop-eup Gwangneung Forest Area
Dasan Jeong Yak-yong Cultural Festival to Take Place on Next Month 11-12 at Jeong Yak-yong Historic Site

Poster for the 19th Gwangneung Forest Festival, to be held on the 28th-29th in the Gwangneung Forest area of Jinjeop-eup.

As the season of abundant harvest arrives, Namyangju City in Gyeonggi Province will host its representative festivals across various local areas.

Namyangju City, Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Joo Gwang-deok) announced on the 6th that it will hold the ‘Gwangneung Forest Festival’ and the ‘Dasan Jeong Yak-yong Cultural Festival’ this fall, utilizing the region's symbolic cultural resources.

Both festivals, representing the city, were selected as Gyeonggi Province’s representative festivals for the second consecutive year following last year, recognizing their excellence.

The ‘19th Gwangneung Forest Festival’ will take place over two days on the 28th and 29th at the Gwangneung Forest area in Jinjeop-eup, while the ‘38th Dasan Jeong Yak-yong Cultural Festival’ is scheduled for the 11th and 12th of next month at the Jeong Yak-yong historic site in Joan-myeon.

Started by citizens and now in its 19th year, the ‘Gwangneung Forest Festival’ is a unique festival nationwide where the Gwangneung Forest is opened to the public only during the festival period.

Gwangneung Forest, designated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, holds high environmental value and has been preserved without development for over 550 years, earning the nickname ‘a treasure trove of ecosystems.’

Normally, public access is strictly prohibited to protect the ecological environment, but the forest is opened just once a year during the festival to widely promote the significance and value of Gwangneung Forest.

This year’s festival features diverse and distinctive programs such as the Gwangneung Forest Walking Tour (6 km forest trail walk) and Gwangneung Forest Manjijak (play experience).

In particular, to alleviate citizen inconvenience caused by traffic and parking, a shuttle bus service will be operated. The opening ceremony will be held at the Kknaksnae Stadium (Bupyeong-ri, Jinjeop-eup), improving visitor convenience by dispersing incoming vehicles.

Poster for the "38th Dasan Jeong Yak-yong Cultural Festival" to be held on the 11th-12th of next month at the Jeong Yak-yong Historic Site area in Joan-myeon, Namyangju-si.

Following this, from the 11th to the 12th of next month, the city will also hold the ‘38th Dasan Jeong Yak-yong Cultural Festival’ in Joan-myeon, where the birthplace of Dasan Jeong Yak-yong is located.

Continuing since 1986 to inherit the thoughts and spirit of Dasan Jeong Yak-yong, the Jeong Yak-yong Cultural Festival offers programs reflecting tradition such as literary contests, ancestral rites (flower offering and tea ceremony), and Yeoyudang Saenggwabang, along with various attractions like the Challenge! Top Scholar Competition and science play experiences.

This year’s Jeong Yak-yong Cultural Festival will also introduce a shuttle bus service to enhance citizen convenience, operating buses from Ungilsan Station to the festival site.

A city official stated, “As these are representative events of Namyangju City, we are putting all our efforts into preparation,” and added, “We ask for the citizens’ great interest and participation in Namyangju’s representative festivals that will fill the autumn season.”

For more detailed information about the festivals, please visit the Namyangju City website or the official SNS pages of each festival.