Siheung City to Launch Experiential Programs Utilizing the History and Ecology of Gaetgol Ecological Park and Hojobeol

Selected for Gyeonggi-do's "Convergence Tourism Content Development" Project
"Hojodul and Yeombudul" Program to Run Through Year-End

Siheung City in Gyeonggi Province is set to develop experiential content that utilizes the history, culture, and ecology of the Gaetgol Ecological Park and the Hojobeol area.

A panoramic view of Siheung Gaetgol Ecological Park. The city plans to operate experiential tourism content that combines the history, culture, and ecology of Gaetgol Ecological Park and Hojobeol. Provided by Siheung City

On June 10, Siheung City announced that it had been selected for the "2025 Gyeonggi-do Convergence Tourism Content Development" project, hosted by Gyeonggi Province and organized by the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization.

This project was launched by Gyeonggi Province to discover storytelling elements in local history, culture, and ecological tourism resources and to foster them as tourism content. This year, the province selected three regions, including Siheung City, as target areas. Each selected region will receive up to 150 million won in project funding.

Siheung City received high marks in the evaluation with its proposal "Hojodul and Yeombudul," which centers on Gaetgol Ecological Park and Hojobeol. Following its selection, the city plans to finalize detailed program operation plans this month and run programs for citizens and tourists through the end of the year.

"Hojodul and Yeombudul," set against the backdrop of Gaetgol and Hojobeol, is an experiential tourism content program aimed at family visitors. Gaetgol and Hojobeol are areas cultivated as reclaimed land by ancestors over 300 years ago and, during the Japanese colonial period, were developed into Sorae Salt Field, bearing the long history of local residents. The city has planned this project to reconstruct these historical and cultural backgrounds into tourism content through storytelling, allowing visitors to directly experience and connect with the deep-rooted local stories of Siheung.

Siheung Mayor Lim Byeongtaek said, "Being selected for this project has secured external funding to transform our ecological tourism destinations into landmarks, providing an opportunity to advance ecological tourism." He added, "We will develop Gaetgol Ecological Park and the Hojobeol area into the premier ecological tourism destinations in the metropolitan area."