Five New Regions, Including Gwangmyeong in Gyeonggi and Seocheon in Chungnam, Selected for Tourism Dure Program

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on January 19 that, together with the Korea Tourism Organization, it has selected five new regions for the 2026 Tourism Dure program: Gwangmyeong City in Gyeonggi Province, Seocheon County in South Chungcheong Province, Haenam County in South Jeolla Province, Jung-gu in Ulsan, and Cheorwon County in Gangwon Province. In addition, five Tourism Dure PDs who will be active in these regions have also been selected.

Tourism Dure is a resident-led tourism policy initiative in which local community groups work with Tourism Dure PDs to independently address local tourism issues and operate tourism businesses with unique local characteristics in fields such as accommodation, food and beverage, travel, and experiences. Launched in 2013, the program has, as of last year, discovered and fostered 195 Tourism Dure PDs and 998 community-run tourism enterprises in 147 regions.

For the selection of the 2026 Tourism Dure program regions and PDs, a public call was held, attracting applications from a total of 33 regions and 60 Tourism Dure PD candidates. The Ministry and the Korea Tourism Organization conducted a two-stage evaluation process-an initial document review followed by a comprehensive second-round assessment-based on criteria such as the candidates’ expertise, understanding of and engagement with the region, capability for business development and outcome generation, and plans for cooperation with local governments, ultimately selecting the final program regions.

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The Tourism Dure PDs selected this year will be responsible for discovering local community groups and providing close support from the planning stage to help them grow into self-sustaining tourism businesses. The Ministry plans to support Tourism Dure PDs for up to five years with activity expenses and capacity-building training so that they can settle into the field, accumulate expertise, and achieve ongoing results. In addition, tourism enterprises will receive support such as entrepreneurship education, consulting, and market development assistance.

Detailed information on the newly selected Tourism Dure program regions and PDs can be found on the Tourism Dure website and the Korea Tourism Organization website.

Kang Dongjin, Director of Tourism Policy at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, stated, "Tourism Dure, a resident-led tourism model in which local residents directly plan and operate tourism businesses, has produced tangible results in the field, including job creation, diversification of tourism content, and reinvestment of tourism revenue into the local community." He added, "The Ministry will further strengthen the results-oriented support system through Tourism Dure, focusing policy efforts on enabling local residents and Tourism Dure PDs to grow together and on building a foundation for community groups to operate businesses stably and develop independently."