Designated as a 2026-2027 Preliminary Culture and Tourism Festival
The Gimcheon Gimbap Festival, which has grown into the representative tourism brand of Gimcheon City in North Gyeongsang Province, has been finally selected as a "2026-2027 Preliminary Culture and Tourism Festival" designated by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
With this selection, the Gimbap Festival will be operated as a preliminary festival for two years and receive administrative support through expert evaluations and various project tasks, thereby laying the groundwork for it to grow into a Culture and Tourism Festival, one of Korea's representative festivals.
Scene from the Gimcheon Gimbap Festival, which grew into Gimcheon City's representative tourism brand last year / Provided by Gimcheon City Hall
Following its selection in January as the top festival designated by North Gyeongsang Province and its inclusion in the Local 100, the Gimcheon Gimbap Festival has now also been named a preliminary festival. Since it was first held in 2024, it has attracted 150,000 visitors in just two editions and ranked first in a nationwide consumer satisfaction survey of autumn festivals, achieving remarkable results that demonstrate its competitiveness.
Gimcheon City plans to continue planning distinctive festival content, strengthen stay-type programs linked with local tourism resources, and continuously improve areas such as transportation and ordering systems to enhance the overall quality of the festival.
Mayor Bae Nak-ho of Gimcheon City said, "Being selected as a preliminary festival after just two editions is a valuable achievement created by all the citizens of Gimcheon together," and added, "I hope that the Gimbap Festival will grow into a K-food culture and tourism festival representing Korea, and further into a global festival that becomes a key driver of local tourism and economic vitalization."
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