[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights around Korea

Pohang Guryongpo Gwamegi Festival The Pohang Guryongpo Gwamegi Festival celebrates gwamegi -- dried mackerel -- along with other local specialties of the Pohang city region, including snow crab and squid.The festival presents events like folk games, traditional Korean music performances, specialty product competitions and free samples.The festival is from Nov. 10-11. Admission is free.For more information in Korean, English, Japanese and Chinese, call the travel hotline at 1330. The homepage (gu

Nov. 8, 2018

Camping anywhere - in your car

Camping has been popular pastime since it became fashionable in the late 2000s. The number of campers in Korea was 600,000 in 2011 but broke 5 million in 2016, Statistics Korea estimated, suggesting a strong growth in the popularity of outdoor activities. Among many types of camping, from classic tent camping to luxurious glamping in fully-equipped cabins, camping out in a car has risen as an affordable option. (Instagram @dalnote_kang)Often called “cha-bak” in Korean, which translates to “stayi

Nov. 4, 2018

Can soulless Seoul landscape inspire world’s hearts and minds?

The Seoullo 7017 park opened in May 2017, having been refashioned from a dilapidated overpass as part of the Seoul government’s urban regeneration program. (Park Hyun-koo/The Korea Herald)Walking on the Seoullo 7017 Skypark on a chilly autumn day, I didn’t feel a trace of delight or pleasure, but sheer tedium. A cracked concrete floor stretched for a kilometer, flanked by large pots of flowers, trees and shrubs. Maudlin poetry excerpts and purple prose bedecked the pots, with tourists trying to

Nov. 1, 2018

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights around Korea

Pohang Guryongpo Gwamegi FestivalThe Pohang Guryongpo Gwamegi Festival celebrates gwamegi -- dried mackerel -- along with other local specialties of the Pohang city region, including snow crab and squid.The festival presents events like folk games, traditional Korean music performances, specialty product competitions and free samples.The festival is Nov. 10-11. Admission is free.Prior to the festival, a promotional event for the festival is being held at Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in

Nov. 1, 2018

Paradise City’s boutique hotel Art Paradiso offers special packages

Integrated resort complex Paradise City has added more art to the property with its luxury boutique hotel Art Paradiso. Situated next to Incheon Airport, the nation’s main gateway to the world, Paradise City opened its art and entertainment facilities in September, including a spa facility, a club, a shopping arcade and more. One of the facilities revealed at the time was the all-suites boutique hotel Art Paradiso.The hotel, including the rooms, the lounges and the elevators, is filled with mode

Oct. 30, 2018

39 temples to hold special foreigner templestays in November

For foreigners here looking for a chance to experience Buddhist culture, the Korean Buddhist Cultural Foundation is running “Templestay Weeks for Foreigners” from Nov. 5-30.Korean Buddhist temples are known to be peaceful and quiet, as most of them are located in mountainous regions. Templestay programs offer participants a glimpse into Buddhist temple life. Poster image for Templestay Weeks for Foreigners (Korean Buddhist Cultural Foundation)During the promotional period, 39 temples across Kore

Oct. 28, 2018

[Eye Plus] Fall colors Seoul

“I‘m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers,” Anne said while watching the beautiful autumn scenery of the Green Gables. Many Seoulites seem to feel the same. South Korea used to be known for having distinctive four seasons in a year, but spring and fall are getting shorter year by year. To fully enjoy the short period of the autumn season, people in Seoul are flooding to popular picnic spots in the city. Many families, couples and friends can be spotted taking selfies and

Oct. 25, 2018

From Goryeong, Sancheong to Busan, a taste of traditional culture

Korea is a country with rich culture and lengthy history, spanning across nearly five millennia. Taking a trip across Goryeong-gun in South Gyeongsang Province, one can come across remnants of one of Korea’s ancient civilizations -- Gaya.Trekking across remains of Daegaya KingdomGoryeong is where Daegaya Kingdom, one of the leading powers of the Gaya confederacy that occupied the southern part of the peninsula, had been based in before succumbing to invasion by Silla Kingdom in 562 AD. The small

Oct. 25, 2018

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights around Korea

Halloween at COEX AquariumCoex Aquarium is hosting series of events to commemorate Halloween, from raffle events to photo zones set up under the theme of the spooky holiday.Halloween-themed photo zones in the Garden of Jellyfish feature sea creatures that fit their theme, such as a spider crab zone set on the theme of spiders. At the Deep Blue Aquare at 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, children can get Halloween candy after Octonaut Underwater Performance.Those who post photos of

Oct. 25, 2018

Can Koreans use up their annual leave?

With less than three months left in 2018, South Korean workers are scurrying to use up their remaining annual leave in light of the Moon government’s new overtime policy. Traditionally, November hasn’t been the most favorable time to travel, but under the Moon Jae-in administration’s new 52-hour maximum workweek policy, more workers are getting a chance.According to a survey carried out by trip expense comparison site Skyscanner, out of 576 respondents, 66 percent said they still had part of the

Oct. 24, 2018

[Photo News] Falling for fall

In South Korea, the arrival of fall is apparent when the leaves change into a stunning array of colors. From mid-October to late November, visitors can witness a landscape full of beautiful reds, oranges and yellows. The autumn foliage usually reaches its peak in early November in the capital city of Seoul. First-time visitors should visit Gyeongbok Palace in central Seoul to enjoy the scenery. Clad in trench coats, many Korean workers were spotted in Seoul’s Boramae Park, enjoying a stroll duri

Oct. 24, 2018

[Video] Autumn blooms in pink nationwide

This autumn, photogenic muhly grass and kochia bushes have dyed South Korea’s landscape a mesmerizing shade of pink. Usually full of red, orange and yellow from the autumn leaves, the online world is now full of pink scenery and selfies shot at muhly parks, which are popping up fast around the nation.(Shot and edited by Choi Ji-won and Lee So-jeong / The Korea Herald)Although some worry that these exotic plants risk disturbing the natural botanic ecosystem, most people are welcoming of the muhly

Oct. 23, 2018

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights around Korea

Daejeon Science Festival Daejeon Science Festival provides a chance for visitors to experience advanced technology, particularly with hands-on activities for children.It is runs Oct.19-22, from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. The festival is open to visitors of all ages, free of charge, although some paid programs are also available.Call the travel hotline at 1330 for more information in Korean, English, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, Vietnamese. The homepage (www.djsf.kr) is only in Korean.Busan One Asia Festiv

Oct. 18, 2018

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights around Korea

Healing Yoga’ at Coex Aquarium Coex Aquarium is holding an event that allows visitors to look at aquatic life while doing yoga. The “Healing Yoga” session to be held at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 19 will take place at the Ocean Kingdom zone of the aquarium, which has various sea creatures including sharks, rays and sea turtles. A specialist in Jivamukti Yoga will lead the session.Those who wish to participate can register via the aquarium’s homepage (www.coexaqua.com). No additional charge is required fo

Oct. 11, 2018

[Eye Plus] Autumn in full bloom

The crisp cool breeze of fall brings out the colors of nature. Cheorwon, Gangwon Province, is famous for the demilitarized zone that bisects the Korean Peninsula, and heavy snow in the winter, but at a slightly warmer time of the year, beds of cosmos fill the tension-filled border lands. (Photographed by Park Hyun-koo/The Korea Herald)Through joint effort of Cheorwon County and its residents, the Cheorwon Cosmos 10-ri Road was born three years ago, on a strip of land that used to serve as an old

Oct. 11, 2018

Botanic park in Magok opens for test operation

A massive botanic park will open in Magok, western Seoul, on Thursday, with entrance fees waivered for citizens until April 2019. The Seoul Botanic Park will be test-operated for six months, before opening officially next May, according to the city government on Tuesday.(Seoul city government)Construction of the park, which began in November 2015, took more than three years to complete. Spanning 50,400 square meters of land, approximately the size of 70 soccer fields, the park currently contains

Oct. 10, 2018

Seoullo 7017 turns into playground for mobile game

Visitors to Seoullo 7017 will be able to accomplish missions on an interactive mobile game app while walking along the pedestrian overpass in Jung-gu, Seoul, starting Wednesday. Seoul Metropolitan City and the Seoul Tourism Organization have jointly launched a game called “City of Love: Seoul,” which will be available from Wednesday through end-November. The game is offered through the Real World app, which can be downloaded free of charge.  Seoullo 7017 (Park Hyun-koo/The Korea Herald) (realwor

Oct. 9, 2018

[Travel Bits] Festivals, sights around Korea

‘Healing Yoga’ at Coex AquariumCoex Aquarium is holding an event that allows visitors to look at aquatic life while doing yoga. The “Healing Yoga” session to be held at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 19 will take place at the Ocean Kingdom zone of the aquarium, which has various sea creatures including sharks, rays and sea turtles. A specialist in Jivamukti Yoga will lead the session.Those who wish to participate can register via the aquarium’s homepage (www.coexaqua.com). No additional charge is required fo

Oct. 4, 2018

[Eye Plus] Walk along Seoul Fortress in autumn

The Seoul Fortress consists of an 18.6-kilometer-long wall that surrounds Hanyang, the former capital of the Joseon era. Though parts of it were damaged during Japan’s colonial rule and the Korean War, the wall has been standing for some 600 years and today overlooks the urbanized capital, Seoul.One of the four trail sections, which goes around Naksan, offers a scenic route where visitors can enjoy both historic sites and the massive urbanscape of the city. (Photographed by Park Hyun-koo/The Kor

Oct. 4, 2018

Vestiges of melting pot in fallen city Ayutthaya

PHRA NAKHON SI AYUTTHAYA, Thailand -- Before a brutal Burmese invasion in the late 18th century, the city of Ayutthaya, the second capital of the Siamese Kingdom for four centuries, was a grand Buddhist city where international trade and art prospered. Its population rivaled that of contemporary London or Paris in its prime.  A large stone Buddha statue and headless statues sit in front of a prang in Wat Mahathat. (Son Ji-hyoung/The Korea Herald)Buddhist temples and royal relics were strewn acro

Oct. 4, 2018