The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Minister CHAE Hwi-young, MCST), together with the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), has selected three festivals—the Boryeong Mud Festival, Andong Maskdance Festival, and Jinju Namgang Yudeung Festival—as “Global Festivals,” key content designed to accelerate the goal of attracting 30 million inbound tourists. In addition, four festivals—the Daegu Chimac Festival, Busan International Rock Festival, Sunchang Fermented Soybean Festival, and Jeongnamjin Jangheung Water Festival—have been designated as “Preliminary Global Festivals.” Of the 45 Cultural Tourism Festivals for 2026, 27 participated in the open call for this selection. Final designations were determined through written expert evaluations and presentation assessments.

KRW 800 Million Annually for 3 Years to Intensively Foster “Global Festivals”

The MCST will intensively nurture Global Festivals for three years as key content to achieve the goal of attracting 30 million inbound tourists earlier than planned. The three festivals designated as Global Festivals in 2024—the Incheon Pentaport Music Festival, Suwon Hwaseong Cultural Festival, and Hwacheon Sancheoneo Ice Festival—attracted a total of approximately 130,000 international visitors in 2025.

The Incheon Pentaport Music Festival raised its profile by hosting prefestival performances and pop-up stores near Hongdae, a popular area among young international tourists. Following its designation as a Global Festival, the Suwon Hwaseong Cultural Festival significantly extended its festival period to eight days (from three), developed tourism products exclusively for international visitors, and operated a dedicated information lounge, “Global Village,” to improve convenience for international tourists. Meanwhile, the Hwacheon Sancheoneo Ice Festival, mainly targeting visitors from Taiwan and Southeast Asia, has established itself as a premier winter destination in Korea by creating new attractions such as the Santa Village Photo Zone.

The newly selected Global Festivals will receive up to KRW 800 million annually for a maximum of three years, while Preliminary Global Festivals will receive KRW 250 million annually. The support will help the festivals at least double their number of international visitors within the support period by establishing inbound tourism strategies, developing new experiential content, introducing systems[1] to enhance the receptiveness and convenience for international tourists¹, and building a Global Festival network for international exchange and joint promotion.

In particular, the MCST plans to develop a variety of tourism products, leveraging the distinctive content of each Global Festival to attract international visitors to Korea. Andong, a cultural city of Korea, will develop tourism products showcasing Korea’s traditional culture by linking the Maskdance Festival with Seonyu Julbul Nori (traditional fireworks over the river) and Hahoe Village. The Boryeong Mud Festival will strengthen K-Beauty tourism content by leveraging mud and extending its signature Mud Mob Scene into the nighttime to enhance content competitiveness. The MCST will also support collaboration with major international online travel agencies (OTAs), such as KKday and Klook, so that international tourists can conveniently purchase tourism products linked to Global Festivals. Furthermore, moving beyond conventional promotional approaches, such as producing promotional videos and participating in festival expos, the Ministry will actively pursue customized promotion by identifying core markets and target audiences for each Global Festival and enabling them to directly experience core content in major cities overseas.

Global Festivals and Preliminary Global Festivals to Boost Regional Tourism

The MCST will also leverage the Global Festivals and Preliminary Global Festivals to encourage both local and international tourists to visit local regions. The Ministry will develop regional tourism products in partnership with local governments to help festival visitors spend more time in the surrounding areas. The Jinju Namgang Yudeung Festival will capitalize on its advantage as a nighttime festival and collaborate with neighboring municipalities in Gyeongsangnam-do Province, including Sancheong, Sacheon, and Goseong, to develop stay-oriented tourism products. On the other hand, the Andong International Maskdance Festival plans to offer festivalgoers perks, such as free admission to major tourist attractions in Andong and nearby cities, including Mungyeong, Yeongju, and Goryeong, through intercity collaboration.

Minister CHAE Hwi-young stated, “This year is the optimal time for Korea’s tourism to leap forward. We will work to develop diverse tourism products centered on Global Festivals and Preliminary Global Festivals and improve convenience for international visitors so that the strong global interest in K-Culture can translate into visits to festival grounds—the ultimate K-Culture experience.”

Ο Global Festivals (2026–2028) and Preliminary Global Festivals (2026)