Busy Preparing to Welcome Guests for the 24th Hampyeong Butterfly Festival Returning to Daily Life

From the 29th to the 8th of next month, for 10 days at Expo Park and Eup City Area

Nightscapes, VR Experience Zone, Drive-in Theater... Plenty of Attractions to Enjoy

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Chunsu] Ahead of the opening of the ‘24th Hampyeong Butterfly Festival,’ resuming after three years under the theme ‘Hampyeong Butterfly! Spreading the Wings of Hope,’ Hampyeong County is busy preparing to welcome guests.

According to the county on the 24th, the ‘24th Hampyeong Butterfly Festival,’ Korea’s premier spring festival, will be held for ten days from April 29 to May 8 at Hampyeong Expo Park and the downtown area.

This is the first time in three years since 2019 that the ‘Butterfly Festival,’ Hampyeong County’s representative festival which was canceled due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, will be held.

This year’s butterfly is the ‘Tiger Butterfly,’ symbolizing the county’s emblem. The strong reproductive and active power of the tiger butterfly represents the infinite development and eternal prosperity of the residents.

At the Butterfly Festival, visitors can see 500,000 colorful flowers of over 30 varieties including Shapinia, and 220,000 butterflies of 23 species all in one place. In addition, a rich variety of experience programs are prepared to captivate the visitors’ five senses.

At the central plaza of Expo Park, there will be butterfly flying experiences, a butterfly playground, a butterfly tunnel, and butterfly insect experience programs. On the lawn plaza, the Butterfly Experience Zone will operate with about 20 booths including traditional play zones, air slides, and ball pools.

The festival grounds filled with flowers and butterflies will shine brilliantly with beautiful nightscape lighting after dark. Nightscape lighting decorated with flowers throughout Expo Park will add a unique look to the park, embroidered with colorful lights.

During the festival, from 8 PM to 9 PM daily, a ‘media facade’ performance projected on the butterfly-shaped exterior wall will provide a spectacular nighttime attraction. Produced under the theme ‘The Hidden Story of Hampyeong Butterflies,’ it is planned to captivate visitors’ attention.

Events such as ‘EDM Night’ and ‘Retro GOGO Party,’ which evoke nostalgia for the 70s and 80s, as well as the ‘EDM Kids’ program for children, will be held regularly.

Programs to revitalize the local economy by attracting stay-type tourists are also prepared.

A sales booth for agricultural specialty products will operate in the Butterfly and Hwangso parking lots, and a mobile stamp tour program linking the downtown area and the festival site will be conducted.

Additionally, a tour train will be deployed to assist movement around the festival area and Hampyeong downtown, and on May 5 and 7, four shuttle buses will run daily between Daedong-myeon Hampyeong County Culture and Sports Center and the festival site to facilitate visitors’ convenience.

The recently opened ‘VR Experience Center’ on the first floor of the Expo Park Theme Video Hall is also attracting attention. Here, visitors can experience 12 VR (Virtual Reality) rides such as roller coasters, underwater exploration, and paragliding, as well as AR (Augmented Reality) activities like screen shooting and screen soccer.

The operating hours are from 9 AM to 5 PM on weekdays (closed every Monday), with extended hours until 6 PM on weekends.

Also, the ‘Hampyeong Drive-in Theater,’ where visitors can watch movies from their cars after dark, is located adjacent to the festival site and is expected to be crowded during the festival period. The county opened the ‘Hampyeong Drive-in Theater’ in January last year at the Hwangso parking lot in Expo Park, operating two screening rooms. New movies are released weekly, making it a popular contactless cultural spot.

Acting Mayor Lee Byung-yong of Hampyeong County said, “We ask for your great interest and support for the 24th Hampyeong Butterfly Festival, welcoming guests this spring after three years. With social distancing restrictions lifted and a return to daily life approaching, we hope everyone tired from the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic will come to Hampyeong and enjoy the beautiful spring days.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.