Gwangyang City, Yoon Dong-ju Themed Tourism Product 'Incentive'

Increase Support Amount and Relax Conditions for Products of One Night or More

Gwangyang City, which is making every effort to brand the relationship between Korea’s most beloved poet Yoon Dong-ju and Gwangyang, has introduced the ‘Yoon Dong-ju Themed Tourism Product’ with significantly improved support measures.

Jeollanam-do Gwangyang City plans to strengthen continuous promotion by extending incentives, previously only provided for products with overnight stays, to day-trip products as well, and by relaxing conditions such as the number of visits to designated tourist sites and restaurants.

[Photo by Gwangyang-si]

The newly added day-trip product offers support of 7,000 KRW or 20,000 KRW per person when groups of 10 or more domestic tourists (residing in other cities/counties) or 4 or more foreign tourists meet conditions such as visiting at least one meal at a local restaurant and three or more tourist sites within the region.

For the existing products with overnight stays, the minimum group size of 10 or more is maintained for both domestic and international tourists, but support conditions have been relaxed to include visiting at least two meals at local restaurants and three or more tourist sites. The support amount has been significantly increased, for example, from a maximum of 500,000 KRW to 700,000 KRW per vehicle for domestic groups.

Designated tourist sites have been limited to the Jeong Byeong-wook House, where Yoon Dong-ju’s manuscripts are preserved, and the Baealdo Island Garden. Additionally, the selection has been broadened by adding Jeollanam-do Provincial Museum of Art, Inseori Park, and LF Square (Gwangyang branch) to the existing 13 local tourist sites. The deadline for submitting advance plans has also been relaxed from 10 days prior to 1 day prior.

The Yoon Dong-ju themed tourism product was established to brand the relationship between Yoon Dong-ju and Gwangyang and enhance the image of Gwangyang as a tourist city by providing incentives to travel agencies that develop and operate domestic and international travel products tracing Yoon Dong-ju’s footsteps, such as Gwangyang to China and Gwangyang to Japan routes.

Designated tourist sites include the Jeong Byeong-wook House preserving Yoon Dong-ju’s manuscripts, Baealdo Island Garden, as well as Yoon Dong-ju’s birthplace in China, Yoon Dong-ju’s grave, Yongjeong Middle School, and in Japan, Rikkyo University, Doshisha University, and Fukuoka Prison.

To receive support funds, travel agencies must submit advance plans and travel itineraries at least one day before the start of the trip, undergo prior consultation, and submit payment applications within 30 days after the end of the trip.

Jung Gu-young, Director of Tourism, said, “We have significantly improved support measures such as operating day-trip products to firmly brand the relationship between Yoon Dong-ju and Gwangyang.” He added, “We hope that the incentive support for the Yoon Dong-ju themed tourism product will clearly brand the relationship between Yoon Dong-ju and Gwangyang and serve as a catalyst to invigorate the travel industry and local economy.”

Meanwhile, Gwangyang is a city inseparably linked to Yoon Dong-ju, who preserved the handwritten and self-bound collection of poems Sky, Wind, Star, and Poem during the Japanese colonial period when the Korean language and script were banned, reviving him as Korea’s most beloved poet.

At the ‘Jeong Byeong-wook House Preserving Yoon Dong-ju’s Manuscripts (Registered Cultural Heritage No. 341)’ in Mangdeok Port, Gwangyang, the scene is vividly recreated where Yoon Dong-ju’s handwritten poems were carefully wrapped in silk cloth and stored deep beneath the wooden floor in a jar.

Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Heo Seon-sik hss79@asiae.co.kr

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