Cities Ideal for Traveling with Pets: Pocheon and Suncheon

Development of Pet-Friendly Tourist Destinations and Travel Products
Annual Government Funding of 250 Million KRW Supported for 4 Years

Pocheon City in Gyeonggi Province and Suncheon City in Jeollanam-do have been selected as pet-friendly tourism cities. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization announced on the 5th that the two local governments will develop pet-friendly tourist destinations and travel packages this year.

Pocheon Art Valley, Pocheon-si, Gyeonggi-do

Pet-friendly tourism cities are areas where tourists can engage in activities such as lodging, experiences, and shopping together with their pets. They pursue the happy coexistence of pet owners, non-pet owners, and pets by promoting various region-specific projects, including improving accommodation readiness. Selected local governments receive up to 250 million KRW annually in national funding for up to four years, matched 1:1 by local government funds.

Park Jong-taek, Director of Tourism Policy at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said, "Traveling with pets is a rapidly growing trend in tourism," adding, "As the related industry expands, the economic ripple effect on local areas will also be significant." In fact, Ulsan City and Taean County, selected last year, have received great responses from pet owners by showcasing diverse content.

Pocheon City is establishing a Pet Welcome Center at Pocheon Art Valley and will temporarily open the Hantan River area, including Bidulginang Waterfall and Meonguri Gorge, where pet access had previously been prohibited. They will also hold music festivals and camping fiestas that allow pets. A Pocheon City official stated, "We are preparing breed-specific tourism programs, such as creating a 'large dog specialized base' in the Hantan River ecological landscape complex and developing a one-night, two-day specialized tourism package."

Green Island, Suncheon-si, Jeollanam-do

Suncheon City is spreading pet culture centered around the Pet Culture Center, which opened last year, and developing pet-specialized content by utilizing representative local tourist resources such as Suncheonman National Garden and Suncheonman Bay Wetland. They are also promoting special pet-friendly tourism programs unique to Suncheon, including camping at Suncheonman National Garden, marathons, and unique dining experiences.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism plans to form a cooperative promotion system involving the public, private, industry, and academia sectors to carry out various projects even if a city is not designated as a pet-friendly tourism city. Director Park said, "Through discovering distinctive tourism content and conducting awareness improvement campaigns, we will create cities where both pet owners and non-pet owners can be happy and comfortable."

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