Lantern Street Lighting Ceremony and Indoor Ice Sculpture Plaza to Open on December 20, Marking the Start of the 2026 Hwacheon Sancheoneo Festival Season

Hwacheon County to Hold Lantern Street Lighting Ceremony on December 20
Traffic Controls Implemented in Downtown Hwacheon-eup

The 2026 Hwacheon Sancheoneo Festival season will kick off on December 20, signaled by the lighting ceremony at the Lantern Street.

The lighting ceremony of the Hwacheon Sancheoneo Festival lantern street held last December. Provided by Hwacheon County

Hwacheon County will hold the Lantern Street lighting ceremony at 6 p.m. on December 20 along Jungang-ro in Hwacheon-eup.

Prior to this, at 5:20 p.m., an ice-breaking ceremony will be held at the Seohwasan Multipurpose Plaza in Hwacheon-eup to mark the opening of the Indoor Ice Sculpture Plaza.

Over the past year, local seniors in the Hwacheon area have handcrafted thousands of colorful Sancheoneo lanterns and installed tens of thousands of LED lights along Lantern Street.

After the countdown, when the Sancheoneo lanterns simultaneously light up Lantern Street, a spectacular celebratory performance will follow.

This year, popular singers Cho Sungmo and Kim Jongseo will take the stage, delivering exciting performances for residents and tourists alike.

At the Indoor Ice Sculpture Plaza, which will debut on this day, visitors can admire world-famous architectural landmarks and various sculptures carved by ice art technicians from Harbin Ice and Snow Culture Development Co., Ltd., who arrived last month.

The construction of the Indoor Ice Sculpture Plaza, which covers a total area of 1,700 square meters, will use more than 8,500 blocks of ice.

The Indoor Ice Sculpture Plaza will be open to the public free of charge on its opening day, December 20.

Meanwhile, in anticipation of large crowds, Hwacheon County will implement traffic controls along the downtown section of Hwacheon-eup from 4 p.m. on December 21, just before the lighting ceremony, until the event concludes.

Choi Moonsoon, Governor of Hwacheon County, stated, "For the tourists who have waited for a year, we will return in January next year with a safe and enjoyable festival."

The 2026 Ice Kingdom Hwacheon Sancheoneo Festival will be held for 23 days from January 10 to February 1 next year, taking place along the Hwacheoncheon and throughout Hwacheon-eup.

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