33rd Taebaeksan Snow Festival Concludes Successfully... Firmly Established as a Stay-Type Winter Festival

Taebaek City Launches 2026 REAL Taebaeksan Snow Festival
Laying the Foundation for a Stay-Type Winter Festival by Enhancing Content
Improved Snow Sculpture Quality and Unique Winter Attractions
Expanded Family Experience Programs and Operated as a Participatory Festival

The Taebaek City Cultural Foundation announced on the 10th that the 33rd Taebaeksan Snow Festival, one of Korea's leading winter festivals, was held over nine days from January 31 to February 8 at Taebaeksan National Park and concluded successfully.

'The 33rd Taebaeksan Snow Festival'. Provided by Taebaek City

"The 33rd Taebaeksan Snow Festival." Provided by Taebaek City

This year’s festival was held under the slogan “2026 REAL (Remember, Reply, Relax) Taebaeksan Snow Festival,” and was run as a winter festival focused on experiences and longer stays, rather than mainly on viewing.

The festival enhanced the quality of its content through large-scale snow sculptures that reflected Taebaek’s regional characteristics and K-culture. At “Snow Land” in Dangol Square, snow sculptures themed on Korea’s cultural heritage and food were installed, including a “Red Horse” gate symbolizing the Byeongo Year (丙午年) of 2026, and received an enthusiastic response from visitors.

In addition, the “Igloo Cafeteria,” which returned this year, offered a unique experience space where visitors could enjoy hot drinks in an area made of snow and ice, attracting many tourists throughout the festival period. The snow sculptures and igloos that took advantage of Taebaek’s natural environment, with its average altitude of 900 meters, have established themselves as signature content of the Taebaeksan Snow Festival.

Furthermore, the festival operated night sessions until 10 p.m., allowing visitors to view the snow sculptures at night. The snow sculptures, illuminated by lighting, created an atmosphere distinct from the daytime, and this confirmed the potential for expanding nighttime content at future Taebaeksan Snow Festivals.

Experience programs for family visitors were also expanded. Various indoor and outdoor programs were offered, including a large snow sledding hill with an extended run to add more thrills compared to previous years, an indoor kids’ playground, a mini Winter Olympics, and roasted chestnut and Garaetteok grilling experiences, creating a festival environment where all generations, from children to seniors, could participate.

A representative of the Taebaek City Cultural Foundation said, “This year’s Taebaeksan Snow Festival was operated as a stay-type winter festival by enhancing the quality of existing core content such as snow sculptures and igloos, and by strengthening family-oriented experience programs,” adding, “We will continue to develop winter tourism content that leverages Taebaek’s climate and natural environment.”

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