"The Era of Brief Visits Is Over... Regional Tourism Shifts to Stay-Oriented Experiences"

Regional Balanced Development Conference to Be Held in Conjunction with Naenara Travel Expo

The Korea Tourism Association announced on March 6 that, together with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, it will hold the "Regional Balanced Development Conference" during the "2026 Naenara Travel Expo" to discuss strategies for regional culture-based stay and experience tourism.

The Korea Tourism Association announced that, together with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, it will hold the "Regional Balanced Development Conference" during the "2026 Naenara Travel Expo" to discuss regional culture-based stay-type and experience-type tourism strategies. Photo by Korea Tourism Association

This conference will take place on March 20 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:40 p.m. at the main stage inside the COEX Magok Exhibition Hall in Seoul. The aim is to explore strategies and policy directions for transforming various regional cultural contents—such as unique local history, culture, festivals, and traditional markets—into stay and experience-oriented tourism linked with the tourism industry.

During the sessions, tourism experts will participate in thematic presentations and discussions. Professor Kim Sibum of the Graduate School of Hallyu Culture at Kyungkuk National University will deliver a presentation on "The Impact of Diverse Regional Cultural Contents on Regional Tourism," while Kim Myun, Senior Research Fellow at the Korea Culture & Tourism Institute, will present on "Strategies Based on Cultural Contents for Cities Facing the Crisis of Regional Extinction."

Subsequently, Jang Hobum, Team Leader at the Southern Gyeongnam Regional Headquarters of the Korea Small Enterprise and Market Service, will address "Specialized Development of Traditional Markets and Commercial Districts and Linkage to Regional Tourism Resources." Baek Gyeongha, CEO of the Regional Cultural Content Research Institute Social Cooperative, will present "From Consumption to Stay: The Power of Regional Culture-Based Tourism Content." Seol Dongwon, CEO of Made in People, will introduce a case study under the theme "May the Local We Create Become Your Future."

In the comprehensive discussion, Professor Kim Sibum will serve as moderator, joined by Senior Research Fellow Kim Myun, Team Leader Jang Hobum, CEO Baek Gyeongha, and CEO Seol Dongwon, as they discuss ways to vitalize regional tourism through the linkage of regional cultural content.

Applications to participate in the conference can be submitted until March 13 via the poster QR code or through the Naenara Travel Expo website.

Lee Kyungsoo, President of the Korea Tourism Association, stated, "Connecting each region's unique culture and contents with tourism is an important task for revitalizing the regional economy and establishing a sustainable tourism ecosystem. Through this conference, we hope to explore together the possibilities and policy directions for regional culture-based tourism, and create a catalyst for spreading domestic tourism demand nationwide."

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